Hillary's Campaign Logo: Follow the Arrow to Action

Hillary Clinton launched her presidential bid with a new campaign logo: two blue pillars with a rightward-pointing red arrow between to form a capital H. Social media wits, graphic design critics and political pundits may scoff, but a recent Target Marketing magazine article points out why Hillary's logo and its arrow could hit the political marketing bull's-eye. The article cites research from Bounce Exchange, for example, which has found that adding an arrow to online call-to-action improves conversion by 22%. So Hillary's campaign is placing her logo in crucial spots to aim eyes toward her comments and CTA requests to volunteer and donate now, and presumably to vote down the road. It's too soon to say that it's working, but the logo isn't hurting Clinton's drive to stay ahead of other candidates in converting followers and inspiring social engagement. Read more at http://www.targetmarketingmag.com/article/hillary-clinton-demonstrates-cta-know-how/1

Are Weak Mobile Efforts Hurting 2014 Campaigns?

Investing in digital and social media advertising is a basic for most campaigns and causes today. But are they paying enough attention to the mobile face of their efforts? A recent post for Streetwise Media's InTheCapital argues that many campaigns in the 2014 midterm races are missing out on votes and donation dollars because of weak mobile strategies. Post author Tess VandenDolder notes that too many political mobile sites are still slow and glitchy, with tiny hard-to-read text. Plus, volunteer and donation sign-ups require clicking on multiple links and filling out complex forms. That poor mobile experience can really undermine success, she asserts, because campaigns get roughly 50% of their online traffic today from mobile sites. Why haven't more campaigns followed in the footsteps of the 2012 Obama campaign's "Quick Donate" process, which accounted for $3 million in donations alone? It sent supporters text message solicitations and allowed prior donors to donate again with just the click of a link, since personal information was already saved in the system. VandenDolder posits that one reason current campaigns still lag in mobile development is quite simply the cost: An excellent mobile site can cost $12,000 to $16,000, she notes, which is a big chunk of change for smaller campaigns, especially for an effort that may be obsolete after the election. But in a time when mobile is ubiquitous, the return on investment is significant, and campaigns should think twice about leaving so much on the table by tossing away their mobile card. To read the complete article, go to http://inthecapital.streetwise.co/2014/09/11/political-campaigns-still-just-dont-understand-mobile-and-are-losing-money-because-of-it/

Online Politicking: Versatile Must for 2014 Campaigns

Every savvy candidate and advocacy group in 2014 is going to do some Internet politicking. But do they know how to maximize their online power? "How to Use the Internet to Win in 2014: A Comprehensive Guide to Online Politics for Campaigns and Advocates" offers itself as one guidebook. As summarized by Colin Delany, founder of Epolitics.com, for the Huffington Post, a winning strategy includes both online fundraising, for repeat pushes of those donate buttons, and online recruiting, for donors and volunteers who will become viral emissaries in turn. Campaigns are advised on mobilizing supporters to participate in e-mail efforts, virtual phone banks and digital rallies. Grassroots organizing is given a digital spin, too, with iPads, tablets and other mobile devices used as on-site donation takers (via mobile credit card readers) as well as dispensers of maps, videos and canvass talking points. Digital advertising, meanwhile, can be made more effective with improved analytics and targeting. The Internet is also a great way to quick-test, from A/B subject-line splits to complex positioning. Worried about the high cost of a shotgun mass media effort? Online geographic selection can offer cheaper and more precise targeting. Finally, the Internet is a rapid-response weapon in case of attacks and unfavorable coverage. For more, go to the blog post at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/colin-delany/the-internet-in-politics-_b_4420094.html

