Posted Feb 1, 2012 by Chris Sinclair |
We’ve all heard about the fact that online will play a significant role in the upcoming elections. From websites, micro sites, social media and online applications, online is already playing out in a major way from the presidential level, down to the local level.
Republican candidates Mitt Romney and Ron Paul have strong online campaigns. This article tells the story how Gingrich has ramped up its spending online---since South Carolina. And of course, President Obama continues to build on its massive digital campaign---taking advantage of the moment to capitalize on the primary campaigns in key states.
Perhaps Karl Rove summed up the shift to online best in a WSJ piece last year:
“…in the year ahead, smart campaigns will devote a good deal less money to running 30-second TV ads and a good deal more to using the Internet to organize, persuade, motivate and raise funds.”
What online innovations are you seeing in campaigns across the country?
Posted Jan 18, 2012 by Chris Sinclair |
Google may now be the EF Hutton of the Internet: when they speak everyone listens. Or when they search, and Google “speaks”, people listen---especially when it comes to regulating the company's world.
Exhibit 1: Google’s effective use of a creative call to action in the controversial and on-going battle in Congress over the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) ---which is meant to stop online piracy but would censor the Web and impose harmful regulations on American businesses.
Anyone notice this recently on the Google search page?
No, that’s not a smudge on your screen---it’s obviously Google’s not so subtle message about the potential for shutting down the Internet, if SOPA passes. When you click on the black box, it takes you to a simple landing page with a short message and info graph showing the coalition against the proposed law. The call to action, is a petition.
I signed it (not the expressed opinion of Cornerstone Solutions, LLC). If you care about your freedom on the Internet, you will too. But beyond that, it’s more to see how a creative and effective use of the Internet to educate, persuade and mobilize can achieve great results.
Last I heard, the Bill has stalled in the House. Maybe that smudge on your screen today helped.
What do you think about Google’s grassroots campaign?
Posted Nov 16, 2011 by Chris Sinclair |
We often get calls from clients with limited budgets, or smaller campaigns who ask us this question: "Can I win running my campaign online only? And we always tell candidates that it's very hard to run a political campaign using one mode of communication. Some folks certainly try. And while there are massive numbers of voters getting information online, they also rely on other media to learn about a candidate.
Regardless of the budget, a smart candidate will run a fully integrated campaign: using the best components and strategies online, to compliment and garner suppport---and eventually votes---offline. At Cornerstone Solutions, we like to preach the "integration" of online strategies---social media, online advertising, and the use of video---to compliment campaign events, get out the vote efforts, fundraising and persuasive messaging. Knowing which tools online will help with your offline efforts is also good to know. Not every campaign will use the same tools.
In the end, however, successful campaigns must still have a good plan, a good message, and a solid strategy to get voters to the polls. Those fundamentals will not change---and relying solely on the Internet to win is difficult, if not impossible. Nothing ever replaces the handshake, the face-face-face interaction that voters still crave, and the public demands.
NC Free Enterprise Foundation published a piece on their website about the growing use of social media in NC politics, campaigns and issues. You can read about it on their site. We love the fact that organizations like this are spreading the word about social media and politics---as we have seen a growing trend over the last few years.
Their analysis focused on social media use by politicians and political candidates. What’s missing from the piece, and we don’t think intentionally, is the growing use of social media from associations, advocacy groups, and grassroots organizations.
On the association front, the NC Association of REALTORS® (NCAR) has been active in social media for several years. When the organization ran the statewide “Stop the Home Tax” issues campaign, NCAR used online components to engage citizens---throughout North Carolina--- in a conversation about the home tax, and how it would be bad for homeowners.
NCAR used YouTube to spread its message, and drive citizens to a website to register for email updates, and contact legislators. Thousands of North Carolinians viewed dozens of videos about the issue on YouTube, and then went to www.ItsABadIdea.org to send a message to legislators. NC Legislators received over 60,000 emails as a result, preventing the statewide adoption of the home tax. All of this occurred in 2007---when YouTube was not even on the minds of most North Carolinians, much less candidates and issues organizations.
