The Dark Horses Rise
Doomscroll 6.11.23
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I would like to start this edition of Doomscroll on a personal note: by wishing a Happy Birthday to my sweet Vada James Elliott, who turned 3 today. She loves watching Toy Story, blowing bubbles, eating strawberries, and not going poo in the potty. My stubborn girl refused to come out the good old fashioned way, so she entered this world to the beat of her own drum via emergency c-section at 9:01 PM ET on June 11, 2020. Things haven’t changed much since. I love you, Vada!
One Question
Thanks to everyone who answered last week’s One Question about tools and vendors. Let’s roll the highlight reel, shall we? For email, most said Salesforce…because apparently we like making things way more complicated than they have to be. MailChimp came in a close second, though. Your answers for programmatic ad buying were all over the freaking place, which I understand. Top shout-outs go to The Trade Desk, MiQ, and StackAdapt. For P2P texting, top mention was RumbleUp, followed by Open Sesame and Peerly. Gracias for the info, everyone! And if you’re a lowly, still up-and-coming operative who didn’t know where to start on your journey to digital campaign dominance - well here you go.
This week’s One Question is a good old fashioned poll. We haven’t done one of those in a while, and it’s time. So let’s do a poll about logos. Who among the presidential primary candidates has the best one? I’m obviously voting Doug Burgum, but you all do what you will.
Who’s Doing What
--The Dark Horse
Look, I like Mike Pence, but that doesn’t mean he doesn't belong in the Dark Horse category - vice presidency or no vice presidency. Rightly or wrongly, the man gets booed at almost every event he shows up to. Some would say he should quit while he’s ahead. Not me, though - I’m just calling him my first Dark Horse this week. That aside, I would like to start by calling out his announcement video. It is SO Mike Pence and I mean that in the best way. It’s got the perfect amount of cheesiness and drama. And because I value my readers, I’m going to be bold AF and share the two most pervasive thoughts I had while watching it. 1) I would listen to Mike Pence narrate a phone book. 2) The whole thing reminded me A LOT of the West Wing opening credits. And no, I will not explain myself.
Moving on…I did not watch his announcement rally or his town hall. I would have - I just forgot about them, which kinda tells you something (womp womp). His logo? Fine. Website? Meh, and I’m taking off another 5 points for the lack of merch. However, the WinRed page that his homepage donation button links to is very pretty so maybe we’re at a draw. He’s spending a little on and Facebook and Google to promote some fundraising ads and the announcement video. Given his profile and the size of his operation, though, I’m pretty surprised I haven’t been getting emails or texts from Pence this week. Boo. Not much else to say about his digital operation just yet. I am signed up for emails, but haven’t gotten anything on that front either!
--The Darker Horse
What is there to say about Governor Chris Christie that hasn’t been said before? I actually love that he’s running for president, if for no other reason than it’ll amp up the entertainment factor by about 100 this cycle. He’s already bringing the zingers on Twitter, and I am here for it. PSA: I don’t know who runs Christie’s Twitter account, but it is GOOD. If it’s not Christie himself, then consider me fooled. Whoever’s doing it has really got the voice down. Operatives: take note. Moving on…Website? Underwhelming. Logo? Underwhelming. The pro-Christie PAC, Tell It Like It Is, is spending a reasonable amount on a few Facebook lead-gen ads, and I must say I agree with their message: Let’s get this man on the debate stage, America! On Google, they’re running some extremely non-imaginative search ads to WinRed (le sigh). All in all, I expected a little more on the digital front from Christie (no announcement video!??!) - especially considering this is his SECOND parlay into presidential primary politics. Color me disappointed.
--The Darkest Horse
Ah, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum. This week the businessman-turned-politician launched his bid for president. Good for him. Clearly, he has the money (can I get $5?!?). Clearly he thinks he’s up to the task. Maybe he is, maybe he isn’t, but let’s talk about his digital footprint thus far. If you’ve read Doomscroll at all you know I love a good bio video. Burgum released his this week, which you can watch here. Is it the best bio-slash-announcement video I’ve ever seen? No. Is it in the top 5 at least? No. Does it get the job done? Eh. I hate to say this (I really do!!!) but for me, Burgum’s video fell a little flat. Don’t get me wrong - I like the guy and his message. I really want to buy into the North Dakota way of doing things! I could see myself getting “woke” at 5 AM to feed some horses. But creatively, this vid just didn’t do it for me. But what the hey - I’m only one person. Aside from the video - I actually really dig the website. I like the horizontal scroll feature and the bold font choice. And the logo just works. Team Burgum even got some nice kudos from a Dem advance guy on Twitter - cool! The truth is, when you reach a certain tax bracket you learn to like nice things and I expect that while the gov may struggle to find his lane politically, his operation will be solid - including his digital strategy. At least he’s putting some money behind Google ads! Team Burgum - if you’re reading this - the world is your oyster. No place to go but up!
