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________________________ CAMPAIGN HOT TIPS April 20, 2004 _______________________ IT�S THE MESSAGE, STUPID When it comes to delivering your campaign message to the voters, most candidates - both novice AND experienced - make the same two mistakes� 1.) Confusing the difference between delivering a �pretty� message with a persuasive message, and� 2.) Using their local vendor or a �friend,� instead of an experienced POLITICAL professional. What is the definition of a proper campaign �message�? For the answer we quote from longtime political guru Ron Faucheux of Campaigns & Elections magazine (www.campaignline.com)� �The essence of political strategy is to concentrate your greatest strength against the point of your opponent�s greatest weakness. This is done through positioning, which is the development and delivery of messages that present voters with a choice based on candidate differences that are clear, believable and connected to reality. �Campaign messages may be based on (a) the candidates personal strengths and weaknesses (i.e., experience, competence, independence, integrity, compassion, stability, preparation, etc.); (b) ideological and partisan differences (liberal vs. conservative, moderate vs. extreme, inconsistent vs. consistent, pragmatic vs. purist, etc.); (c) the situational context (change vs. status quo, right track vs. wrong track, reform vs. the old way, etc.); or (d) a combination of any of the above.� Now, it�s one thing to come up with the right message theme for your campaign; it�s another thing altogether to craft and deliver that message in a way which persuades voters or motivates them to show up at the polls. And THAT�S the part all too many campaigns botch...big time! Consider this admonition from marketing guru Gary Halbert (www.thegaryhalbertletter.com)� �What I want you to know...what I want to POUND and POUND and POUND into you is...You Cannot Multiply Zeros! And the �zero� I�m talking about in this case is a vapid, limp, non-compelling sales message. I don�t care it it�s a direct mail letter, a website, a newspaper ad, magazine ad, radio or TV commercial or whatever. If it�s a �nothing� message, I don�t care how good your ad layout is, how well the ad is typeset. If it�s a radio commercial, I care NOT how good the sound effects are or how vibrant, pleasant and commanding the announcer�s voice is. If it�s a website, I don�t care how many website/internet secret tricks and techniques you know. Take any non-compelling message and show it to someone. That person will not respond. Show it to 10,000 people and none (or pathetically few) of them will respond.� Halbert continues: �I don�t give a damn what form of marketing you�re in. I don�t care how many tricks you know. I don�t care how cheap you can buy your media. I don�t care if the emails or newspaper ads or stamps and printing are FREE! Even if all this is FREE...if you can�t write a �killer� sales message, it is all for naught.� Get it? It�s the message, not the medium. You can dress up a pig in a three-piece suit...but it�s still a pig. It doesn�t matter how �pretty� you make your message look...if the message stinks it still stinks. And people won�t buy what you�re selling...even if it IS on four-color glossy stock. Same goes for websites. What your campaign should be shooting for is both a compelling campaign message AND a professional image. Many vendors can do one...or the other. Few can do both well. Your local printer can give you four-color imaging but likely has NO IDEA how to come up with a proper and persuasive political message. Ditto your buddy who designs websites on the side. He�ll give you all kinds of bells and whistles...but that doesn�t mean he can deliver a persuasive political message. Here are two vendors whom I�ve dealt with personally over the years who absolutely know how to develop both a compelling message AND a professional delivery vehicle. You�d do well to contact them for your campaign. WEBSITE: Mark Montini of Campaign Secrets. Visit www.campaignsitebuilder.com DIRECT MAIL: Jim Bieber of Bieber Communications. Visit www.biebercommunications.com Prof. Chuck Muth Doctor of Psephology (home-schooled) ********************************************* CAMPAIGN HOT TIPS is published by: Citizen Outreach 611 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, #439 Washington, DC 20003 For more information and free help on organizing and running a winning campaign, visit www.campaigndoctor.com To be REMOVED, go to: http://www.chuckmuth.com/remove/default.cfm