Americans for Prosperity North Carolina has done an impressive job taking its offline grassroots power structure and combining it with a strong online presence. The organization has capitalized on the power of email to keep its members engaged and mobilized to take action. Their online website’s content strategy allows activists and others to learn about issues, engage others and take action.
At Cornerstone, we’ve seen not only the increased use of social media in candidate campaigns, but also with organizations, corporations and issues groups. Social media no longer serves as the shiny new tool everyone wants and uses. It is an integral part of an issue or candidate campaign. Most importantly, social media delivers measurable results for campaigns, organizations, and associations.
What organizations have you seen that are using social media as part of their campaigns?
It’s already started: Who’s going to have the best website in the next presidential race? Who’s going to try to “outdo” President Obama’s online and social media communities in 2012?
The blogs and social media experts around the country are already predicting that all campaigns---from the presidential level to the local level---will pour tons of time, money and resources into engaging voters, supporters, funders and opinion leaders, in the coming elections.
Today, we received an email from the folks running presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty’s online campaign. They have developed a new tool for their candidate to use in the social media ecosystem, and to stimulate conversations across multiple channels.
We expect to see many new “tools” like this one in the next year. But as we always tell our clients, using a tool, like Facebook or Twitter, or Vimeo or YouTube, is just that---a tool.
Every campaign needs a strategy that integrates online conversations and efforts, with offline traditional methods. Moreover, campaigns must connect with voters in authentic, creative and engaging ways. Don’t expect supporters and voters to flock to you just because you tweet something funny, or post your event and fundraiser on Facebook.
You need to be real, and need to think like a voter in order to convert him or her to do something offline in the campaign (like volunteer, or most importantly, vote for you).
Some of the tools that we will see develop in the next few months, and up to Election Day in 2012, will be helpful and useful. Some tools will be carried over into the corporate and social media branding world (much like after the 2008 presidential campaign). But it’s the integration---traditional and new communications, along with a good message and solid grassroots effort---that will carry the day for successful campaigns.
What do you think? What new and emerging uses of social media do you expect in the coming months?
We’ve talked a lot about the use of video---as a primary tool for social media--- in past posts. And we all know, by now, the power of video to reach followers, supporters, friends, and influentials.
In political campaigns, much like branding and corporate marketing campaigns, video is now the "go to" choice for making an announcement, sharing a story, or posting something funny. That’s why our friends over at Mashable are talking about video use in the next presidential race. Everyone’s making an announcement on YouTube (some are exciting and some are boring, quite frankly), and posting quick videos about their campaigns.
Mashable’s conclusion about 2012, video, and social media?
"Though it’s very early in the race, it’s clear that there will be more back and forth via social media this time around than in 2008, when Obama’s campaign pioneered the use of Facebook and Twitter to reach voters while John McCain’s campaign followed a more conventional path. Romney has more than 33,000 followers on Twitter and 840,000 fans on Facebook compared with 7.3 million and 19 million, respectively, for Obama"
What do you think? What about other campaigns? Will we see state and local campaigns use video and social media even more in 2012 than in 2008, or even 2010?
The power of video is undeniable. There are countless examples of politicians, celebrities, and organizations are using video to educate, share information, entertain, and move others to take action. It’s fast and cheap. 
A year ago, most people viewed videos on their computers. And many still do. However, we are seeing a huge trend towards mobile. That is, the number of people watching videos on their mobile device is growing by leaps and bounds. And it makes perfect sense. We are a society on the move. We value and crave instantaneous information. Our smart phones allow us to get information on the fly.
Just the other day, I was waiting for a friend to arrive for a breakfast meeting. Someone sent me a video clip, and I downloaded it on my phone, watched it, shared on Facebook and Twitter, and showed it my friend when he arrived. It was easy, fast and clear as a bell.
