Internet Advocacy Rountable: strategy for web outreach

In April, I attended the Internet Advocacy Roundtable at the Center for American Progress Action Fund here in Washington D.C. The rountable featured two web strategists from the DNC and RNC, who shared their experiences and gave advice on building campaign web strategy.

The roundable was hosted by Alan Rosenblatt, the Associate Director for Online Advocacy at CAPAF. The panel featured Tracy Russo, Former Chief Blogger and Deputy Online Communications Director in the John Edwards campaign, and a former member of the Democratic National Committee Internet team. The RNC panel representative was Mindy Finn, the former director of the web strategy of Mitt Romney's campaign.

Alan, Tracy, and Mindy discussed how web strategy must be integrated into all aspects of a campaign, and is a powerful advocacy tool because it gives clues about when you need to change your strategy before a mistake takes a toll. Email can work in two directions. It can make people really sense the community and conversation around them or feel as if they are one check on a mass mailing list. Individualizing content to specific audiences should be implemented in three main steps: Test, Target, and Track. Testing your technique, targeting specific interests, and assessing tracked results build web strategy into an online conversation that acts as a mobile technology of community development.

For a nice example, go to www.technpresident.com, to view how online community building tools such as blogs and personal profiles can be used to create community within a campaign.

Also check out www.utterz.com, a multimedia blog that integrates cell phone messages and pictures.