Campaign Tip: Hire a professional to execute thorough opposition research and a vulnerability study early in the campaign.

Here’s today’s tip: Hire a professional to execute thorough opposition research and a vulnerability study early in the campaign. There are a lot of areas within campaigns where I routinely encourage campaigns to keep things in-house. In a lot of cases, you’re able to save money and achieve an equal or greater quality level in…

Campaign Tip: “I offer my opponents a bargain: if they will stop telling lies about us, I will stop telling the truth about them.” Adlai Stevenson

Here’s today’s tip: “I offer my opponents a bargain: if they will stop telling lies about us, I will stop telling the truth about them.” Adlai Stevenson This tongue in cheek quote from Adlai Stevenson perfectly captures the feelings of many candidates. But it also brings into perspective a central question of campaign strategy: “How…

Campaign Tip: Every candidate should have daily and weekly goals for fundraising calls and door knocks. What are yours?

Here’s today’s tip: Every candidate should have daily and weekly goals for fundraising calls and door knocks. What are yours? Galileo, the famous scientist and astronomer once said, “Measure what is measurable and make measurable what is not so.” When we set goals without a plan for easily tracking progress, failure is all but guaranteed.…

Campaign Tip: Be accessible. If voters and supporters can’t reach you on the campaign trail, they’ll doubt they will once you’re elected.

Here’s today’s tip: Be accessible. If voters and supporters can’t reach you on the campaign trail, they’ll doubt they will once you’re elected. One of the perennial complaints about elected officials is their lack of accessibility. We talk about them getting caught in a bubble of their own creation or shunning the hoi polloi. If…

Campaign Tip: It’s virtually impossible to practice a speech too much. Practice. Practice. Practice.

Here’s today’s tip: It’s virtually impossible to practice a speech too much. Practice. Practice. Practice. Have you ever heard somebody give a speech and said to yourself, “They really spent too much time practicing that!” I’m fairly confident I can’t answer that question in the affirmative. Recently I had the opportunity to give a high…