January 15, 2024

Close up of a woman’s hands holding a campaign mail piece promoting a candidate.

Your ads may be your first and last chance to sway voters

The right creative can help make every chance count.

In today’s fiercely competitive political climate, capturing voter attention is no easy feat. Every day, voters are bombarded with political advertising. With all the digital clutter and waning attention spans, many are tuning out altogether.

47 percent

of Gen Z experienced digital fatigue in the past 30 days.1

So how do you effectively vie for their coveted attention?

It’s not about being clever or using bold colors, your ads need to convince constituents that your campaign aligns with their beliefs and can positively impact their lives. Good creative can do both.

Your copy and design matters more than you think.

You have a small window to grab a voter’s attention. Whether you’re promoting a rally, relaying your stance on issues, or getting out the vote—keep in mind that your creative represents your candidate. Getting it right can mean the difference between a yay or nay.

Both are equally important but have different considerations.

Let’s look at some copy and design best practices that can help your campaign make an impact.

Illustration of a hand holding a mail piece encouraging people to vote.

Copy that connects.

Know your audience.

When you are developing your messaging strategy, it’s important to understand what matters to them—so that you can tailor your messaging to connect on a deeper level.

Include key points.

Be clear and concise. Don’t tell your entire campaign story in one place. Strategically release elements of your story through a sequence of touch points across channels—digital and physical—to keep voters interested and wanting to learn more.

55 percent

of adults in the U.S. surveyed say it’s important that political mail feel personal to them to some degree.2

Illustration outline of multiple people holding signs.

Design that persuades.

Strategize your colors.

One of the most important elements of your design, color has the power to grab attention and to trigger an emotional response. For example, green can convey environmental awareness. Strategically set the tone for your campaign by highlighting one or two colors consistently across your advertising.

Focus their attention.

Choose a key element, like a photo, that you want your audience to focus on and give it more visual weight. Having one focal point allows your readers to easily process your message so it comes across loud and clear.

42 percent

of surveyed voters say layout and photos are the most important in making mail visually appealing.2

Creative consistency is important across every channel—digital and physical.

Why? Because it reinforces your messaging and familiarizes voters with your campaign.

Digitally integrated direct mail is a powerful vehicle because it delivers an omnichannel experience that marries personalized messaging with eye-catching design. Mail is tactile, which stands out in a digitally saturated world. And it inspires voter trust. In fact, 51% trust political mail more than ads online.1

Close up of hands pulling a campaign mail piece out of a mailbox.

Campaign Mail 101

Explore more creative elements that can help your campaign deliver the win in 2024.

Start the Tutorial