HealthCare.gov Mess Has Lessons for Campaigns

What can the Obamacare website debacle teach a political marketer, or a brand marketer for that matter? A recent online post by David Heitman, president of a Colorado branding and PR firm, lays out some cogent lessons for campaigns and causes. The first obvious lesson, he writes, is that it's better to launch late than launch badly. The second lesson is to put a premium on critical feedback. Apparently, pre-launch issues with the HealthCare.gov website didn't get to the top, or the top didn't listen. Next, when something goes wrong, remember that the media and the voters can forgive a mistake but not a cover-up. Trying to deny or hide the truth only incites the media and sours supporters. And don't underestimate the intelligence of your audience by trying to mislead in a world of click-speed data sharing. As Heitman points out, when HHS boasted that 15 million visits showed the popularity of HealthCare.gov, Pew Research could quickly counter that 70% of those visitors had insurance and were not serious shoppers. The impact of technical errors on the Obama administration's credibility also underscores the vulnerability of candidates and campaigns to their high-tech advisors. Make sure your campaign has invested in a proven, trustworthy technical team! But perhaps the toughest political lessons are how failure in the details can undermine the larger vision, and how a launch stumble can risk the race. See the full post at http://www.bcbr.com/article/20131108/EDITION0806/131109942/-1/DigitalEdition

New GOP Digital Effort Hopes to Leapfrog Dems

Republican operatives have launched a digital enterprise they hope will "leapfrog" the Democrats' 2012 high-tech data-mining success, according to a recent story by the National Journal. The new Media Group of America (MGA) LLC includes a digital consulting firm, a center-right news site with over 3.5 million monthly visitors, and an online technology tool called the Central Organizing Responder (COR). COR can merge data into one platform to create detailed targeting profiles of voters and supporters. GOP campaigners will be able to integrate canvassing lists, phone banks, fundraising reports, event sign-ins and social networks with outside data for real-time insights. Democrats interviewed expressed skepticism about the potential of the Republican digital initiative, but some experts saw a key advantage: The GOP digital technology will be for sale. The Obama campaign developed a proprietary machine whose operatives have since split up into various lobbying, party and for-profit efforts, but the GOP system is built for continuity and adaptability, to be shared online by multiple campaigns with different systems and budgets. MGA is already signing clients, ranging from the Republican Congressional Committee to the Boeing Company. For the full story, see http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/why-democrats-are-laughing-at-the-republican-digital-strategy-and-why-they-shouldn-t-be-20130729

Celebrating 30 Years As a List Professional

Today marks my 30th consecutive year as a list professional. I began my apprenticeship at Mike Wilson List Council, Inc. on August 22, 1983. Now, as CEO and president of AccuList, Inc., parent company of AccuList USA and Beyond Voter Lists, I can look back on a career that has grown with the direct marketing industry, expanding from traditional direct mail list and insert media brokerage and management to include e-mail marketing, online advertising, mobile marketing and social media. Today the Direct Marketing Association refers to me and a few others as "Data Innovators" or "List Leaders." My thanks to the thousands of clients and direct marketing industry colleagues who have made my 30-year journey so rewarding! For a synopsis of my career highlights, see my LinkedIn profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/dkanter

Some Ways to Reach the Elusive Millenial Donor

Campaigns and causes are sometimes frustrated in their fundraising efforts to target the elusive Millenials, people born between 1980 and 2000. One reason is that they may be using the wrong marketing tactics and channels based on what worked well with previous generations. A recent article on npEngage.com by Emily Goodstein, herself a Millenial, provided some statistics that hint at how to find Millenial donors. First, note that 65% of Millennials prefer to learn about a nonprofit through its website and 55% prefer to learn about it through forms of social media. So you better have both an active website and an active presence on Facebook. Goodstein makes a second key point: Some 47% of Millennials prefer to support nonprofits with their time, while only 16% prefer to give exclusively through financial support. So develop an engagement strategy that goes beyond asking for financial contributions! Finally, Millennials prefer learning from peers, so it's time to investigate peer-to-peer fundraising tools. For more, go to http://www.npengage.com/fundraising/millennial-donors-please-stand/

