This issue’s Shoptalkers: Shayna Englin, managing director at Mercury Public Affairs; Chris Faulkner, owner of Gridiron Communications; John Thomas, founder and CEO of Thomas Partners Strategies; and Michael Trujillo, senior […]
Goal Setting Like a Boss
Back from holiday, you’re hopefully well-rested and ready to take on 2019 with gusto. All you need now is focused direction on what exactly you want to achieve and the […]
Amid Facebook Transparency Push, Strategic Concerns Emerge
As campaign advertisers start to feel the impact of Facebook’s new political ad policies, practitioners tell C&E a litany of questions about the process remain. Over the past week, […]
Two New Midwestern PACs Launch
Two new Midwestern PACs have been launched since the beginning of the year by prominent women—one on the left, and one on the right. CouragePAC, started by former Democratic […]
Digital Consultants Eager to Test Facebook Pre-Roll Ahead of 2018
Digital marketers are ready to test Facebook’s new digital ad offerings but say their effectiveness for campaigns very much remains to be seen. Facebook is gearing up to test pre-roll ad […]
Building a Partisan Media Universe
Earlier this summer the leaders of the Alternative for Germany Party, known as the AfD, came to Vienna—again. For the leading right wing populist party in Germany, the trip was […]
Time for QR codes on campaign signs?
The most common mistake campaigns make when designing a yard sign is adding too much stuff. Your average voter doesn’t spend more than a few seconds looking over a direct […]
Project Vote Smart’s New Website – Vote Easy
Aside from the constant chirping birds that populate Project Vote Smart’s new website, Vote Easy, this new site is a graphically interesting and information heavy site to get to know […]
Consultants Mostly Optimistic on Industryโs Future, But 2020 Worries Loom
Nearly half of political consultants (48%) believe the campaign industry is headed in the right direction at the start of the 2020 cycle, but C&E’s inaugural State of the Campaign […]
6 Questions for the Advocacy Market in 2019
The advocacy technology market is shifting. As practitioners ready to meet the needs of their clients in 2019, there are several unanswered questions on the horizon. These are some of […]
Testing the Mettle of the Pollsters
With just over a week to go, Sen. Barack Obama is solidly ahead in practically every nationwide poll. And in some key battleground states, Obama’s margins are at or near […]
In Fundraising, the Kickoff Mattersย
At the launch of a campaign, fundraising probably isn’t the first thing on a candidate’s mind, but it should be. Sure, it’s a hectic, confusing time. And most candidates know […]
Where to Look Online for the Impossible-to-Find Voter
Campaigns can no longer live or die by running broad-reaching, general advertising—especially online. Sophisticated online targeting, which reaches the right audience with the right message and mobilizes voters to go […]
Down-ballot campaigns are going digital
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been struck several times by the growing sophistication of down-ballot campaigns when it comes to online campaigning. I recently got a demo from NGP […]
5 Ways To Reactivate Inactive Emails
What’s the one time of year email fundraisers dread more than end-of-quarter deadlines? Summer. At this point in the cycle, email open rates start to drop off. Congress is slow […]
4 Reasons Campaign Finance Law (And Lawyers) Matter More Than Ever
It’s the kind of message that every organization involved in campaigns dreads most: “Your lawyer called, it’s an emergency.” While we’ve been on both sides of that phone call before […]
Comms Consultants Weigh In On Navigating the Spread of Local News โDesertsโ
The creep of โnews desertsโ across the country is causing communications consultants on both sides to reexamine earned media strategies for campaigns and groups. Following the demise of some 1,800 […]
Cyber Risk Analysts Are Exposing Consulting Firmsโ Vulnerabilities
Crippling cyber assaults, Russian intelligence email phishing, ransomware, nefarious rival operators acting as black hat hackers — it’s enough for consultants to long for the old analog days. Now, consultants […]
Nevada’s “Gotcha” Senate Election
Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid has done an effective job, mostly through surrogates, of making the Nevada race for Senate less about himself, and his sagging job approval numbers, and […]
Digital Strategists Broadly Unhappy With Googleโs Ad Policy Changes
Digital advertising strategists on both sides of the aisle expressed concern Thursday over the newly announced changes to Google’s ad policy, arguing they will negatively impact legitimate political outreach while […]
Selling yard signs can mean banking votes
Nikki Haley won the South Carolina governorship last year despite breaking with a longstanding tradition of successful campaigns. The Republican, amid a steady grumble from some old timers, charged supporters […]
Overlooked SCOTUS ruling could impact campaigns
Many people missed an important First Amendment decision from the Supreme Court recently. Amid all of the political discussion surrounding the court’s ruling on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care […]
Is California about to regulate the political blogosphere?ย
The consulting industry in California is waiting to see if the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission follows through on a proposal to require candidates and campaigns to publicly report payments […]
Former NSA Hackers Can Provide Free Anti-Phishing Services to 2020 Campaigns
A company specializing in combating phishing attacks founded by former N.S.A. “hackers” has gotten the greenlight to offer cybersecurity consulting services to campaigns and committees at low or no-cost. Area […]