An effective online campaign uses digital marketing tactics and strategies to achieve the four key goals of earning votes, raising money, getting attention, and upsetting your opponent. Must-use campaign marketing tactics like email, social media, search, and web design are always changing as the companies that provide these services adapt to better serve their customers.
With all of the changes, it’s sometimes difficult to keep up and know what changes affect them. Here are some of the online marketing websites I follow for insights and inspiration.
If you’re not already following Best Practice Digital on Twitter or Facebook, I share the best finds from these sites that are relevant to campaigners there.
It’s far too easy to get lost in the noise of online marketing blogs and newsletters, so here’s a rundown of what kind of information you should be on the lookout for, then my recommendations.
- Email - Email is the most important asset in your online campaign. You’ve got to stay up to date on deliverability best practices, changes to the most common platforms like Gmail, and trends for email design.
- Social Media - Social media platforms are always changing layouts and introducing new features. Keep up to date with changes – even if they don’t explicitly impact political campaigns. Take advantage of new features that help you reach supporters and drive them to your website.
- Search Engine Marketing and Optimization - Your voters are using search engines (mostly Google) to research your election. Familiarize yourself with the latest tactics in search engine marketing (SEM) and search engine optimization (SEO) to ensure they find you online.
- Web Design - What worked for your campaign website and graphics two, four, or six years ago might not work today. Don’t get too trendy, but have an understanding of where things are headed because you’re competing against more than just other campaigns for your voters’ attention.
This website collects marketing emails and their newsletter features the best of the best. You’ll also get links to other email marketing articles.
HubSpot’s blog covers each of the topics mentioned above, but valuably, produces regularly updated guides highlighting recent changes and developments in marketing platforms. They also feature detailed how-tos and downloadable resources.
You won’t find a more comprehensive source for data and statistics about online marketing than eMarketer. Tap into their reports for a sense of what trends are real or just hype. Use this data to win internal fights to secure more resources for your online campaign.
The Litmus Blog is another must-read for email marketers. Their posts focus on email marketing tactics, strategies, trends, and analytics.
Follow this blog for conversion strategies and actionable steps for improving your online marketing funnel. Growing your email list is the focus of your online campaign and GetResponse will teach you how to do it.
These are five blogs and newsletters that I read every week to help me stay on top of the latest news, trends, and strategies in online marketing. While they’re focused on commercial marketing, campaigners will benefit from relevant inspiration, ideas, and insights.
Finally, remember that your online marketing efforts are always in service of the campaign. Ultimately the winner is the candidate who gets the most votes – not the one who ran the best marketing campaign, had the most shares, or racked up the most video views.
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