What to Do When Direct Mail Misses Young Donors

What can a nonprofit do when its usual direct mail efforts aren't attracting enough younger donors? Chet Dalzell recently commented in Target Marketing Magazine on an interesting marketing strategy by Covenant House, a nonprofit helping homeless children. In 2012, Covenant House was disappointed in its direct mail results with younger prospects so it went hunting online, setting up a series of petitions through Care2, the online social action community, on four topics: child trafficking, emergency health care, aging out of foster care, and domestic violence. They received names and online contact information from tens of thousands and this year used those names in a three-part e-mail series relevant to each petition subject, seeking to turn digital fans into donors. Those who didn't respond to the e-mails got a telemarketing call. Early results are positive, per Dalzell, but direct mail hasn't been dropped as a result. Since multi-channel donors are more generous and sustained givers, the young digital donors should look to see a direct mail piece in the near future, and direct mail continues to be Covenant House's "workhorse" of acquisition, says Dalzell. Bottom line: The lesson isn't "to mail or not to mail"; it's about a smart multi-channel mix, segmentation and testing. For more, see the article at http://www.targetmarketingmag.com/blog/is-there-generation-gap-among-direct-mail-responders

Former Obama Campaign CTO Shares Lessons

Today's data-driven, social-media-heavy political marketing requires support of a skilled technical team for success. Who better to give advice than Harper Reed, former CTO of the Obama campaign? Reed was the keynote speaker at the Business Marketing Association Chicago's Fuel Keynote & Expo in May. Creating the right team was one focus: both hiring smart people and not being afraid to "prune" ineffective performers. "Practicing for failure" was another piece of advice, meaning anticipating and preparing for technical problems in advance. Reed said his team spent a month enacting myriad technological breakdowns so they would be ready for anything. When it came to choosing a mix of social media channels, Reed was inclusive rather than selective. The campaign had people dedicated to each of the various social channels, he said, including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and reddit. “There was no channel too small or too weird -- except Pinterest, because it just didn't work,” he said. See the BtoB Magazine report at http://www.btobonline.com/article/20130515/MANAGEMENT05/305159996/at-bma-fuel-reed-on-lessons-learned-as-obama-campaigns-cto

Forecast: 2016 Election to See Social Data-Big Data Union

Social data drove the 2008 presidential election, big data drove the 2012 election, and the marriage of the two will determine the next President of the United States in 2016, predicts Gurbaksh Chahal, CEO of RadiumOne, in a Wired magazine blog article. So don't be surprised if spending for political campaigning climbs even higher than the record $6 billion spent on 2012 election ads across all media. Experts agree that Obama's 2012 win cemented the role of Big Data in campaigning, including get-out-the-vote efforts dominated by targeted messaging and digital behavioral tracking. Now big data has the opportunity to harness social media influence, mobile data and CRM databases for even greater power. New technologies, like hashtag targeting, custom ad re-targeting based on social interactions, mobile geolocation and CRM data can fuel 2016's ad campaigns and turn social sharing into paid media platforms, Chahal argues. With over 10 billion sharing events taking place each month over social media, there is definitely a wealth of new targeting information, if campaigns can figure how to efficiently sort through it. Social data feeding into big data strategies will change how political advertisers, all advertisers for that matter, approach marketing and will take targeting beyond simple impression and conversion metrics to an opportunity for a coordinated multi-channel, multi-touch approach across computers, mobile devices and tablets, concludes Chahal. And don't forget improved targeting of offline efforts like phone campaigns and direct mail, we would add. For more, see the article at http://www.wired.com/insights/2013/05/election-2016-marriage-of-big-data-social-data-will-determine-the-next-president/

2012 Nonprofit E-mail, Online Fundraising Grew

Nonprofit fundraising via online and e-mail showed strong growth in 2012, according to new research by M+R Strategic Services and Nonprofit Technology Network. Its "2013 eNonprofit Benchmarks" study found that 2012 e-mail lists grew by 15% over the prior year and online revenue grew by 21%, with monthly online giving up 43%. Social media followers soared, too, as nonprofit Twitter followers increased by 264% and Facebook fans went up by 46%. Still, social media impact was dwarfed by e-mail contacts, with only 149 Facebook fans and 53 Twitter followers for every 1,000 e-mail subscribers in 2012. But here's the bad news for nonprofits: E-mail response rates also declined by 21% last year compared to 2011, due to a 27% dip in click-through rates. For more on the study, see the AdvisorOne report at http://www.advisorone.com/2013/04/01/nonprofits-online-fundraising-grew-21-in-2012

