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2018 City of Victoria election


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#2301 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 12:43 PM

If you're trying to sell the latest gadget to millennials, then sure. But voters tend to be folks who use a smartphone about as often as millennials use an oven.


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#2302 Awaiting Juno

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 12:44 PM

I think this might well be the first election ever where being an incumbent is a real detraction.  I find myself thinking, who on current council would I like to keep?  And it's a surprisingly small handful.  I keep seeing Stephen Andrew on facebook ponder a run for the mayor's seat....



#2303 Awaiting Juno

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 12:48 PM

If you're trying to sell the latest gadget to millennials, then sure. But voters tend to be folks who use a smartphone about as often as millennials use an oven.

 

I think you're quite wrong on both counts.  Even my 91 year old gramma is on Facebook (note - millenials don't use facebook, preferring SnapChat) but you'd be hard pressed to find a demographic under 75 that can't be reached through digital advertising including Google ad words.  As far as bang for the buck - a road sign isn't going to get you the mileage needed and is likely to be lost in the mess of road signs.  Not having road signs might make a more meaningful statement about who you are and what you stand for.



#2304 Rob Randall

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 12:58 PM

I'm not convinced of the effectiveness of an electronic ad campaign and certainly judge the wisdom of it being the foundation of your marketing strategy. 



#2305 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 01:01 PM

A successful campaign comes down to one thing: name recognition. And name recognition is achieved remarkably well with roadside signage. The most effective endorsement remains a large sign on private property.


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#2306 Baro

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 01:19 PM

I've never felt enough personal support towards any politician that I'd want to put up a sign, other than for one of our members here years ago :)

But even now, it feels like such a personal endorsement and half the people I vote for I end up feeling pangs of regret eventually.  I'll hold my nose and vote for who I see as the least bad option, but it's so rare to actually "support" a candidate to the extent I'd publicly endorse them with a sign.


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#2307 Rob Randall

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 01:23 PM

And name recognition is achieved remarkably well with roadside signage. The most effective endorsement remains a large sign on private property

 

Absolutely, the private property sign is good as gold. That's why candidates should be door knocking. 

 

  • The candidate meets voters face to face. They appreciate it
  • Your pamphlet gets in their mailbox without having to pay Canada Post
  • Enthusiastic supporters are good candidates for lawn signs. It'll help decide how many to print

I don't know how good Google and Facebook are for targeting a particular district. There are 160 municipal elections happening this fall!


Edited by Rob Randall, 14 August 2018 - 01:24 PM.


#2308 rmpeers

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 01:23 PM

I think this might well be the first election ever where being an incumbent is a real detraction. I find myself thinking, who on current council would I like to keep? And it's a surprisingly small handful. I keep seeing Stephen Andrew on facebook ponder a run for the mayor's seat....


Any word on whether Mr. Andrew will take the plunge and thoughts on his chances if he does?

#2309 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 01:55 PM

I don't know how good Google and Facebook are for targeting a particular district. There are 160 municipal elections happening this fall!

 

And therein is the rub. 

 

Imagine if 160 plumbers suddenly began vying for your attention within a two month span. That's what an electronic marketing campaign comes down to unless you have a budget so vast that you can pay to outbid everyone else and maintain a presence nearly 24 hours a day. That can cost several thousand dollars a day if you're working to have a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Adsense and on popular digital platforms that don't use Adsense (like VV). You can't just drop $100 a day an expect serious, tangible results, and even then with two months out you're booked for $6,000 in ad spend.


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#2310 spanky123

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:05 PM

Absolutely, the private property sign is good as gold. That's why candidates should be door knocking. 

 

  • The candidate meets voters face to face. They appreciate it
  • Your pamphlet gets in their mailbox without having to pay Canada Post
  • Enthusiastic supporters are good candidates for lawn signs. It'll help decide how many to print

I don't know how good Google and Facebook are for targeting a particular district. There are 160 municipal elections happening this fall!

 

Google and Facebook can target to a postal code or 6 houses on average. 


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#2311 Rob Randall

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:24 PM

And therein is the rub. 

 

Imagine if 160 plumbers suddenly began vying for your attention within a two month span. That's what an electronic marketing campaign comes down to unless you have a budget so vast that you can pay to outbid everyone else and maintain a presence nearly 24 hours a day. That can cost several thousand dollars a day if you're working to have a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Adsense and on popular digital platforms that don't use Adsense (like VV). You can't just drop $100 a day an expect serious, tangible results, and even then with two months out you're booked for $6,000 in ad spend.