--For something non-presidential
I’d like to give a shout-out this week to Indiana Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, who is running for governor of the Hoosier state in 2024. I signed up for her email list months ago, and have gotten a steady drumbeat of updates and fundraising pitches ever since. The content is solid, too. Whoever is doing her digital is doing some nice work. I’ll be honest: I have no idea where she stacks up in the primary right now. She’s facing some stiff competition that includes U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, but hey - she’s off to a great start.
--Fear and Ethics in Las Vegas…
Newly-elected Nevada Governor Loe Lombardo is facing a $1.7 million (!!) fine for campaigning with his sheriff badge and uniform. Ouch! Why am I including this in a newsletter about digital tactics? Because like it or not, digital staffers need to be on the lookout for stuff like this. Even if it’s not your butt on the line (I’m looking at you, campaign lawyers!), it’s always nice for a campaign to have a digital staff (or digital director) who know when to pause, take a deep breath, and ask a question such as: “Is it really ok for us to post this photo of Joe in a sheriff’s uniform on the campaign Facebook account? Just want to double check!!”. Just do it and potentially save your guy - or gal - a million bucks.
--Tuck, tuck, tuck
The Tucker also rises. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that Tucker Carlson posted his first two videos (episodes?) to Twitter this week. I will refrain from commenting on the content of his monologues, but here’s what I will say: dude knows how to deliver a message. As of this writing, episode 1 has racked up more than 111 million views. Episode 2 is sitting at a pretty 47.5 million views. What else is there to say? My 62-year-old father is now on Twitter, so that’s something. I stand by what I said a few weeks ago, too: If Tucker really makes Twitter HIS platform, it’ll change the advertising game for all of us.
--Oops
Who among us hasn’t accidentally published a donation page with a typo? It was small, but it was there. Sorry, Governor Christie, but time to take that digital intern to the woodshed (KIDDING!) And yes, by the time this newsletter went out, the typo was fixed.
P.S. Thanks to the Doomscroll reader who sent in the tip!
Fave It
This week’s Fave It tweet comes from digital extraordinaire and founder of Startup Caucus, Eric Wilson. This one got my attention because yes, I am 100% guilty of chasing shiny objects too much of the time and neglecting the basics. Consider me chastened. And consider yourself warned!
Industry Watch
Are we done talking about AI yet? Not even a little bit - it’s coming for you! And you! And you! Congress may be wringing its hands over the technology, but that doesn’t mean presidential candidates aren’t using it to its full advantage. This week, Team DeSantis used AI to poke fun at The Donald. Per NPR:
This week, a video from Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis included apparently fake images of former President Donald Trump hugging Anthony Fauci.
…
The three fake pictures bear multiple hallmarks of AI-generated imagery, including strangely textured and blurred hair, unnatural arm and hand rendering, and nonsensical text on a backdrop purporting to show the White House press briefing room.
Some people weren’t happy.
"Smearing Donald Trump with fake AI images is completely unacceptable," tweeted Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Republican congresswoman from Georgia, retweeted Vance's message. "Those fake AI campaign ads need to be taken down immediately," Greene added.
"This was not an ad, it was a social media post," said a person with knowledge of the DeSantis operation. "If the Trump team is upset about this, I'd ask them why they have been continuously posting fake images and false talking points to smear the governor."
What can I say? It’s all fun and games until someone’s depicted hugging Anthony Fauci!
Who’s Spending Where
The top conservative spender on Facebook ads from June 2 - June 8 was, once again, Sound of Freedom Movie with just over $400,000 in ad spend. The Daily Wire+ is in a distant second with about $117,000 in spend, followed by Daily Wire/Matt Walsh with about $100,000 in ad spend. PragerU is in fourth place with $72,000 in spend. I’m definitely not the target audience for PragerU, but I gotta say - their ads are always top-notch. Anyway, coming in fifth place this week is FIRE with about $61,000.
Tim Scott for America was the top spender on Google during that same time period, followed by Never Back Down Inc. The pro-Tim Scott Trust in the Mission PAC came in third place with a very nice 15-second spot that makes me want to belt “Praise the Lord!” about 15 times. Ron DeSantis for President is in fourth place, and Trump Save America Joint Fundraising Committee rounds out the top five.
P2P
The Grapevine
This week’s Doomscroll is sponsored by RepublicanAds.com - an advertising platform built for Republicans BY Republicans. If you haven’t checked them out yet, you should. Thank you so much for sponsoring this post, now take it away, Andy Yates!
First up: What’s your name and who are you?
Andy Yates, co-founder of RepublicanAds.com, 2023 Gold Pollie Award winner for Best Ad Tech Innovation.
Ok, that was easy. Tell us about RepublicanAds.com. What sets you apart in the digital advertising ecosystem?
