Media
BOOK WRITING + MARKETING
Imagine what being a bestselling author could do to for your credibility. Whether it is to promote a product or cause, tell your story or position yourself for the future, a book gives you gravitas. Using a proprietary process, our partners have helped publish more than 90 New York Times bestselling books and thousands of bestselling e-books. If you already have your own book we can help build your platform. If not, our team of ghostwriters will help you complete your vision.
BLOG OUTREACH
Running a successful campaign typically involves receiving endorsements, and write-ups, from “the right people.” With the growth of the Internet, independent news sites and bloggers now exert a significant influence on the general public. With years of experience in social media and online marketing, Smarter Campaigns is well-established within this online network. We use our extensive connections in the blogosphere to make sure that people are not just talking about your organization, they’re raving about it.
EARNED MEDIA PLANNING
Earned media refers to publicity or media coverage gained without the use of paid advertising. It might include television or radio appearances, newspaper articles and editorials about you or your product, or a robust Internet blog presence. Earned media is often very effective, even when compared with paid media, because many people will recognize that you are being honored or praised organically. At Smarter Campaigns, we identify the types of earned media that best fit your campaign or business and design an effective strategy to maximize those outlets.
MEDIA BUDGETING
How much should your campaign spend on print media vs. television? What about online media? Media budgeting is critical to disseminating your message and to cultivating your identity and image development. At Smarter Campaigns we will develop your media budget and make determinations about the types of media buys to prioritize at each stage of the campaign. We will ensure that your media budget is executed consistently with your overall campaign strategy and is aligned with targeting objectives that are specifically crafted to fit your constituents.
MEDIA EVENT PRODUCTION
At a press conference or media event, nothing should be left to chance. With you, we’ll consider questions, including: Who do you want to attend the event? Where should it be? What will be said? Who should say it? What backdrop is most appropriate? Who should be onstage? How do you get reporters to show up? At Smarter Campaigns, we work with you on all aspects of media event production, from creating ideas for the event to developing the event to advising you on the proper way to use a clothes hanger to give the American flag the proper draping effect.
CUSTOM POLITICAL + ADVERTISING JINGLES
There was a point in time when all winning campaigns had a jingle. From “I Like Ike” to “Kennedy for Me,” a memorable campaign jingle serves to rally supporters and provide information to voters in an easily digestible form. The most successful brands all have jingles or theme songs that, consciously or unconsciously, are associated with them. Research has shown that advertising containing music is both more effective and more likely to be remembered. Smarter Campaigns will work side by side with your organization to produce a jingle that effectively conveys your organization’s identity, products, and goals, and will ensure that your jingle is perfectly aligned with your target market or demographic.
VIDEO PRODUCTION + EDITING
A high production value in your videos can make a huge difference in how people perceive your organization. If the resolution is not of high enough quality, the video may not be able to go on television. If the visuals or the editing does not sync up with the messaging, the result will be a poor end-product. At Smarter Campaigns, we use state-of-the-art HD and RED cameras to get the best possible picture quality. Our directors, videographers and editors have experience with the latest technologies in their fields, and have spent years making films, documentaries, television shows, commercials, and even YouTube videos.
Communications
CANDIDATE COACHING
What does it take to win a race for public office? Are you prepared for the journey? Candidates who are not prepared don’t win. Smarter Campaigns helps candidates maximize the tools they already possess and teaches them how to use them to their strategic advantage. Smarter Campaigns will help you to handle an obnoxious reporter, to ask an elected official for an endorsement, or ask a constituent for a donation. We work with you to understand how you present yourself and how you appear to others. We don’t try to change you, rather we use the tools you already have to better prepare you for the challenges of a campaign. In the hard times, we are there to talk you through and prepare you for all of the challenges candidates encounter on the campaign trail.
COPY WRITING
Good copy is what sells a product. It is compelling and memorable. Whether it is for an advertisement, a website, or a newspaper article, Smarter Campaigns’ copy writers will work side-by-side with your organization to ensure that you receive only the best written work product. No matter the subject or topic of conversation, we deliver written copy that gets results.
DEBATE PREPARATION
Worried about that upcoming debate? Do you know how to answer questions on the spot? Good candidates know how debate. Great candidates put the debate and the election on their own terms. Smarter Campaigns will put you in position to control the debate, to out-think, out-speak, and out-debate your opponents.
MESSAGE DEVELOPMENT
Only after the campaign has done all of its homework (self and opposition research, strengths and weaknesses, biographical) can we begin to develop messaging. While most candidates simply choose a few issues or causes to highlight, successful candidates research and prepare. In order to succeed, you must develop messaging that will maximize your strengths and contrast you with your opponents, while still appealing to the voters and the district. Facts and attacks must ALWAYS be sourced. If not, the campaign runs the risk of embarrassing itself with false or misleading information. With the creation of a message grid, we can determine what a campaign will say about itself and its opponents, as well as anticipate their attacks.
