3 Social Media Lessons from Election 2010

In the weeks since the election, a slew of analyses of the impact of social media on the election results have popped up.

Frustratingly, many of them seem to conflate correlation and causation, suggesting that more Fans on Facebook led to a better result at the polls (versus an equally reasonable possibility: Facebook fandom is a symptom of an already popular candidate.)

We think the overwhelming evidence from the election is that media channels are converging – it’s more important than ever to build plans that layer as many channels as possible in ways that are measurable.

Our favorite analysis on the interwebs this week was FastCompany’s “Field Guide to Modern Political Campaigns.” We encourage you to read the whole article on FastCompany, and offer our favorite (and most widely applicable) three items below:

1. Use Facebook to test your message(s).

From Fast Company:

There’s nothing wrong with doing old-fashioned focus-group testing, but the fact is that, other than in the Senate and Governor races, most candidates can’t afford to do extensive focus-group testing to determine which message will resonate best with their voters. Facebook, however, gives you a built-in panel. Select your parameters (women in Sheboygan between the ages of 35-42, for example). Drop a few different versions of an ad in front of them, and you’ll quickly see which messages and images get better results.

This lesson is applicable to advocacy, fundraising, and volunteer cultivation, too. Facebook ads are cheap, easy to create, modify, and track. Set up a few versions and do some message testing on the cheap with your target audiences.

2. Don’t skimp on your AdWords buyer.

Buying AdWords is an art, especially when you’re bidding for the same terms against other contenders, which can sometimes result in a real-time bidding war. You’ll need an extremely savvy buyer to know how to spend your money wisely, while still getting your ads in front of your desired audiences.

While your budget may demand frugality (“skimping”), no matter your goals you should prioritize knowledge, innovativeness, and accessibility when working with an AdWords buyer. While it’s easy as pie to set up AdWords, FastCompany is absolutely right that it’s tough to do well. (If you’re looking for someone to help with this, we’ve worked with Kevin Gottesman with great results: http://www.gottadvertising.com/)

3. Stay engaged on social media after the election’s over.

Don’t let Facebook and Twitter go dark after Election Day. Use them to stay involved with your supporters and keep them enthusiastic about what you’re doing—so that they’ll be there for you the next time around. One veteran e-strategist recommends that politicians start to use social media to include the public in the process of governing—not just the process of campaigning. House whip Eric Cantor, for example, recently introduced a program called YouCut, a crowdsourcing project that gives his online followers an actual, tangible say in policy. Every week Congress is in session, users can head to YouCut to vote for the spending items they want to see eliminated from legislation. Cantor takes the winning item and offers it on the House floor for an actual up-or-down vote.

Whatever we think about Eric Cantor’s politics and policy prescriptions, we give him props for YouCut and hope you’re willing and able to try something like it. Be prepared to keep up the momentum and connection even after your big fundraising push, volunteer event, or advocacy campaign. Ignore your online relationships at your peril – whatever progress you made will be gone when you need it next if you don’t work to keep up your end of things.