We are the only self-service voter file matched digital ad platform built exclusively for Republicans, so we really care about empowering our clients to win. This is the main reason we created a business model where our clients aren’t bothered with annoying “technology fees” to use our platform, data fees to reach the right targets, or even match fees when they bring their own voter lists. The only thing our clients are ever charged for is the actual cost of advertising. Our technology is industry-leading, but so is our transparency as a result.
Our award-winning platform lets any candidate, campaign, consultant, caucus, party, or IE set up and launch a voter-targeted or geofenced display, preroll, or CTV ad campaign in less than three minutes. No advertising experience necessary!
It’s also incredibly easy to get started:
Choose your district or other geography.
Select your audience from our prebuilt groups (swing, persuasion, GOTV) or upload a custom audience for complimentary matching.
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We’re unique in that our platform works for candidates and consultants. We provide the same level of service as an entire AdOps team right within our platform. Our user hierarchy enables larger shops or organizations to manage, collaborate and view campaign reporting. Our real-time reporting allows unparalleled transparency and apples-to-apples comparison of voter spend among platforms. While our platform is self-service, we have a seasoned AdOps team monitoring all campaigns around the clock and an Accounts Management team available and ready to help any time you need them.
We also have prebuilt voter file matched audiences for every district in the country and our own proprietary custom audience matching system with an average match rate of 90%+. This beats the typical rate you get on Facebook by a mile.
We wanted to bring presidential-level, industry-leading ad technology to consultants and candidates up and down the ballot while creating a platform that is easy to use for anyone of any skill level. In fact, we prioritized ease-of-use so much that our parents were some of the first beta testers for the platform.
How are you innovating for the ‘23-’24 election cycle?
We’ve got a lot up our sleeve! After some great feedback from our clients, we’ve got a lot planned. Here are a few upcoming features we’re particularly excited about:
We’ll be providing real-time reporting access to multiple organizations, and allowing funders to see how candidates are spending and how their ads are performing. We’re also adding site and app-level data to our real-time reporting so you can see exactly where your ads ran.
A new hierarchy menu allows caucuses, PACs or agencies to fund individual candidate accounts for them to create and manage campaigns. It also allows parent account users to see reporting, and collaborate on setup with any sub-account. It adds a whole new layer of collaboration that makes it easier for groups to work together.
We’re also building a free creative generator to help clients quickly create effective ads and get campaigns up and running quickly without having to pay a design firm.
What are some trends you’re seeing in digital ad spending right now?
Overall, the trend is up, up, up. Digital advertising spending nearly doubled from the 2020 to the 2022 election cycle. The biggest increase is coming in CTV spend. Campaigns are moving more and more of their digital advertising spend towards programmatic voter-targeted digital and away from Facebook, Instagram, Google Search and Youtube. More down-ballot candidates than ever are spending and spending aggressively on digital advertising. Democrats are still outpacing Republicans in spend on digital advertising. The top 9 spenders in competitive U.S. House races in 2022 were all Democrats and 7 out of the 9 won.
What’s the biggest, single piece of advice you would give a state or local campaign that wants to dive into digital advertising?
Look for a digital advertising provider that won’t just take your order but will educate you, empower you to have control of your digital advertising campaigns, and give you real-time insight into your digital advertising campaigns so that you can be certain that your message is reaching your voters efficiently and effectively.
Anything else we should know about RepublicanAds.com?
We are actively conducting free digital trainings for Republican party groups and conservative organizations around the country and are always looking for more training opportunities. If you’d like a free digital training for your organization, send me an email at andy@republicanads.com.
We also have a sister platform, PublicAffairsPartners.com, that brings the same ease, efficiency, effectiveness, and transparency to the public affairs space. Whether self-serve or white glove, we’re happy to help your issue, cause, or organization get your message to the right audience.
Got a tip for The Grapevine? Job announcement? Job opening? Fav starburst flavor? Email ‘em to me at itsthedoomscroll@gmail.com
Last But Not Least
From the other side of the aisle:
Gotta give some kudos to Kentucky Democrat Gov. Andy Beshear’s social media presence. It’s legit, and it pains me. For starters, I’m a sucker for lit Instagram reels, and Beshear’s team is doing them consistently - and doing them well. Take notes, my friends.
From the other side of the tracks:
This Q&A with Hanna Andersson CEO Aimee Lapic caught my eye this week (Hello, toddler mom here!) Aside from my interest in their business decision to pivot solely to DTC sales, I like her comments about tapping into the existing community the brand ALREADY had online. I think that’s a good lesson for digital staffers and community organizers in the political space as well. We don’t always have to start from scratch. Take the parental rights movement in Virginia. Glenn Youngkin didn’t make that happen; he just recognized what was already going on organically and tapped into it. Food for thought!
That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading! Did you like it? Consider forwarding to your friends!