Online Giving Is Emerging Non-Profit Growth Engine

Online fundraising emerged as a bright spot in the otherwise lackluster non-profit fundraising climate last year, according to Blackbaud's 2012 "Charitable Giving Report." Blackbaud Senior Digital Marketer Frank Barry recently blogged about key online-giving findings that should inspire non-profits to focus on expanding  their online fundraising efforts. First, online giving is a fundraising growth engine, climbing 10.7% in 2012 compared with just 1.7% for overall fundraising year-over-year. Second, every non-profit sector (with the possible exception of faith-based appeals) saw online giving growth. Plus, data shows online donors are younger and have higher lifetime value -- especially if a multi-channel retention approach moves donors from online to offline giving channels. Barry adds an important caveat to this paean to online giving, however. Before rushing to focus on online to the neglect of traditional channels, note that traditional fundraising channels -- direct mail, events, major gifts, etc. -- still accounted for 93% of donations last year. For the full blog post, go to http://www.npengage.com/online-fundraising/4-fascinating-facts-about-online-fundraising/

Events Demand Multi-Channel, Multi-Touch Effort

Event promotion is a common but sometimes challenging activity for campaigns and causes. A recent blog post by Lori Halley of Wild Apricot, the membership software firm, had some cogent advice for a multi-touch, multi-channel strategy -- adding new communications tools to traditional ones, like direct mail, for a more potent marketing mix. Part of a "multi-touch" approach starts by leveraging staff and volunteer social networks. Your organization can provide staff, volunteers, and fans with suggested guest posts, tweets, and draft text/visuals with links to event information, for example. Then make sure the formal event promotion plan also effectively includes online and social channels. For example, besides putting the event on the homepage and in the events calendar, create a dedicated web page with online registration capability and auto confirmations. Besides direct mail announcements, send coordinated, automated e-mail event promotions and reminders to your database. Maximize social media by enabling social sharing buttons/widgets wherever possible -- on your website, social media pages, blogs and e-mails. Create event pages for your social communities (on Facebook, for example), put event hashtags on tweets, use the LinkedIn event application, and everywhere don't be shy about asking for "likes" and sharing. And what about a video on the event or the cause for YouTube or Flickr? For more ideas, see the blog post at http://www.wildapricot.com/blogs/newsblog/2013/02/13/5-tips-for-getting-your-event-message-out

'Show Me Impact' Is Mantra of Rich Young Donors

Affluent young donors say they are more focused than their parents and grandparents on producing a measurable impact with their giving, according to a new study conducted at Grand Valley State University by 21/64, which advises young donors and their families, and the Johnson Center for Philanthropy. Wealthy younger donors want to conduct research on charities so they can find groups that meet their strategic goals, according to the study. But they don't dismiss family philanthropic aims: Only a third of those surveyed said they give to different causes than their parents. Still, wealthy young donors are more likely than their elders to support civil rights and the environment, and less likely to support the arts, religious groups, and health causes. The report was based on a survey of 310 people age 21 to 40, with the majority of those surveyed inheriting family wealth. And how do they like to interact? Online, of course. Nearly 78% of wealthy young donors said they gave online in the past year, and more than 90% said they visit a charitable organization’s website for information. For more details from the study, see the "The Chronicle of Philanthropy" article at http://philanthropy.com/article/Wealthy-Young-Donors-Push/136869

