social media for political campaigns (institute of political leadership)
DESCRIPTION
This presentation walks through the basics of how political campaigns can practically leverage social media for their efforts.TRANSCRIPT
Social Media for CampaignsBuilding a successful social media strategy
Clay Schossow, New Media Campaigns@newmediaclay
New Media Campaigns
● 12 Person Agency in Carrboro
● Full-service digital agency with a focus on politics
● Clients include local, state, and federal campaigns.
● Worked on more than 100 online campaigns
● Featured in BBC, BusinessWeek, Inc, N&O, and more
Defining Social Media
● Networks of connected individuals who consume, share, and create content
● Vary between fully open and walled gardens
● Some are full ecosystems
● Each has its own set of norms and rules
● 90-9-1 Rule
The Benefit to Campaigns● Engage with constituents and voters
● Interact with media directly and get ahead of stories
● Network effect w/ more ppl talking about campaign
● Have content in a different search network to be discovered and indexed by Google
● Gauge sentiment on issues
Social Media Won't On Its Own...● Replace polling (yet)
● Make a boring campaign exciting
● Fundraise from big donors
● Persuade voters leaning against you
Where to Focus?
● Internet is a Medium of Media with a lot of options
● Campaign style and candidate
● Big Four (the minimum to have): Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr
● Other options: Tumblr, Foursquare, Instagram, Pinterest, and more
How to Leverage
● Each network has its own style
● Integrate into campaign site
● Customize with campaign brand
● Gather data where possible
● Give some kind of premium to connections
● Each new connection is annuity toward future
Building a Social Media Strategy
● Important to have a strategy
● Know who owns each account - preferably close to candidate
● Certain things play better online than offline
● Guidelines for messaging
● More natural than planned and be prepared to abandon scheduled posts
Using the Big 4
Faceboook
● Images are shared the most
Faceboook
● Custom Tabs to gather data
● Post less frequently than Twitter, unique from website
● Having voters send messages to friends - key innovation in Obama campaign
● Build audience with promoted posts. Ripple effect with other friends wanting to get involved
vs.
● Rapid way to get messages out and engage
● Great way to engage (RTs, Follow Back, etc)
● Not just a stream of donation asks and news releases. Stay on message, but talk about diverse things.
● Amplify message during debates and speeches w/ live tweeting. Hashtag for events.
● Promoted Tweets
YouTube and Flickr
● Big search networks
● Makes media accessible on website w/ integration
● Quality can take a backseat to authenticity
● Pre-Roll Ads with YouTube
One More...
Email - The Original Social Network
● Everyone is connected through Email
● Most effective for fundraising
● No longer a universal best time - all times are fair game and use your own data
● A/B Test Everything! (Amounts, Subjects, etc.)
● "Hey"
How to Use Influence
● Share Petitions for data gathering
● Amplify Message
● Interact with decision influencers
● Organize people for events
● Inject personality into campaign
A Purely Social Campaign - The Four
Conclusion
● Use the networks that fit you
● Have a strategy
● It's not all about you!
● Execute according to each network's rules
● Integrate across online properties
● Use your influence
