City Campaigner

City Campaigner – A New Direction

Thank you for visiting the City Campaigner blog! Building this site has been a great experience. I have made a lot of new friends and had some great opportunities.

It’s been a month since the 2014 Ontario Provincial Election and awhile since I posted to this site. Recently, I was celebrating a great election with a two-week vacation in and around Rio De Janeiro. If you have not been to Brazil I highly recommend it.

I want to share with you a new direction for City Campaigner. The easiest way to do that is start with what it was, what has happened and where it is going.

The Original Vision

The original plan for this site was to provide some free advice and resources to municipal election candidates while I virtually managed some campaigns for a fee. I set up a membership portal where I assumed I could scale campaign management, providing detailed advice online and complementing it with some custom work like budgets and database set-up. Unfortunately, that really does not work for campaign management. I can scale providing certain services or teaching specific things but start to finish campaign management is far too unique from candidate to candidate.

What Actually Happened

Things started off slowly in 2014 and then around August the Ontario Municipal Election craziness started. It seemed all of my candidates where starting on the same day and needed everything right away. I agreed, as I was pushing some of them to start as early as the spring. I wanted to help these people first as they were my family (like my sister Lynn who decided in the end not to run), my friends (like Councillor Arif Khan) and my paying customers. Obviously, with my time already over-stretched, something had to give, so updating this site with free content was it.

In the end I buckled down and really helped six candidates. Some got a lot more help than others. This unbalanced help came because some knew more than others (incumbents vs. challengers) and some were in tighter races than others. I do wish I could have helped people more but time just slipped away. However, in the end this approach worked for everyone. I am happy to say that out of the six candidates I dedicated time to, ALL SIX WON THEIR ELECTIONS! For most of these candidates I was their Campaign Manager and for a few I was just a volunteer advisor who made time to talk when it was needed the most. I have not lost a municipal election since 2000 when my sister ran for the first time at the age of 20 and I was just 16 – maybe great campaign managers are not ready in grade ten. This success is solely based on great, hard working candidates. I am not some sort of Municipal Election Rainmaker, even though Keith Davey and I have the same name.

I do not have any municipal ninja tricks. Most of what I know anyone could learn through training, reading, and experience. I simply choose to work with candidates who are serious about winning and willing to spend the time and money it takes. There are people who ask me to work or volunteer on their election campaign that I politely decline because I do not believe they are serious about winning or I simply do not have enough time.

I will conduct a small debrief interview with all six candidates so we can learn from our strengths and identify areas for improvement to build on their success. If they are willing, I will share this information on this site. I do not hold campaign manager debriefs where I brag about my contribution or strategy. Elections are about the candidate and issues not the strategists. If there is a learning opportunity I will share it but it will not be all about me.

What is Next

I am going to share all the membership site information on this blog for free! Some of the downloads may require an email opt-in but anything I have created to date I will be giving away. There are no municipal elections for Ontario for four years but this could be helpful for candidates in other jurisdictions and applicable to federal and provincial elections.

I struggled with this decision for a bit as I thought I would be feeding some of my current and future opposition with my knowledge. Then I was listening to a podcast where a guest said everyone knows they can do sit-ups to get a six-pack, but they usually need a trainer to help them reach that goal. That is when I realized that even though my knowledge base is large, my expertise and unique offering is not in the knowledge it is in the execution. So I am confident that come election battle time I will still put up a good (clean) fight.

Enjoy the free resources. Since this has gone from a money generator to a hobby, the posts may be slow going up. The order of the posts may not always flow since I am pulling stuff from the membership site. So there may be a post from the spring about budgets and an instructional video on it this winter, but if you are looking for category specific information just use the post tags and you will be ok.

Thank you for following and supporting City Campaigner.

I will be focusing my time on my consulting business related to government where I help people win contracts not elections. If that interests you just follow along on Twitter@strachansystems and visit my site SellToPublicSector.com. If you do have a political project I would be happy to hear about it and maybe even help. You can reach me using the contact page.

KEEP KNOCKING

KEITH

I’ll leave you with this awesome photo I took on top of Sugar Loaf in Rio.

Municipal Election Coverage – The Dark Side of Politics

A quick video post inspired by some current events in Toronto politics.

