Transcript Microtargeting to enhance your outreach and fundraising plans

Fundraising and Budgeting for
Political Campaigns
Kevin Winchell
Politics 101 Conference – 2014
Stetson University
What comes first:
Budgeting Plan or Fundraising Plan?
Budgeting
Budget
Plan
Fundraising
Plan
Budgeting
Budget
Plan
Fundraising
Plan
Feedback Loop
Budgeting
Reference
Similar
Elections
Budget
Plan
Adjust to
Campaign
Strategy
Get
Quotes
from
Vendors
Budgeting
Reference
Similar
Elections
Are we focusing more on
doors or mailers? On radio
or internet?
Are we microtargeting
voters, or are we trying to
turn out entire
neighborhoods?
Adjust to
Campaign
Strategy
Budget
Plan
How much did candidates
spend last time in this race?
How much did the winner
spend? How many dollars per
vote?
Get
Quotes
from
Vendors
What are bulk
rates for
signs, mailers,
etc.?
Do I have any
friends who
can get me
discounts?
Budgeting
Reference
Similar
Elections
Are we focusing more on
doors or mailers? On radio
or internet?
Are we microtargeting
voters, or are we trying to
turn out entire
neighborhoods?
Adjust to
Campaign
Strategy
How much did candidates
spend last time in this race?
How much did the winner
spend? How many dollars per
vote?
$$$
A concrete
number!
Get
Quotes
from
Vendors
What are bulk
rates for
signs, mailers,
etc.?
Do I have any
friends who
can get me
discounts?
Budgeting
Sample Budget Plan:
County Council, School Board or
Large-City Mayor Race in Volusia
(~30,000 voters)
Fundraising
What is the number one reason why
campaigns don’t raise enough money?
(Hint: Michael Jordan and Ruby Paine)
Fundraising
Types of Donors:
Self/Family
Friends
Allies
Access
Enemy-of-Enemy
Fundraising
Types of Donors:
Self/Family
Friends
Allies
Access
Enemy-of-Enemy
Relationships  $$$
Fundraising
Types of Donors:
Self/Family
Friends
Allies
Access
Enemy-of-Enemy
What message works
best for each type of
donor?
Fundraising
Fundraising Tactics:
• Online (website, social media, email)
• Events (house parties, dinners,
business-sponsored, recreational
activities)
• Direct (mailers/letters, phone)
• Merchandise (buttons, stickers, yard
signs, t-shirts)
• Promotions (dinner w/ candidate,
appear at rally, featured on video)
Fundraising
Who You Gonna Call?
Fund Sources
5% 0%
1.
2.
3.
4.
“List of 100”
Volunteers
Super-Donors
Super-Voters
15%
80%
Fundraising
Sample Fundraising Plan:
County Council, School Board or
Large-City Mayor Race in Volusia
(~30,000 voters)
Where do you get the data?
For outreach:
• Voter registration file from Supervisor of Elections (name,
demographics, address, contact info, election voting history)
• Party proprietary databases (for additional party-gathered
information about voters, including survey responses)
• Your own outreach (results from your canvassing, phone calls,
and mail responses)
• Data mining companies (for consumer behavior)
For contributions:
• City Clerks (municipal races) – may be online or in person
• Supervisor of Elections (county races) – online
• Florida Department of Elections (state races) – online
• Federal Elections Commission (federal races) – online
How data helps your voter outreach:
Prioritizing
Strongly Supports
You
Undecided
Strongly Opposes
You
Always Votes
#1 - volunteers &
donors
#3 - persuadables
don't even think
about it
Sometimes Votes
#2 - low-hanging fruit
#4 - resourceintensive
don't even think
about it
Never Votes
#5 - only if resources
permit
#6 - only if resources
permit
don't even think
about it
How this helps your fundraising:
Donor Profiles
Has contributed to
identical campaigns
Has contributed to
similar campaigns
Has contributed to
very different
campaigns
Contributes very
frequently
#1 – If you build it,
they will come
#2 - persuadables
don't even think
about it
Contributes
sometimes
#3 - low-hanging fruit
#4 - resourceintensive
don't even think
about it
Contributes rarely
#5 - only if resources
permit
#6 - only if resources
permit
don't even think
about it
How this helps your fundraising:
Give donors what they expect/want
Makes large
contributions
Makes medium
contributions
Makes small
contributions
Contributes very
frequently
elite fundraisers
promising access to
prominent politicos
house parties
promising friends
and some access
$5 or $10 per month
automatic donations
w/ incentives
Contributes
sometimes
elite fundraisers and
one-to-one meetings
for persuasion
house parties and
one-to-one meetings
for persuasion
merchandising/swag
sales
Contributes rarely
only if resources
permit
only if resources
permit
don't even think
about it
How this helps your fundraising:
Give donors what they expect/want
Makes large
contributions
Makes medium
contributions
Makes small
contributions
Contributes very
frequently
elite fundraisers
promising access to
prominent politicos
house parties
promising friends
and some access
$5 or $10 per month
automatic donations
w/ incentives
Contributes
sometimes
elite fundraisers and
one-to-one meetings
for persuasion
house parties and
one-to-one meetings
for persuasion
merchandising/swag
sales
Contributes rarely
only if resources
permit
only if resources
permit
don't even think
about it
Tip: Combine contribution history data with information about
preferences and passion areas in order to weave a custom message in
to your solicitation – it will make it more likely to succeed!
What skills do you need?
Spreadsheets (or, even
better, databases)
Script writing (for calling
and canvassing)
Mail merges (for
customized mailers/scripts)
How can you take this to the next level?
Utilize polling to gauge favorability
of ideas before you market them
Put your message in to a “narrative” – voters
respond better to stories
Pay for more data (lists,
subscriptions, memberships, etc.)
Questions?
Fundraising and Budgeting for
Political Campaigns
Kevin Winchell
Politics 101 Conference – 2014
Stetson University