Lessons learned from a pandemic election
Coronavirus isn't going away anytime soon, and neither are the changes the pandemic left on the campaign industry in 2020...
The 2020 elections were unlike any we’ve experienced in recent years, and not just because of the final outcomes. Rather, the toll that the pandemic took on the political campaigning industry is one that will shape its future for years to come — for good, and for bad.
Almost overnight, campaigns were forced to pull a 180 in their strategic efforts, dropping key elements of their operations like field programs and in-person events in favor of more virtual outreach efforts. Vendors peddling P2P and tele-townhalls saw a dramatic increase in desire for their services, while voters became even more overwhelmed with the growing presence of political ads on Facebook and Google. Then, as time passed and people felt safer congregating in public, limited events and canvassing efforts returned to the fold.
All of this said, until we have a better grasp of the pandemic and can return to a somewhat normalized life, it is likely that we will have at least one more cycle of adjusted campaigning efforts as a result of the novel Coronavirus.
So what now?
One positive byproduct of the 2020 elections is that the next batch of candidates will already have some idea about what running for office during a pandemic will look like — and be able to plan accordingly. Some of those changes will include:
Fundraising: With in-person events off the table in many places, political fundraisers (and candidates) are going to have to spend more time on cold calls and personal solicitations. This means it is now even more crucial to establish relationships early on with key bundlers and surrogates who can help reel in big-dollar donations. Candidates will also want to take additional advantage of telemarketing efforts and email marketing specifically for fundraising purposes, especially with digital advertising largely on hold for the foreseeable future (see below for more).
Campaign hires: The pandemic has also created a notable effect on whom a campaign onboards in its early days. Rather than rush out to build a large field team, campaigns should focus instead on hiring their digital and communications staffers/vendors, since non-virtual grassroots operations will largely be kept to a minimum for the time being. (Of course, data/polling and fundraising team members shouldn’t be ignored either and should always be considered early hires regardless).
Messaging: Exit poll findings suggest that the pandemic and its societal impacts (economy, healthcare, etc.) were top-of-mind to voters on Election Day. Knowing this, candidates will need to think twice about how they message pandemic-related issues to voters in 2021 and 2022. To illustrate this point, let’s turn to a study recently conducted by GOP pollster Frank Luntz, which found that different phrases related to the pandemic (“lockdown”, “stay at home”, “Coronavirus”, etc.) can elicit different responses that can impact how seriously voters view the pandemic — and, in turn, how best to develop your campaign’s messaging strategy.
Digital in a pandemic world
It’s also important to consider the impact that digital advertising — or the lack thereof — will have in future elections. While the major social networks (Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) haven’t decided yet how they will handle political advertising in future cycles, there’s a good possibility that none of these services will be available to candidates in 2021 or 2022. As a result, candidates will need to rely more heavily on their organic social media reach, as well as other forms of digital outreach such as email marketing and P2P messaging for grassroots and fundraising.
For Republican candidates, the growth of Parler will also play a major role in your campaign’s social media strategy moving forward. Not only does Parler still allow political advertising, but its network is growing larger by the day primarily with users that make up the core GOP base.
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