Keep your campaigns clean and follow the rules. No matter if you win or lose you will have your honour.

I have helped many Municipal Councillors get elected and none of them had to break the rules or compromise their morals. In fact doing the exact opposite has proven successful.

Keep Knocking,

KEITH
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Online Voting in Municipal Elections

Congratulations to the City of Cambridge for entering the 21st century!

Cambridge has launched a project to allow telephone and online voting in their municipal election.. More information here.

Every municipality in North America should have online voting. It saves people time and which will increase voter turn out. I do not buy into fraud and security concerns. If I can move thousands of dollars online (if I had thousands of dollars), then why can we not have a website safe enough to cast a ballot for your local official?

Let’s hope, for the sake of democracy, this is the start of a new trend.

Keep Knocking,

KEITH

Municipal Election Budget

One of the most important tools you need for your municipal campaign is a budget.

Your election budget is going to dictate many aspects of your campaign plan including how much you need to fundraise, the number of literature prices you publish, the quantity of lawn signs you put up, the services you purchase, and the victory party that you throw.

I am not going to use this post to write about the finance rules of a municipal campaign. The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has already done that and you can find it here. The most important piece of the puzzle is determining your limit. The 2014 Councillor campaign in Ontario has a limit of $5,000 plus $0.85 per voter.

I always encourage candidates to find a way to spend close to the maximum allowable amount – because if you don’t, your competitor will. That being said, some obstacles get in the way of funding to the maximum limit so you need to be realistic about what you can spend. In some very large wards, up to 4o,ooo voters, fundraising would be too difficult to spend the max. In some smaller wards, under 10,000 voters, the maximum is not always needed to win. As you can tell by now a budget really needs to be customized to the campaign, the ward, and the candidate.

A great indicator of how much to spend is the financial returns from the last election. Look up how much the winner spent and few of their competitors. If you are an incumbent check out what the second place candidate spent. Incumbents should also look to the spend of a fellow Councillor who received more votes than you. This information is often found on the municipal website. If not, kindly ask the City Clerks office to take a look.

Once we have the total amount you are able/ would like to spend, we can establish some fundraising goals. I have worked with candidates who say they will self-fund their campaign. If you have the money that’s fine; however, putting your campaign expenses on the family Visa is not the kind of financial management your voters are looking for. People are often surprised by how easy fundraising is once they start asking. Fundraising is a post of its own so I will leave it at that.

Incumbents will agree that some election expenses are not as suspected. People often think lawn signs are cheap, but they can actually be quite costly and need to be claimed in your expenses, even if you are reusing them. Quality print products can be perceived as expensive but at the volumes you are printing, they are actually quite cost effective. Do your research on election products/services before creating your budget. For more information on election produ Budget ct buying see my post on election purchasing tips.

Below are some questions you must answer when crafting a municipal campaign budget:

What does the Municipal Election Act mandate that I claim (gifts in kind, reused products, filing fees, etc.)
How much do I have to spend?
What is the price of the products and services that I need?
Am I finding support and/or ID’n vote with the money I am spending?

How I can Help

At City Campaigner we can craft you a customized budget. If you are an existing member this service is free, if you are not a member it is one of our cheapest products and you may want to consider buying it. Starting off your election with a solid budget is the foundation for your success.

With so many candidates starting their campaigns right now, I would like to extend a special offer for a campaign budget for a one time cost of JUST $45. That is a $110 savings. As soon as you request the budget, I will send you a quick questionnaire about your ward and campaign. With the answers to those questions I will develop a customized budget plan for you with real election costs. The plan is detailed in a spreadsheet so you can easily change some line items if you have friends or family donate a particular service.

I will even include an “optional” section so you know what you can buy if you fundraise a little more than expected.

An added value to this plan is that you will see the real costs for essential and popular election products. This means if you go out for a quote on signs and they cost $4.00 a piece while the budget outlines a cost of $2.50, you know there is a better price out there – because I found it. At no mark-up to you.

This sale of 70% off the regular price is only offered for a limited time. The service is also 100% satisfaction guaranteed. If you do not like the product just let me know and I will fully refund your money. That is how confident I am that you will like it. If I refund your money in full I actually lose money.

