Why campaigns

This organization found that around 9 in 10 voters it targeted recalled receiving phone calls, mailers, or seeing TV ads about the same election. The disparity between these numbers and the same figures for field raise questions about the idea that the ground game is already in full swing.

Source: Survey of voters targeted by campaign in Midwestern gubernatorial race in control group who did not receive canvassing. Data from the Cooperative Congressional Election Study reveal a similar disparity — a majority of Democratic voters in swing states in and recall receiving phone and mail contact, but almost no voters recall someone knocking on their door.

The same disparity between field and other techniques manifests in patterns of campaign spending. A recent investigation by the New York Times provides a window into how SuperPACs spent their dollars over the last three election cycles. The results are puzzling.

In , Jon Krasno and Green exploited quirks in media market boundaries to measure the impacts of presidential advertising. Ryan Enos and Anthony Fowler have examined the impact of the presidential campaigns' TV ads in a similar manner.

Voters who receive the heavy volume of TV advertising associated with presidential campaigns are no more likely to vote than voters who see barely any.

But these effects usually fade quickly. In one study, Seth Hill, James Lo, Lynn Vavreck, and John Zaller examined the impacts of presidential television advertisements and found that their effects disappeared within days at most. Campaign consultants, like Republican Mike Murphy left and Democrat Bob Shrum right typically make more when campaigns spend on ads than when they spend on field operations.

We academics are still scratching our heads about this one. First, managing a canvass operation is difficult and requires considerable recruitment, training, and supervision.

Decades ago, a rich network of civic organizations — think churches, Elk Lodges, and labor unions — could supply ample volunteers for field work. As a result, knocking on millions of doors now requires recruiting tens of thousands of temporary field staffers or new volunteers. When faced with a logistical challenge of that scale, it becomes mighty appealing to write a check to an ad firm instead. But many consultants take a cut of ad fees, making a healthy commission when campaigns squander their resources on TV.

On the other hand, waging field campaigns tends to be a low margin business and thus prove less financially appealing for consultants to recommend to clients.

Successful turnout interventions also seem to have lasting impacts on individuals, leading them to become lifelong voters , as well as on their cohabitants. But to take advantage of these innovations, campaigns need to seriously increase their focus on field. The good news is, the necessary financial resources for waging real ground games are already available — campaigns just have to spend their money right. Consider what would happen if campaigns diverted just some of the money they currently spend on TV towards field.

That all adds up to a staggering reality: campaigns could have had a 20 minute conversation with every single registered voter in a state with a close Senate race — and still afford to blanket the airwaves with ads. Before , candidates and campaign consultants need to take a hard look at the science, lest the ground game take a back seat yet again.

We may need to knock on their doors, too. Update: An earlier version of this post cited research by Michael LaCour and Donald Green on the effects of canvassing campaigns on opinions about gay marriage. That research has since been discovered — by this post's authors — to have been faked by LaCour. Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment: to empower through understanding.

See how my broad campaign purpose instantly transforms into an actionable, attainable goal? Determining such distinct measures for your campaign is tough — I get it. But making the hard decisions now will make your life — and campaign — much easier in the future. This will look different for everyone.

These answers will depend on your overarching campaign goal. Here are a few examples of metrics based on the campaign objectives I mentioned above. Read more about these channel-specific metrics below.

What outside of your goal would constitute success for you or serve as a milestone? If your campaign involves boosting brand awareness and your goal is to reach 50 PR mentions by the end of the year, set up some benchmark notifications at 10, 25, and 40 mentions. This is one of my very favorite things to talk about because your alignment with your audience can make or break the success of anything marketing or sales-related … especially a campaign.

Imagine constructing a bulletproof marketing campaign only to be met with crickets. Regardless of what it might be, all of those decisions come back to one thing: Your audience.

Are you trying to bring in new customers, or are you attempting to gather feedback from existing clients? Are you marketing your brand to those who recognize it, or are you introducing a new brand identity altogether? Your marketing message will vary depending on whether your campaign audience is in the Awareness, Consideration, or Decision stage. For example, while your campaign might target current customers, it might also bring brand awareness to new consumers.

