Why Direct Mail Is Still Top Political Campaign Tool

At Beyond Voter Lists, we specialize in supporting political direct marketing, especially when it come to targeted data for postal efforts. So we're happy to read that one takeaway from this year's major political marketing conferences is the continued value of direct mail. In Campaigns & Elections magazine, Elena Neely, national lead for the U.S. Postal Service® (USPS) Political Mail Outreach efforts, describes five reasons she supports that conclusion. Let's start with an obvious one: Mail is still the only campaign channel with 100% voter reach since you have to have a mailing address to register to vote. Next, direct mail is a highly targetable medium, and political campaign success today relies more on targeting specific audiences than mass marketing. The proof is in Borrell Associates’ 2016 political advertising analysis report that more targetable media, including digital, cable and direct mail, “gained $1.7 billion over 2012 spending levels while radio, TV and newspapers lost nearly $1.3 billion.” Next, direct mail retains a place in the campaign promotional mix because there just is no one-size-fits-all medium for audience targeting; as the Pew Research Center found, people are influenced by multiple information sources, with nearly half of 2016 respondents learning about the presidential race from five or more types of sources, ranging from cable television to social media to campaign e-mails. Direct mail also fits easily into a multichannel effort; for example, campaigns can use a mailer's QR code to digitally connect voters to a social media platform or campaign website. Yes, different generations and demographics respond to direct mail differently, but it works well across the board. A 2016 USPS survey not only found that 46% of baby boomers ranked mail as their preferred political ad format but younger millennials also rated political mail “important” for state elections (82%), local elections (80%) and even national races (76%). And when it comes to vital swing voters, 58% said mail was “very or somewhat helpful,” and that compares with television (55%), digital ads (48%) and e-mail (46%). Finally, as attention spans shorten and media noise escalates, direct mail can use tangible creativity to grab share of mind, with dimensional mail, audio mail and video mail as examples. For the complete article, go to https://www.campaignsandelections.com/campaign-insider/5-things-every-campaign-should-know-about-direct-mail-last-cycle

Can Facebook Kick Up 2016 Political Donations?

Will Facebook become a more significant ingredient in the political fundraising mix of 2016 candidates and causes? Consider mid-term election research conducted by Facebook, as reported in a recent medipost.com article. Facebook tracked the Senate campaigns of Democrats Michelle Nunn of Georgia and Mark Udall of Colorado. OK, so the candidates lost, but their Facebook ads won in terms of donor power. Facebook found that not only did Facebook ads provide at least a 200% ROI but people who saw the ads gave more on average than those who did not. Specifically, people who viewed Udall's Facebook ad gave $47.87 on average, while those who did not see the ad gave an average $42.70. There are good reasons Facebook will be an attractive fundraising addition in 2016, argues a recent mediapost.com article by Shawn Kemp, co-founder of ActionSprout, which helps nonprofits optimize Facebook. Facebook has the deepest social reach: 42% of Americans have a Facebook account, compared with 19% on Twitter, the second-largest social network. Facebook offers attractive targeting options such as geo-targeting and look-alike audiences. And Facebook ads, while not a key donation driver alone, can have a multiplier effect in multi-channel efforts, as shown by Facebook's mid-term election experiments. So, for example, combining Facebook ads with an e-mail campaign to the same targeted list could boost giving per donor. For more, see http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/248996/facebook-advertising-matters-for-political-fundrai.html#

2016 Hopefuls Provide Useful Campaign Checklist

A checklist of campaign tasks derived from 2016 presidential hopefuls provides useful insights for any candidate or campaign. An article by Associated Press journalist Calvin Woodward recently summarized the tasks: get to know donors, get the public to know you on TV and social media, visit big primary states (or top cities or neighborhoods in the case of more local campaigns and candidates), network with the activists and ideologues, produce a vanity book, polish a record, deflect personal baggage, take a stand, develop a world view (or a state or local view), scout for advisers and political organizations that can power up a campaign team. Then the article shows what national political players are doing: For the Democrats, Vice President Joe Biden, former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley; and for the Republicans, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal; Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. There are some nuggets to mine from these major political players! Take a look at the full article at http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/08/19/5090573/2016-campaign-checklist-whos-doing.html

Gleaning Campaign Lessons From Advocacy Groups

Advocacy groups know that campaigning doesn't end with an election cycle -- working to get supporters engaged and active is their year-round mission. A recent "Campaign & Elections" magazine article pointed up five lessons that advocacy organizations may have for your campaign or cause. A quick summary starts with keeping staff and processes flexible and working outside of the communications silos. Second, advertise to scale: A small targeted social media campaign that leverages influencers can deliver more bang for the buck than trying to target within a big ad buy. Third, when you create those ads, stay on message but don't avoid creative, outside-the-box appeals to attract a broader audience. Indeed, engagement is the name of the game, advocacy groups remind; keep the channels that worked during an election cycle active and promoting, win or lose. And, finally, your organization doesn't have to go it alone; leveraging like-minded groups to cooperate on a short-term campaign can have long-term benefits. For the complete article, go to http://www.campaignsandelections.com/magazine/us-edition/361487/learning-from-the-advocacy-world.thtml

Campaigns Need New Media in Multichannel Mix

Although the 2012 election's partisan messages may be familiar, they are delivered in unusually diverse ways this time around. Indeed, an integrated, multi-channel communications mix is the hallmark of the tight Presidential race and has key lessons for candidates, causes and corporations moving forward, asserts a recent blog post by marketing pro Ernan Roman. Traditionally, TV, print and radio have been the mainstays of presidential campaigns, but they're no longer enough to engage today’s multi-channel public, the blog notes. Social media sharing, mobile fundraising, and online ads are essential parts of the media mix for campaigns now. To underscore the point, the blog post points to recent Borrell Associates research that found that while candidates still primarily use traditional media, campaign ads dropped from 61.9% to 57.3% for TV since the 2008 election, while online media received six times more funding than it did in 2008. Conclusion: Power up all elements of the media mix if you want to engage today’s multi-channel consumers! For more, see the post at http://ernanroman.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-election-multichannel-marketing.html

'Obama Effect' Has Lessons for Online Fundraisers

The Obama for America campaign in 2008 brought the power of online fundraising to the forefront, and there are some key lessons for multichannel fundraisers who seek to emulate that online success. A recent afpnet.org article "The Obama Effect: 20 Takeaways for Multichannel Fundraisers" lays out ideas critical to online fundraising, drawing from a high-level study “Cross-Channel Fundraising Tips and Trends” by Direct Marketing IQ. The first three findings make the case for amping up online giving efforts: Online does not cannibalize direct mail, older donors are online now, and online donors are extremely valuable. The article goes on to supply cogent tips on how to implement a digital program for maximum results. Check it out at http://www.afpnet.org/ResourceCenter/ArticleDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=13363