What does it take to create a political campaign for it to become really successful - or in other words: to win an election?
The highest Budget? The most charismatic candidate? The catchiest slogans? The guessing game could go on forever and there are numerous theories and models that try to either predict election success in advance or analyze it afterwards - but no one can explain it better than the brain behind such a campaign. We spoke to Lukas Holter, Managing Director at the Campaigning Bureau, who played a key role in several winning campaigns in Austria and Germany.
We asked him what the ingredients for a political winner-campaign are and his answer is: 'When it comes to election victories, we always talk about our three C's: Candidate, Cause and Campaign. '
With over 80% successful campaign outcomes, looking at the Campaigning Bureau's outstanding track record of political winner-campaigns, one can say: their approach with the three C's cannot be so off! But what exactly is the formula behind it?
Candidate
Obviously, for an election the candidate is not just one of three important factors: he is the basic requirement for success, which simply has to fit. Because he is the one for whom the voters will cast their vote at the end of the day.
For Lukas Holter, this requirement was no doubt more than fulfilled in the cases of Sebastian Kurz and Michael Kretschmer: 'Without these two as the faces of these campaigns, we would not have been successful. That means: To a large extent, it is the successes of these two top candidates, who each managed to connect with the population in their own special way that is second to none.'.
Only when this requirement has been fully met, you can move on to the two other Cs: the cause, and finally the campaign.
Cause
No campaign can possibly be successful without a cause behind it that gets you moving! The goal of every political campaign is for people who have no political involvement to say: 'Politics, that's not really my thing, but in this case, for this person, or for this issue, for this cause, I am ready to become active! '
Isn't it impressive what dynamics arise when we fight for a cause with united forces? 'When people stand up for their interests together, take them to the streets, use political means, start citizens' initiatives - it is extremely fascinating to see what becomes possible there, and how much power something like that can emanate,' says Holter.
A strong cause, which you are passionate about, can also ignite a fire in like-minded people and thus create a movement.
Campaign
Last but not least: the campaign. It brings the political candidate and the cause he stands for closer to the people.
The inspiration for the strategy this matter should be approached with, is based on former US President Barack Obama’s election campaign.
He was the first one to mobilize people in such a skillful way - on the one hand via digital channels, on the other hand he combined this enthusiasm for his politics with classic offline activities and thus managed to link these apparently separate worlds with one another.
And since you can see further on the shoulders of giants, based on this knowledge, a very special method was created on how election campaigns can be approached and people can actually be enthusiastic about politics, the candidate and his concerns over the long term.
Holter says: 'We are extremely method-driven. That means that we always think about which tools, which approaches, which frameworks, which models are in any way the same or applicable in every campaign.'
The goal that always comes first: mobilization. And to cultivate relationships that you have built with people, instead of saying 'Thank you, it was nice. I'll get in touch before the next election! '. That is what the grid of methods by which a political campaign is tackled and which ultimately leads to success, is aligned with.
The CamBuildr, the technical infrastructure for campaigns, is essential for the ongoing management of communication with supporters and voters during - but above all - in between election campaigns.
CamBuildr (the ingredients for success’s secret fourth C) is Europe's first all-in-one campaigning software that brings together all aspects of the digital election campaign. Even though it cannot choose the right candidate and cause for you, it basically takes all campaign-related matters off your plate by bundling functions and simplifying processes.
Create the candidate's website with CamBuildr, to present him, his cause and the campaigns to the public. Supporters can register on engagement pages and thus show their support publicly, or they can become active themselves with grassroots pages and collect supporters for their candidates.
Also all direct communication takes place via the CamBuildr's email tool - regardless of whether it is campaign emails for specific occasions or automated thank you emails, after someone has entered the commitment page.
The voters' and supporters’ data are stored in the behavior-based database - strictly in accordance with the GDPR, of course. Since CamBuildr is a software developed in Europe and all its servers are located in Europe as well, political candidates can rest assured that the collected data will never leave the EU and will therefore be kept particularly safe. One less potential shit storm to worry about during the election campaign.
In summary, it in fact is these three elements - Candidate, Cause and Campaign - whose correct use is crucial for the outcome of a campaign. Sounds easy? Let's put it this way: Just knowing that a scale consists of 12 tones does not make it a symphony. You have to understand how to harmonize the individual notes, how to relate them to each other and how to balance them in such a way that you can create something that no one has done before. It is probably similar with the three C’s, the method and the technical infrastructure. Because only a campaign that is able to convey the concerns of these politicians and build a loyal and energetic community in the long term, can be a winning campaign.
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