Next, identify your audience interests and pain points. Here are some questions to ask yourself and your team to better understand your audience. Becoming well-acquainted with your campaign audience will help you confidently answer these questions and any others that may arise during the campaign.

Marketing campaigns are like their own brand. They require a mission, a vision, and a visual identity. Great campaigns are an offshoot of their parent brand, both visually and creatively — they stay consistent with the business brand but maintain their own identity.

When creating their campaign assets, some businesses use an in-house team while others opt for an agency. Another alternative is hiring a freelancer or contractor to complete a specific portion of the project, such as the copy or design. They are likely the experts on that portion of your business and can speak to what your campaign needs to succeed.

From there, I could assign the campaign to them, or outsource the creative part to an agency or freelancer.

This stage is all about the public-facing part of your campaign, including what your audience will see and when. This choice depends on your audience preference, budget, and brand engagement levels, among other factors. Take a look at the current media channels you use to promote your company. Which perform the best? Which allow you to pay for advertisements? Which have the best engagement? Most importantly, where are your customers hanging out? Need a few ideas? Image Source.

Start by choosing two or three channels for your campaign. For example, I might promote my UGC Instagram campaign via social media on Instagram, of course , email, and through my blog. Depending on your campaign goal, certain channels might not make sense. On the other hand, multinational product launch campaigns would probably involve most if not all of the media choices above. Your campaign images, video, and copy might vary between social media, email, print, etc.

Lastly, even if you choose not to actively promote on a certain medium, you can always optimize it to at least mention your campaign. For example, you can update your social media bios, change your email signature, install a website header notification bar, add small calls-to-action keep reading for more on these at the bottom of blog posts, and more.

This section is all about timing. First, build a general campaign timeline. On a calendar, mark your campaign start date and deadline. This gives you parameters to work within. Next, take a look at your marketing assets and chosen promotional marketing channels. Based on your people and financial resources, how often can you afford to post and promote your campaign content?

Create a promotional calendar for each marketing channel. Decide on a cadence for each channel and map out your scheduled posts, emails, etc. Why should you map your campaign visually? Social media and email scheduling tools can alleviate the pressure of posting daily. Check out tools like HubSpot , Buffer , and MailChimp to help you schedule and manage your campaign promotions. The promotional stage is all about getting your campaign in front of your audience.

But, how are you supposed to get your audience to follow the purpose of your campaign? So, campaigns are a connected series of operations designed to bring about a particular result. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Marketing campaigns promote products through different types of media, such as television, radio, print, and online platforms.

Campaigns are not solely reliant on advertising and can include demonstrations, video conferencing , and other interactive techniques. Businesses operating in highly competitive markets and franchisees may initiate frequent marketing campaigns and devote significant resources to generating brand awareness and sales. Marketing campaigns can be designed with different goals in mind, including building a brand image, introducing a new product, increasing sales of a product already on the market, or even reducing the impact of negative news.

Defining a campaign's goal usually dictates how much marketing is needed and what media are most effective for reaching a specific segment of the population. Businesses operating in highly competitive markets may initiate frequent marketing campaigns and devote significant resources to generating brand awareness and sales.

There are many ways to market products and services to customers, from mailing brochures to coordinating a social media blitz. Small companies can email invitations to a special sale and offer a free product to every customer who brings the invitation. Larger companies can use paid advertising and professional agencies to reach a wider audience. Whatever the size of the company, it's important that someone is dedicated to handling the influx of traffic a marketing campaign generates.

If you are prompting customers to sign up for your email list, you must make sure that the list is managed well and that new customers receive welcoming messages. If visits to your website increase, you must continually update your content to convert this traffic to profitable sales. Companies that lose sales due to major negative press often use marketing campaigns to rehabilitate their image.

One example is Chipotle Mexican Grill, which was investigated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention after dozens of customers became sick in from food safety issues related to E. The long-running Aflac duck campaign is one example of a campaign that significantly raised brand recognition. Lay's launched its first "Do Us a Flavor" campaign in , asking customers to suggest new potato-chip flavors through texts and social media.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed Sept. Harvard Business Review. Chief Marketer.