“$10 million in ten days!” sounds a lot like a Seattle slogan made popular during the Internet’s heady, capital raising years, when local Internet execs went on a “road show” to prove their mettle before going IPO. But this fundraising message is a different kind of battle cry for a campaign that will decide the future of our government, if not the fate of the free world. It’s a campaign for the presidency of the United States being waged right here in Seattle’s Pioneer Square through the email prowess and versatility of Seattle’s WhatCounts.com.
WhatCounts was approached in 2003 by a Washington, D.C. consultancy on a matter of presidential importance. The quest was for email functionality that was simply not available elsewhere — the ability to tie database information obtained via email together with a campaign’s brain, its central content management system. The John Kerry presidential campaign wanted information feedback on their email’s open and clickthrough rates as well as on specific clicks inside of email including unsubscribe and bounce activity, to be synchronized in as near real-time as possible with their management system. That’s exactly what the WhatCounts platform was able to provide.
“Our platform contains a suite of API documentation that can be used to synchronize with virtually any system,” explained Brian Ratzliff, WhatCount’s VP Marketing. “It includes API’s for Java, XML, FTP, SOAP and .Net. Conceptually anything that the campaign wants to ask, and that respondents are willing to provide, can be captured. Gun control, the environment, economic development — whatever information the individual subscriber has chosen to share with the campaign — can be used to create dynamic delivery of content. ”
The net result is an email blast that can speak to each individual in the form of one-to-one marketing. “If we knew that there was interest in John Kerry’s position on an environmental issue in WA. state, that kind of information could be supplied to anybody who was in WA. state, whereas that same message might point to a different issue in the state of California,” said Ratzliff.
Email in the John Kerry for President campaign does some heavy lifting. Inquiring as to a user’s Instant Messaging (IM) platform, while collecting signs-ups for KerryForth, a daily news digest, and Kerry Meet-Up events. Each and every touchpoint is trackable. “The level of technology that the campaigns are attempting at this stage is really quite sophisticated,” noted Ratzliff.
The speed of email also provides a level of responsiveness that is unprecedented in American politics. For example, only a few hours after the Bush campaign ran an ad accusing John Kerry of taking special interest money, an email response, powered by WhatCounts, countered the claim with detailed information in writing. The Kerry email also triggered a streaming video presentation of a new television ad created to rebut the attack. Leveraging the Internet’s capacity for viral marketing, the Kerry email invites list members to “share this email with 10 of your friends.” By entering other’s email addresses, WhatCounts’ system is able to email countless more new recruits.
“Truly the Internet has become a powerful mechanism for getting a message out to a constituency that has expressed interest in you,” said Ratzliff. “You no longer have to use mainstream media to galvanize that group. The moment an issue breaks, you can respond and keep them motivated.”
When it comes to fundraising via email, there have already been a few $1 million dollar days in the Kerry campaign. Thanks to WhatCounts, John Kerry expects for there to be many more! [24×7]