MEDIA TRAINING
Smarter Campaigns excels at preparing candidates to navigate potential landmines strewn across the media landscape. Our philosophy is to make you more comfortable “being you” when you interact with the media, as the best candidates are those who are comfortable being exactly who they are and conveying that message in any situation. Every media encounter is a chance to influence a voter, and we will give you the best chance for success. We offer situational coaching to increase candidates’ ability to navigate media interactions, identify potential challenges ,and respond in a manner that is consistent with the campaign message.
SPEECHWRITING
Running for office? Receiving an award? Speaking at a commencement? The right speech can capture the moment, win hearts and minds, and convince a listener to cast a vote, write a check, or tell a friend about you and your cause. The most effective speeches always depend on professional speech writers whose craft is invisible to the audience. Through a series of conversations, drafts and revisions, Smarter Campaigns will turn your thoughts and words into a powerful speech that you can deliver to any audience.
TRANSLATION SERVICES
Never again miss out on opportunities, business or votes simply because you struggle to communicate your message to non-English speakers. A phrase that is correct in English may have a different meaning in Spanish, Mandarin, Farsi or Polish; many times, colloquialisms are lost in translation and, with it, the original idea as well. At Smarter Campaigns, we work with teams of translators to ensure that your materials say the same thing in all targeted languages. With enough advance notice, no language is too obscure.
Public Relations
CRISIS MANAGEMENT
During a crisis, how will your organization react? What should be the public response to the situation? What should be the internal response? These questions require fast action and accurate decision making. At Smarter Campaigns we help you respond to any eventuality swiftly and decisively, allowing you to effectively manage your crisis, both internally and externally. We work with you to guide and spin your response, to reduce the chaos, and to help effectively navigate your organization through any crisis.
BRANDING AND REPUTATION MANAGEMENT
Few things are more important to a campaign than creating and broadcasting a professional, consistent, and clean-looking identity. And in the business world, a well-designed identity or brand will be a significant long-term driver of your organization’s success. Our world-class designers and strategists will work with you to identify your goals and will then create a custom and comprehensive identity for your organization. Our goal is for that identity to far outlast your current campaign and to help support your organization for years to come.
BUILDING NAME RECOGNITION
Whether it’s consumers in a grocery store choosing a brand of ice cream or voters going to the polls on election day to cast votes, name recognition plays a major role in the decision-making process. The brands or names that are most familiar or most recognizable are often the ones that receive the most consideration. This effect can be measured in higher sales numbers and higher vote totals. At Smarter Campaigns, we’ll make sure that you build a memorable brand and are first in people’s minds when they make important decisions.
BIOGRAPHY DEVELOPMENT
How will certain features of your biography help or hurt you in different communities? What should be included and what should be left out? We begin by scouring the Internet for any and all old biographies and resumes and reviewing them for consistency. We help you discern which esoteric hobbies might scare voters and remind you that if you need to mention your cats by name, you should also do the same for your children. Using information provided by you and through the self-research, Smarter Campaigns will help you develop a biography that is both professional and befitting a candidate running for public office.
INOCULATION STRATEGIES
In order to win, you need to predict the moves of your opponent. This can best be done by anticipating the messaging and attacks that will be leveled against you. If the information is caught early, we can prepare you for the coming attacks and help you determine ideal strategies to inoculate yourself and your campaign. At Smarter Campaigns, we will prepare you against potential attacks, helping you craft responses that will paint you in the best possible light. If you wait until you’ve been attacked to plan a response, it is already too late.
MEDIA KIT DEVELOPMENT
The care and maintenance of the media is important, and that’s why professional media kits matter. The crisper and more professional your material, the better. For corporations and non-profits, a media kit is an essential tool to frame an organization’s products and values. It’s equally vital for a campaign. Do the opinion makers who matter have a proper profile of your candidacy or organization? Have they been provided materials that will give color and background to their reporting on your campaign? Small town weekly newspapers are known for publishing directly from media kits and press releases, which makes good print materials particularly important in races where small towns can net big votes.
PRESS OUTREACH
Do you have a story or event you need covered by the press, but don’t know who to call? Smarter Campaigns is constantly cultivating our relationships with national and local journalists, bloggers, and reporters, and can provide press outreach for your event or story. We ensure that your press coverage is handled by the most appropriate, professional sources to maximize favorable coverage and project your target message far and wide.