Andy Millard, was the conference organizer of the Democratic Candidates Conference in partnership with the George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management.  This multi-day event attracted hundreds of people interested in running for Congressional, state and local races along with those who are interested in helping those candidates figure out how to run a successful political campaign.  Andy's motivation for creating this conference was his own unsuccessful run for Congress.  Now he is determined to help first time Democratic candidates, particularly in tough races, navigate the process to win using digital as well as traditional tools.

@DemCanCon

DemCanCon.org

George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management

Chazz Clevinger, CEO, One Click Politics, on how mobile apps and devices have changed the world of advocacy and political campaigns, field strategies for polling and mobilization across all screens, creating online engagement options with simple user interfaces that encourage sharing and uploading of images, and ways of making message testing more effective.

@1clickpolitics

One Click Politics

Joe Corbe, Founder, 1631 Digital emphasizes the need to look beyond traditional definitions of the loyal base and to use online micro-targeting to engage and mobilize a broader audience.  Particularly relevant in 2018 will be targeting political and advocacy video ads on mobile devices to reach voters when and where they might be most responsive to a call to action. 

@1631_DigitalAdv

1631 Digital

Steven Alembik, Founder, SMA Communications says that Twitter is the only real time actionable social media channel. He is excited about using tone analyzer algorithms to understand the emotional response of people to tweets and to help figure out what ads can best address those emotional hot buttons.  Steven also gives a reality check about focus groups, direct mail, use of mobile devices, and in the impact of moving the embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

@SMAComm

SMA Communications

Truth About Israel Gala

Matt Hedberg, political team leader, Semcasting talks about efficiently targeting voters across all of their screens and devices including computers, mobile devices, and connected televisions and using their location to tailor messages.  Using a Smart Zone concept, Semcasting is thinking about how to segment the online electorate using IP addresses not cookies, charitable giving history and media consumption habits to inform about most effective ways to reinforce a candidate's message and find look alike voters.  

@semcasting

Semcasting.com

Jesse Barba is Vice President of the lobbying firm Cassidy & Associates, vice chairman of the Grassroots Professional Network and founder of EDGE--Electing a Democratic Generation.  We talk about what drives Millennial voters to support a candidate, the efforts that are underway to encourage Millennials to run for state and local office, and what to expect from a Millennial political campaign in the age of digital technology.

@TheDemEDGE

@GrassrootsPros

Grassroots Professional Network

EDGE

Michelle Niedziela, PhD Scientific Director and Glenn Kessler, President HCD Research put a scientific eye to measuring the real impact of negative political ads.  Using traditional message testing and applied neuroscience tools, they are able to identify those voters most likely to have an authentic emotional reaction to a negative or contrast ad and those likely to not pay any attention at all or be influenced in an unintended way.  While negative ads are usually quickly forgotten, the Swift Boat ad against John Kerry remains a prime example of a negative ad that hit a responsive chord.

@HCDNeuroscience

HCD Research

Thomas Peters, CEO and Founder, uCampaign sees the future and it is mobile apps for political and advocacy campaigns.  While web sites are still a basic necessity for campaigns, mobile apps can provide canvassing and lobbying tools that engage voters, reward them for sharing content, and allow targeting specific audiences by geographic location at the right time and on the right screen.

@uCampaignUpdate

uCampaignApp.com

Bonnie Siegel, founder, Political Branding Associates shines the light on how Millennial voters are different from earlier generations of voters.  With examples from the Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz 2016 campaigns Bonnie points out what drives Millennials to act, their interest in making the world a better place, and how we often hear what we want to hear from candidates.  

Political Branding Associates

Joshua Habursky, Director of Advocacy, Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) and Founder/Chairman of the Grassroots Professional Network talks about how grassroots advocacy and traditional lobbying have come together to create a new model for engagement, mobilization, and ways to find constituents across traditional party lines.  We also talk about best practices for mobile outreach and value of social media for creating two-way conversations with elected officials.

@ICBA  @GrassrootsPros  @JoshHabursky

GrassrootsPros.org