The numbers tell the true story. Look at what the Nielsen recently reported about video and mobile devices:
“The number of U.S. mobile subscribers watching video on their mobile devices rose more than 40 percent year-over-year in both the third and fourth quarters of 2010, ending the year at nearly 25 million people. These mobile video users watched an average of four hours and 20 minutes of mobile video per month in both the third and fourth quarter of 2010---a 33 percent and 20 percent year-over-year increase in each quarter respectively.” (State of the Media Report)
No doubt, video is critical to your sharing your content---and building a base of brand activists, supporters, customers or voters. Reaching people where they are---on the move---is important.
What ways are you using video now---and what are your thoughts about how to integrate video for mobile and smart phone use?
We wanted to say "thanks" to all the good people who signed up for the 'New' Digital Campaign webinar we hosted yesterday. We are sincerely humbled by the great response we received in terms of registration, participation, and follow up.
In case you were not able to attend, you are still in luck. We would gladly provide a copy of the presentation. If you want a copy, please click here, fill out the simple request form, and we'll get you a copy for your review.
Thanks again for all that attended, we hope you learned something, and look forward to a continued dialogue about online campaigns, with you and others.
If you have any questions about the topic or webinar, feel free to email me, or call! And if you want to register for future Cornerstone webinars, just sign up here.
Smartphone sales are set to outpace personal computer sales by 2012. That’s not hard to believe as everywhere you turn someone is downloading an app, updating a Facebook page, or tweeting his or her status---or a new link---from a mobile device. Moreover, it’s not hard to believe as Americans are on the move and obsessed with being constantly connected.
The numbers and statistics on mobile use, and its pervasive nature in our everyday lives, are staggering. Consider these few factoids (compliments of Mashable):
- Of the world’s over 4 billion mobile phones in use, 1.08 billion are smartphones
- By 2014 mobile Internet use may surpass PC desktop use
- One half of local searches are done on a smartphone
- Almost 90% of mobile users are surfing the Internet on their device, while watching TV
- On average, Americans spend almost 3 hours per day socializing on their smartphones
- 200 million YouTube views occur on mobile devices per day
- Women between the ages of 35-54 are the most active group in mobile socialization
The bottom line: If your campaign, brand, or organization is not optimized for mobile and smartphone devices---it should be.
Here are a few questions to ponder as you optimize for mobile: Is your website mobile friendly? Will your online ad campaign include a mobile element? What about including a text message component in your communications efforts?
Smart campaigns, organizations and brands will focus more resources on mobile---and those that don’t will be left behind
What are some of the tactics and strategies you are using to reach stakeholders, citizens, voters, or customers on their mobile devices?
I recently saw a series of newspaper ads with the tagline: “Own the Moment.” The content of the ads didn’t interest me, but the phrase got me thinking.
I started thinking about how social media---and the tools we all use to engage and interact online---is really all about “owning the moment.”
Social media revolves around conversations---and Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Blogs, are the highways we travel during our conversations. At any given moment, there are unlimited conversations happening across Internet.
However, during all of these online conversations, there is always someone, some group, issue, movement or brand that owns the moment.
Currently, actor Charlie Sheen owns the moment on Twitter, racking up over a million users in one day, after a single tweet. Like him or not, his unprecedented climb and popularity in this medium is incredible, and he quickly realized the power of social media to propel his message.
Last month, Egyptians owned the moment on Facebook as they took to the streets in protest of their government and to advocate for change. Facebook, and Twitter as well, provided the means for these brave citizens to raise awareness and compel an historic revolution.
Recently, on the Today Show, I saw a story about a baby boy whose contagious laughter ,over his father ripping up a job rejection letter, entranced millions of viewers on YouTube---propelling the young family to instant fame. It is safe to say this little baby, however silly it seemed at the time his dad filmed him, owned the moment on YouTube.
Almost four years ago, President Obama (then candidate Obama) owned the moment online with his presidential campaign. And there are countless examples of how the Internet allows common folks to achieve instant stardom, fame or make history.
These are exciting times to be alive, and to watch how all our lives change because of a moving Tweet, an unforgettable Facebook post or photo, or a funny YouTube video that captures our imagination and taps our collective humanity.
So this brings me to my ultimate question, in this post: How can you raise awareness or promote an issue using social media and the Internet? How can you promote your business, your cause or your campaign---and own the moment?
