Most political campaigns today now research and segment voters for specific messaging. It’s called micro-targeting, and the methods can be applied even to the smallest local campaign.
Micro targeting is performed by mining specific data sets for information and recombining the results to build detailed profiles of voter segments or even specific households. For example, a campaign could use county voting records, US Census data and voter data information purchased from a reputable vendor. That information can then be combined and segmented into specific voter lists. So if a campaign wants to specifically target 18-35 year-old homeowners with children, it’s possible to pull such a list for a targeted message.
For local campaigns, such as in small towns or villages, these techniques can certainly be applied. However, for candidates with small budgets, it might not be possible to perform that level of data mining.
That does not mean that you cannot target your message to specific households. All it takes is a knowledge of the issues, and determining who is most directly affected by them.
Suppose a neighborhood in your town is not happy with another residential or commercial development that is about to be build nearby. You can probably infer that if neighbors in that area have been complaining to the local government about the issue, they would likely support someone who takes a similar position. In this case, you’ve micro-targeted an area that would be receptive to a specific message (or slogan).
If another area of town is having water problems, they would receptive to a mailing that addresses that issue. On the other hand, sending a brochure indicating that you will help fix the water mains probably won’t have much influence over someone on the other side of town. It all comes down to taking local issues and emphasizing them to those voters most directly effected by them.
It isn’t about saying whatever it is you think someone wants to hear. A candidate still needs solid positions. With a little research and segmentation, a campaign’s communication efforts can become far more effective than a ‘one size fits all’ campaign advertising model.
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