Why the super low rate? Well with over 2,000 candidates registered in medium and large municipalities I am only currently assisting 1% at this point. I am busy and having a lot of fun, however I want to meet more of you on a professional and personal level. This crazy low price for a custom budget will help me achieve that goal.

To get us working on your budget now like the purchase button below. Your payment will be securely process by PayPal.

I hope you found this information helpful and you consider taking advantage of this offer.

KEEP KNOCKING

KEITH

P.S. Do you already have a budget? The $45.00 will let you compare to see where there are some opprotunities

P.S.S. Do you already have a Campaign Manager? $45.00 is a pretty cheap second opinion

Fundraising for Municipal Elections

Thanks for watching! If you have any questions contact me any time.

Keep Knocking

KEITH

Young Municipal Election Candidates

City politics is a great place for the next generation of politicians to get their feet wet.

Thanks for watching. Below is a list of candidates and politicians mentioned in the video.

Past Successful Young City Councillors:

Adam Giambrone – https://twitter.com/Adam_Giambrone
Lynn Strachan – https://twitter.com/lynnstrachan
Alex Nuttall – https://twitter.com/NuttallBarrie www.votealexnuttall.ca
Patrick Brown – https://twitter.com/brownbarrie – www.whypatrickbrown.com
Michael Fogarty –https://twitter.com/fogartyorillia

Current Young Candidates:

Mason Ainsworth – Ward 3 in Orillia – https://twitter.com/amasonjar
Cam Galindo – Ward 9 Hamilton –https://twitter.com/Cam_Galindo
Sergio Morales – Ward 9 Barrie – https://twitter.com/sergiogmorales

Keep Knocking

KEITH

pssst… if you are a young candidate running in an election add your twitter handle in the comments and I’d love to follow your campaign

4 Tips For Purchasing Municipal Election Products and Services

Candidates who do not already know will soon find out – election products cost a lot of money. For campaigns that are self-funded or have little fundraising this is a huge obstacle to success. Candidates need to walk the line between looking unprofessional and blowing the budget.

purchasing

I have compiled four tips to beat the budget breaking blues and source good services and products.

1. Donated Services

If you have friends and/or family who are experts in a certain field ask them for help. Often these people want to support your campaign and you just have to ask. I find candidates get the most help from talented friends on copyrighting, graphic design and websites. If they are donating their services you need to give them a lot of lead time to complete each request. It’s unfair to expect free graphic design on your three-fold brochure within one day. If you need something quickly you may want to consider hiring a professional. Make sure you know your friends’ talents. You do not want to wait two weeks for a website and then have to break the bad news to your neighbour that you cannot use it because the free Blogger theme was not what you were looking for. Most important is to just ask for help when you can. The worst feeling is when you show your $300 designed lawn sign to a friend who says “oh I could have done that for free.”

2. Beware of Buy Local

This is an ongoing battle with some clients of mine. Some Candidates think that because they are running for local office they should shop their campaign locally. However, this is not like spending an extra dollar on a head of lettuce at a farmers’ market. Geographically limiting your election purchasing can end up costing you thousands of dollars more, or worse, you can end up with a bad product. For example, the SignARama franchisee owner around the corner is probably a great person and you may win her and her husband’s vote by bringing your business there. However, if she does not specialize in political signs and they require pounding a wooden stake in the ground it’s not worth it.

3. Know what you need

Based on your budget and campaign plan know what products you actually need. Some suppliers will try to sell you everything and the kitchen sink. Stick to what is effective and affordable. No need for a small town councillor to purchase a billboard or a big city councillor to buy a GTA-wide radio ad. If you are unsure about a product or service, send me a quick email or tweet and I’ll give you some free advice on if it’s worth it.

4. Always get quotes

There is no product or service in the world of elections that only has one capable supplier (despite what some companies may tell you). Always get at least three quotes on everything you buy. This can result in huge savings, especially on print services. Keep in mind the cheapest is not always the best. Ask them if they have done similar work and check the client list on their website. I remember in the Barrie 2000 Municipal Election a candidate purchased paper lawn signs with her face on them. After one rainfall the distorted mugshot did not achieve its goal of name recognition.

