Campaign Doctor

 

 

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Also in this section:

• Taking on the Hecklers

John Shosky

• Making the Most of the Everyday

Jonathan Upton

• Manpower to Your Elbow

Shane Greer

• Up Close and Personal

Darren Lilleker

• Small Majority, Big Challenge

• Knowing Your Place

Val Morris Cook

My local association doesn't have a particularly large budget which obviously has a knock-on effect on the literature we produce. We print a few issues of a glossy newsletter every year but were wondering should we go for quality or quantity? 

 

I suppose some psychologists would suggest that your target audience will value your messages much more than the glossy presentation of the newsletter. That certainly holds true for anyone directly affected by a political issue who will look for the strongest argument in the debate and not be particularly worried about colour, paper quality and pictures. However, in order to appeal to voters who are not directly involved you may want to make sure the lay-out and quality of your newsletter is sufficiently professional to reflect positively on your local association. Quite cynically one may find that people are reluctant to trust a candidate with running the local council if he or she is found unable to put together a decent newsletter.

 

A friend has asked me to help manage his campaign and I've accepted. But on reflection I'm concerned I may have bitten off more than I can chew. What exactly is expected of a political campaign manager?

 

Congratulations! Your friend trusts you with winning his campaign. Be aware that you are the one who has to come up with a strategy now to make it happen. That may require you to translate your candidate's plethora of ideas and messages into a succinct and coherent agenda. While this part of the job may already test your patience and skills to breaking point you will love to hear what comes next:  The rank and file need to be motivated, volunteers recruited, trained and led into action. Don't forget to get the campaign literature printed and ready and schedule the canvassing. Make sure to put some effort into fundraising as well because clearly the candidate will expect you to pay the bills. That all sounds like a lot to handle but I am sure it will be worth it. Good luck!

I'm currently finishing my A-levels and am very interested in a career as a political consultant. However I've had great difficulty finding out about the industry. What advice would you give and what should I be studying at university?

 

Typically political consultants don't have any specific training or education to formally qualify them for the job. Some are trained journalists, others may have a marketing background or experience in business and management. You also find political consultants who used to hold public office themselves and build a career on their experience in parliament or government. Having said this, if I was 18 today and considering a career as a political consultant I would probably go for a degree course in campaigning at Kingston University in London. Alternatively, it could also be worth taking a look at the Political Management programme at George Washington University.

 

I'm currently managing the campaign of a PPC but find that increasing amounts of time are spent dealing with interference from the candidate's better half. How should I address this problem?

 

This reminds me of Bill Clinton, who faced a similar problem when he ran for the presidency in the early 1990s. In his case there was Hilary who wanted to have a say in the campaign. Rather than baulking at her ambition Bill Clinton took her on board as an active campaigner and let the public know that voters would be getting two presidents "for the price of one." Hopefully the candidate and her husband in your constituency agree on most core political issues. If so, you may have just found a recipe for widening your candidate's appeal. Try to stage some meetings or find some public role for the other half. Eg chairing a local charity or speaking out on some issues of particular interest. If the candidates other half has a niche which is complementary to the candidate's campaign, you'll have found a way to keep them busy, focused and out of your hair.

 

Email campaigndoctor@totalpolitics.com with your questions.