 

And with Focus no longer a monthly, Monday no longer a weekly news journal and newspapers declining in popularity, alternative advertising options are no better. 

 

This are typical Times Colonist online ads:

 

Capture.JPG

 

Black Press doesn't appear to be even running online ads right now. How is a candidate supposed to push past the clickbait and communicate?



#2312 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:31 PM

Google and Facebook can target to a postal code or 6 houses on average. 

 

Granularity works best on a city or regional level, ie. Victoria's core, the West Shore, etc. But that's also problematic on the budget side of the equation as West Shore voters who spend their day downtown are targeted by a West Shore politician who is now competing with City of Victoria politicians also targeting those who work and live in the city-proper thereby raising the price for City of Victoria political hopefuls.


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#2313 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:33 PM

Geoghegan remains at $300 for his $30,000 GoFundMe target. If this is the barometer by which he'll decide whether or not to pursue his mayoralty run he needs to start marketing the campaign immediately as obviously not enough people are aware of his intentions.

 

That being said I would encourage him to remove such a public presence for his campaign finances and instead secure donations outside of the limelight.


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#2314 spanky123

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:43 PM

Granularity works best on a city or regional level, ie. Victoria's core, the West Shore, etc. But that's also problematic on the budget side of the equation as West Shore voters who spend their day downtown are targeted by a West Shore politician who is now competing with City of Victoria politicians also targeting those who work and live in the city-proper thereby raising the price for City of Victoria political hopefuls.

 

The services are far more sophisticated these days. Facebook, Google and the others know where you live and are not fooled by work or other access points. For the right amount of money you could accurately target people who live on a particular street or in a neighbourhood, who are planning to vote on election day and who are leaning towards your candidate. You can even buy the right keywords and issues to be relevant to your audience.


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#2315 Rob Randall

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:44 PM

^Isn't it weird his entire election budget is funneled through a GoFundMe page?

 

Because a lot of your big-money donors will still be giving your bagman a cheque to be deposited directly into the campaign account the old fashioned way. So even if your major supporters come through in a big way your GoFundMe total still looks weak. 

 

It's better optics for a small campaign to go over the top than a big campaign to fall far short, even if the dollar totals are the same.



#2316 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:48 PM

The services are far more sophisticated these days. Facebook, Google and the others know where you live and are not fooled by work or other access points. For the right amount of money you could accurately target people who live on a particular street or in a neighbourhood, who are planning to vote on election day and who are leaning towards your candidate. You can even buy the right keywords and issues to be relevant to your audience.

 

You absolutely can, but we're talking rinky dink municipal campaigns here.

 

The more sophisticated you get with your targeting, the smaller your pool of potential targets is. It's fine when you're targeting a group fo 25 million people but when your voter base is comprised of 45,000 people, half of whom do not use social media on a daily basis or even on a meaningfully frequent bases, you need to cast a very wide net to see any tangible results. And remember you're still competing for eyes with anyone or any other organization targeting the same people for a myriad of different reasons.


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#2317 Rob Randall

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 02:55 PM

^The Russians could help but they are busy right now with the US midterms.

 

How about AggregateIQ?


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#2318 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 03:00 PM

^The Russians Chinese could help but they are busy right now with the US midterms.

 

There, fixed that for ya.


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#2319 spanky123

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 03:14 PM

You absolutely can, but we're talking rinky dink municipal campaigns here.

 

The more sophisticated you get with your targeting, the smaller your pool of potential targets is. It's fine when you're targeting a group fo 25 million people but when your voter base is comprised of 45,000 people, half of whom do not use social media on a daily basis or even on a meaningfully frequent bases, you need to cast a very wide net to see any tangible results. And remember you're still competing for eyes with anyone or any other organization targeting the same people for a myriad of different reasons.

 

True but with a smaller pool you need to impact fewer people to have a result. A swing of 1,000 votes is probably enough to create a winner most years.



#2320 Mike K.

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Posted 14 August 2018 - 03:38 PM

Yes, it could be.

 

It'll be interesting to see if any candidates embrace an all-digital election marketing campaign or whether the old and true plastic signs will still prevail. If everyone is hoping to make it big with digital advertising ...oh man, they better have deep pockets. And they also better have their verbiage down for when/if criticism arises over Trumpian digital targeting techniques.

 

And can you imagine an accidental campaign marketing setting burning through $20,000 in advertising in two days? It happens, and it happens far more than people realize.


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