Archive for June 19th, 2008
Almost two years in the making, the new version of “Online Politics 101: The Tools and Tactics of Online Advocacy” is now ready for downloading! New chapters cover online political advertising, political databases, choosing the right tools, along with expanded chapters on social networking, fundraising, video, blogs and more. It’s an essential guide to doing politics on the internet, and it’s absolutely free.
– cpd
June 19th, 2008
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New Online Politics 101 Chapter
Political databases generally don’t get a whole lot of attention in the press or in public, but they underlie much of the technology of modern politics. Email advocacy and fundraising systems are really just specialized examples of CRM (customer/constituent/contact management) software, while blogs and website content management systems are database-driven, as are online ad serving systems. Robocalls, phone banks and direct mail depend on databases of voter registration and consumer behavior, and database experts frequently spend large amounts of time sorting their lists and testing different messages and asks.
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June 19th, 2008
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New Online Politics 101 Chapter
If I had to pick a most-neglected aspect of internet politics, it would be online advertising. In particular, electoral campaigns spend relatively little money advertising to web audiences, particularly compared to the huge amounts they raise online. While it’s typical for commercial marketing campaigns to spend 15% or 20% of their budgets online, for political campaigns the comparable range would be 3% to 5%. This seems particularly strange considering the targetability of online advertising (the ‘net naturally breaks down into demographic and interest-based niches) as well as its trackability.
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June 19th, 2008
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New Online Politics 101 Chapter
Social networking sites can be a good way of reaching a new audience, although they’re no substitute for an actual website for most campaigns. Many political organizations and citizen activists have used them to great effect, however, and the major 2008 political campaigns have not been shy about social networking outreach. But first, what is a social networking site? They’re websites on which people and organizations set up profile pages with basic information about themselves and then link to other people’s pages — it’s that simple. Readers can browse profiles by searching by keyword or by following links from one person to another, and they can also leave comments behind as they go.
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June 19th, 2008
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New Online Politics 101 Chapter
Okay, I’m sold — where do we start? What are the essential tools of online politics, and are they the same for every campaign? Most campaigns will end up balancing three primary weapons systems:
- A central online hub, usually a conventional website but sometimes (and particularly for citizen activists) a MySpace profile, YouTube channel or blog.
- Some way to keep in touch with supporters, usually via email list but also possibly using social networking software, RSS feed, Twitter or text messaging.
- Some way to influence the online discussion in your space, often meaning blogger relations but also including traditional media relations, social networking outreach, RSS, participation in back-channel email/IM discussions, the production of podcasts and video pieces, etc.
(By the way, I’m indebted to Josh McConaha of the Democratic National Committee for that division: when asked on a panel in the winter of 2007-8 to name the three essential tools for online politics, he listed a website, email and blogger relations or some other way to influence the discussion. My list just expands on his.)
The exact mix of tools you use depends on the goals you’re trying to reach and actual means you have available to reach them. If you’re trying to organize high school and college students to speak out about human rights issues, you’re likely to use Facebook and MySpace. If you’re a think tank or policy-heavy nonprofit, or if you’re just a good writer with something to say, a blog or family of blogs may be the right answer. If you’re raising money for a candidate for office, you’re likely to use email and possibly online meeting applications like MeetUp.com plus an online fundraising site to get supporters donating and recruiting others online and in the real world.
The chapters that follow will look at the major tools available to political communicators as of June of 2008, along with tactics for specific applications like fundraising and influencing legislation or the media.
Next: Websites
June 19th, 2008
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