“Voter Advisory, Contains Actual Information” – Sam Adams for City Council
While Sam Adams was a first time candidate for public office, he did have some profile in the media and among insiders having served for 12 years as Chief of Staff to Mayor Vera Katz. This profile was not necessarily a plus: to the extent that voters were aware of him, the only things they knew about Sam were his reputation as a hardnosed technocrat serving a Mayor whose numbers had declined significantly and that, if elected, Sam would be the first openly gay City Council member. A critical early task for the campaign would be to definitively reposition Sam – especially since he was running against a candidate who had money and positive ID from a well-received race the year before.
Our repositioning had to happen quickly and on several fronts: we needed to humanize him, connect him to the community and demonstrate a record of accomplishments that voters would actually care about. Given the multiple simultaneous objectives, we chose an unorthodox format: an 8 page web press book. This enabled us to tell a discrete story per page, providing enough space for imagery and narrative. We also chose a breezy, informal style that gave a hint of Sam’s genuine but unknown personality and wit. This was the first voter communication in the race, and substantially changed the dynamics between the candidates. Sam won.
June 2, 2006 | Filed Under: Direct Mail | Permalink
