The Fun in Fundraising
Doomscroll 7.16.23
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What’d I miss? Your Doomscroller spent a glorious 9 days in the Provence region of France, doing many fun things that did not include monitoring the Republican digital landscape. Baguettes were consumed. Wine was drunk. Lavender was smelled. All the things one does in Provence. But now: Back to reality where yes, it’s hotter in balmy South Carolina than it was exploring Roman ruins in Arles. Can some tech entrepreneur figure out how to combat heat waves already?
One Question
Thanks to everyone who answered my One Question from July 2! In response to whether or not Republicans should be advertising/messaging on abortion, 75% of you said it depends on the race. That’s where I’m at too. While I want every Republican candidate to have a nice, poll-tested message on abortion at the ready, sometimes the reality on the ground dictates things are best left swept under the rug. It is what it is! The rest of you were evenly divided between yes and no. Here’s a few of the comments I got:
One needs a concise message on abortion because it cannot be ignored. The beliefs of the candidate should be acknowledged and conveyed. Not addressing it could hurt depending on the election. Democrats in urban areas will beat the horse until it drops.
Politicians have to make a strategic decision about this based on whether or not their position will help them get elected. They owe it to voters to be open and transparent about their position. Their position should be on their website and they should be honest when asked about it. But I think it makes sense to avoid pushing out ads on the topic if public opinion is not on their side in their district or race.
Helps that I work for an incumbent, but we've chosen to play up accomplishments/policies that support women/families/children and support for alternatives to abortion. If you're a pro-life R running in a competitive district where you're vying for swing voters, tell them why you're pro-life, NOT just anti-abortion.
What happened to the Red Wave in 2022? Roe was overturned ... that's what happened. It galvanized and mobilized the left like no other issue. Keep beating that drum and you'll keep driving away the independents that agree with you on almost every other issue.
This week’s One Question is about everyone’s FAVORITE topic: fundraising. Yay! Some of the Republican presidential candidates are getting…*creative* with their online fundraising programs - and that’s putting it mildly. Here’s my take: at the end of the day, can you blame them? The RNC set the debate stage rules. We can quibble about those all day long, but at the end of the day, the candidates need to get on that stage, right? Now, I know that if you’re reading this, you’re probably on board with the idea that we started 2023 with a serious need to overhaul our fundraising tactics. Goodness knows I’ve railed about it enough in Doomscroll. But how do you feel about candidates giving away Yeti Coolers, gift cards, a free year of college, and 10% commissions in order to juice their donor numbers? Kind of an open-ended question, but there you have it.
Who’s Doing What
--A policy page to be proud of!
You didn’t think I was going to leave the discussion of online fundraising to my One Question this week, did you? Psh. Vivek Ramaswamy rolled out his Kitchen Cabinet (weird name) this week. The gist: He wants to burn consultants and democratize the art of online fundraising. Mmk. From a philosophical perspective, I’m indifferent at this moment in time. I have no problem with consultants having a stake in the game when it comes to online fundraising, but I’m also open to the idea that the incentive structure for the consultant class might be a little twisted. I think Vivek’s a little harsh in his video, but whatever. That's a different topic for a different time. But tactically, this is pretty brilliant IMO. One thing digital operatives - myself included - need to do a better job of is enlisting supporters online in a way that makes them feel invested in the campaign; like they too, have a stake in the day-to-day grind it takes to run for elected office. The more someone is invested, the more likely they are to show up and vote for you. And that’s the ball game, my friends. At the risk of sounding like a broken record: digital is only one piece of a winning campaign pie, but if we’re not leaving it all on the field we’re doing it wrong. Team Vivek made it known from day one they were here to build a movement that would propel Ramaswamy to the presidency. Looks like their digital team is pretty freaking serious about making good on that promise. So, I love this tactic. I also love how it kills two birds with one stone: raise small dollars AND execute some relational organizing. Bravo. Logistically, I’m a tad skeptical. I would love to know how it all works out - how payments are made, how this was thought through from a legal perspective, etc. (My DM’s are open!)
--Seriously, Suarez
A lot of ink has been spilled already about the influence of Super PACS so far in this election cycle. Well, there’s a new one in town. It’s called SOS America PAC and it’s supporting Miami Mayor Francis Suarez’s campaign for president. It’s worth calling out because the group is spending big on digital ads to solicit donations NOT for the PAC itself…but for Suarez for President. A nifty little loophole, indeed. And talk about creative fundraising tactics; the PAC is soliciting donations as low as $1 to the campaign for the chance to win free college tuition for a year (up to $15,000 so you better be going to a state school!). To be fair, it may have been a better call to offer to pay up to $15,000 in someone’s student loan debt, but beggars can’t be choosers!