An extra note: Please know your own strengths. Just because you have Adobe Illustrator does not mean you know how to use it. You can do some of your own work if you’re an expert, however if you are going to take 3-4 months of your life to run in an election, do not cheap out on essential products.

As an added bonus to City Campaigner Members we use group buying to lower the costs on almost any election product or service needed. Check out the Services Page for more details.

Raise as much funds as you can and watch the pennies. Good luck in your campaign.

Keep Knocking,

KEITH

Google

A Great Campaign Launch – Joe Persechini

This media story is a good example of a successful campaign launch.

http://www.yorkregion.com/news-story/4611943-persechini-enters-east-gwillimbury-municipal-election-race/

Joe Persechini is running for Town Council in East Gwillimbury this fall. As a long time community activist the media attention is well deserved. Persechini even has a street named after him recognizing all his great charity work. Campaign launches like this remind us that a council election does not start when nominations open. A good Councillor candidate is already working hard for their community without the official title.

Unless Google search is failing me, it looks like Joe needs to get moving on an election website. It would be nice to leverage a good news day into some web traffic and online voter ID.

In East Gwillimbury voters elect 4 Councillors at large so it’s a tough race. Best of luck to Joe Persechini and his campaign team.

Community Event Attendance for Election Candidates

A common mistake made by Councillor candidates is that they act like current Councillors. It’s good to visually portray that you’re up for the job, but you don’t need to do the actual Councillor type work. The worst thing a candidate can do during an election is try to go to every event in the City. Community Calendar

As summer event season kicks off a candidate needs to evaluate where they are and when. A lot of candidates love the hand shaking and the media coverage of an event, it’s a personality trait that drew them to politics. The problem with events is that it’s super hard to ID voters at them. Events are time suckers and if the candidate or campaign is hosting the event it is a budget burner.

The hours a candidate takes attending events are often better spent door knocking. Remember, door knocking is how a candidate connects with voters while collecting decent data.

That being said, you need to keep up appearances and be an active community supporter – there are some events you should be attending. When choosing what events to attend or not to attend, some things to consider include:

Is it something you are passionate about? If you have always supported the local homeless shelter and attended their golf tournament every year, then stick with them and go again in election year.
Is it a prior commitment? Don’t bail on an event you already said you would attend or help out with. Ditching a community group/organization will not win you any votes.
What time is the event? There are prime door knocking times that you do not want to be stuck in banquet hall. If the event is early in the morning then go for the liquid scrambled eggs and door knock afterwards.
Is the event in your ward? If there is a ribbon cutting ceremony at the new hair salon at the other end of town – stay away. Stick to events where your voters are.

For sitting Councillors, unfortunately you don’t have much of a choice on some events, however you do need to say “no thanks” sometimes.

If you do not focus your time on your own election (ID’ing vote), your opponent may be getting all the event invites after E-Day.

Keep Knocking,
KEITH

For City Campaigner members I’ve uploaded a post in the portal on some event tips like:
– ID’ing votes at community events.
– Optimizing attendance with social media.
– Getting in and out of the event quickly.

Municipal Election Coverage – Jesse Helmer & Crowdsourcing

As the municipal election heats up I am going to spend some time analyzing current City Councillor elections. I would love to focus 100% on all the good stuff I am coming across, however as I stumble on a few candidates who need serious help I will use it as an example of what not to do.

I want to start my election coverage with pointing out a Councillor Candidate who is doing something that all claim to do. This Candidate is Jesse Helmer Candidate who is running for Ward 4 in London Ontario. What he is doing is great is voter engagement. Every candidate with the corny slogan “your voice at city hall” claim they want to hear from voters and then turn around and do their own thing. Jesse Helmer has taken the voter engagement promise to the next level by incorporating crowdsourcing to his campaign.

Here is a brief video of what I am liking about Jesse’s web strategy:

Explore his campaign online at:

http://www.helmer.ca/

https://www.facebook.com/jessefhelmer

https://twitter.com/jesse_helmer

If you have any suggestions for City Councillor election coverage send them my way. Good luck in your campaign.

Keep Knocking,

KEITH

Websters defines crowdsourcing as the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community rather than from traditional employees or suppliers.

Ohhh and here is the sign they landed on – https://twitter.com/jesse_helmer/status/479479215809904641/photo/1

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