'Social Giving' Made Its Mark in 2012

Nonprofit fundraising via social media, "social giving," reached new heights this year, and a new "infographic" from MDG Advertising should inspire fundraisers for causes and campaigns to put social media at the top of agendas in 2013. Per compiled data for 2012, some 98% of nonprofits already have a presence on Facebook, 74% on Twitter and 66% on YouTube. And nonprofits are benefiting: Fundraisers who add Twitter to their social outreach see almost 10 times more dollars generated. The average donation through social media has increased annually, reaching $59 in 2012, and dollars raised by online crowdfunding platforms, like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, increased 91% this year, going from $1.47 billion in 2011 to $2.81 billion in 2012. The success of #GivingTuesday, a social-media-powered effort to woo donations on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, underscores the social giving trend. In 2012, the day brought in $10 million in online donations, up 53% from 2011. To see more from the infographic, go to http://www.techjournal.org/2012/12/social-media-sparks-social-giving-trend-infographic/

Data Was the Biggest Winner in the 2012 Election

The 2012 election demonstrated, beyond a doubt, the power of using data and analytics in political campaigning. A new generation of data crunchers, predictive modelers and online marketers emerged triumphant, outflanking supposed political masterminds like Karl Rove to more accurately take the pulse of the electorate, get out the vote and raise money, opines Rio Longacre in a recent "Target Marketing" magazine column. Longacre remarks that "there's no doubt in anyone's mind that for data-driven marketers, the 2012 U.S. election victory was a watershed moment in history." If the "secret sauce" behind Obama's win was his massive data effort, the master chefs were a new cadre of data techs. Obama relied on an in-house team of data scientists and online marketers, recruiting elite and senior tech talent from Twitter, Google, Facebook, Craigslist and Quora, as Longacre points out. Because of their success, expect to see "data" driving political campaigning in more new and exciting directions. For the full article, see http://www.targetmarketingmag.com/blog/winner-2012-presidential-election-data#

Does 'Hijacking' Online Ads Work to Build Support?

Both the Obama and Romney campaigns engaged in online "hijacking" this election. It's a tactic that means people typing the keyword "Obama" into a search engine, like Google, are served Romney ads, and vice versa. It's a new twist in the political realm but not new to online marketers seeking competitive brand awareness. However, the practice of selling ads on competing search results also has stirred lawsuits against Google by companies like Geico and Rosetta Stone, alleging that it enables trademark violation. Court rulings have been mixed on the advertising legality. However, the real question for political campaigns and causes is whether they risk confusing or turning off the very supporters they seek to woo -- and the jury is still out on that. For a discussion of hijacking online ads in politics, see the "Bloomberg News" story at http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-11-05/brand-hijacking-means-romney-s-voters-confused-with-obama.html

Election Took Online Targeting to a New Level

Isn't it ironic that the Obama administration, which threatens regulation to protect online privacy, pushed online targeting to a whole new level to win re-election? Gordon Crovitz, a Wall Street Journal" columnist, makes that point in a recent piece on how politicians are now leveraging massive databases for online "hypertargeting." First, like commercial online advertisers, a political campaign drops a "cookie" on user computers to track online habits -- and the Obama team dropped 87 million different cookies on unsuspecting visitors, Crovitz notes. Then, like sophisticated online retailers, online activity data is enhanced by demographics (like sex and age) and purchase behaviors (like charity donations). Finally, the data is politically enriched by publicly available voter records. And don't forget the trove of data mined from social media. And yet the same politicians talk about regulating commercial data usage! It would be less hypocritical and more economically sensible, as Crovitz argues, for the winner of the White House to "give credit to how his campaign made smart use of targeted advertising online -- and then let the Internet continue to evolve without getting in the way." To read the WSJ column, see http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204846304578096982338148870.html

Election Shaped by Cutting-Edge Target Marketing

Political campaigning in 2012 leveraged a range of sophisticated direct marketing tools -- and left behind important lessons on what worked and what missed the mark  An excellent "Target Marketing" magazine article has surveyed direct marketing tactics that shaped the recent election, noting how Democrats and Republicans employed large, complex voter databases; "retargeting" web services for more effective online ads; micro-targeting analytics for personalized direct messaging; social media endorsements; and targeted e-mail and texting to capture votes and donations. For a more detailed discussion by political marketing pros, read the full article at http://www.targetmarketingmag.com/article/election-2012-barack-obama-mitt-romney-microtargeting-retargeting-mobile-marketing-social-media-voter-databases/1

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