Another interesting tactic I’ll call out from the campaign itself… Check out the Instagram story post below. This is something I haven’t seen any other campaign do yet (though I may have missed it) Asking for donations to be sent to a candidate’s Venmo account is pretty clever. Combining that with an epic sweepstakes/contest/giveaway makes it genius.
--The Culture Wars Don’t Just Belong in Florida
It’s 2023’s most under-talked-about and unappreciated race: the Mississippi gubernatorial election. Honestly, I’m surprised this contest isn’t getting more national headlines, given the Democratic nominee is related to Elvis (Right?!?). Anyway, Governor Tate Reeves just released a new ad about protecting women’s sports and it’s **checks notes** very, very well done. At least in my book, it hits all the right notes. It features his daughter, so there’s a personal angle (check). It weaves the women’s sports issue with some good old fashioned conservative principles like hard work (check). It wades into the culture war waters in a way that doesn’t make the white, male politician sound like an out-of-touch boomer (check). In other words: Well done.
--Consider Yourselves Warned
Wanted to flag this post from Erick Erickson - specifically the part where he warns about the online-ness (is that a word??) of political campaigns. Here’s Erickson:
I also think the campaign needs to really, honestly assess just how online it is in terms of Twitter. Kamala Harris became so Twitter oriented, her campaign focused on winning the daily Twitter fight and never made it to Iowa. The DeSantis team really dominates a lot of Twitter conversations, but that’s not actually where Republican voters spend most of their time online. It’s for the campaign to assess how much ROI they get online and if adjustments should be made. Twitter isn’t the real world and some times campaigns can forget that. Regardless of an online strategy, successful campaigns need to connect to people offline.
For my purposes, the context here isn’t that important. But I do want to reiterate what he’s saying. Twitter is a great tool, but it shouldn’t be anyone’s main focus when it comes to digital campaigning. I’ve said it before and I’ve said it again: By now, social media is less about broadcasting a message and more about organizing supporters. Hard to do that when you’re spending all your time owning the libs (or primary opponents) on Twitter.
--Oh Noes!
As of July 11, Donald Trump was still running fundraising ads with “end of quarter” messaging. Oops! (h/t a loyal Doomscroll reader!)
Fave It
This week’s fave tweet comes from IMGE’s Madison Morris. I’ve been preaching this for awhile, and I’m stoked to have another evangelist on my side! Thanks, Madison!
Who’s Spending Where
From July 6-12, the top spender on Facebook was Sound of Freedom Movie, with a spend of more than $1.2 million. Seriously wtf. At least I’m starting to hear about people seeing this thing!? Second place goes to SOS America PAC, which spent $97,000. Third and fourth place go to The Daily Wire ($91,000) and Doug Burgum for America, Inc ($71,000). The Daily Wire/Jordan Peterson round out the top 5 with $64,000 in ad spend.
During that same period, Doug Burgum for America, Inc was the top Republican spender on Google, with $94,000. Vivek 2024 came in second place with about $64,000 in ad spend. Third place goes to Trust in the Mission PAC with $29,000 - mostly on a pretty lit 15 second spot that gives me all the Tim-Scott-is-a-preacher-vibes. Defending Democracy Together spent $20,000 on a minute-long video about Trump’s classified documents scandal (watch it here), and Tim Scott for American spent about $20,000.
P2P
Industry Watch
I invite everyone to read this Q&A in the New York Times with Utah Governor Spencer Cox about the steps he’s taking to crack down on minors using social media apps. If you had asked me 5 years ago where I stood on an issue like this, I would have said the government can stay OUT of this realm of private life, thank you very much. But now? Now I’m not so sure. Regardless, this isn’t about me or my policy preferences; but I do think this conversation is going to only get stronger and louder in the coming years. It’s definitely one we should be having in our party.
The Grapevine
If you’re in D.C., go to a HH on Tuesday hosted by Google and the Republican Women’s group. I *think* you can still RSVP at this link. All genders are welcome! :)
Got a tip for The Grapevine? Job announcement? Job opening? Fav sunscreen? Email ‘em to me at itsthedoomscroll@gmail.com
Last But Not Least
From the other side of the aisle:
What the left sees in Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, I’m not entirely sure, TBQH. Nonetheless, she’s setting herself up to be a big player on the national stage. Per Politico Mag:
Whitmer is creating a federal PAC, called “Fight Like Hell,” to boost Biden and congressional candidates next year, offering her a platform for a visible role in the 2024 campaign and a foothold to mount a presidential bid in 2028.
Anyway, Whitmer’s PAC is dipping its toe in the digital advertising pool with a small spend on Google with - you guessed it - a fundraising ad to ActBlue. C'est la vie!
From the other side of the tracks:
Loved reading this insight into how the social media team at McDonalds thought through how to respond to the Grimace shake trend.
That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading! Did you like it? Consider forwarding to your friends!