Political+processes

= Online Political campaigning =

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Criteria to attain a successful online Political campaign:

 * Placement is key. The efficiency of banner ads in general is less than 1% and if you don't place your ads in front of the right audience then you don't have a chance. Google's adwords and Facebook ads are both very inexpensive and should be at least a part of your online marketing campaign. Google allows you to target users who are searching for keywords that directly relate to your campaign. Facebook does the same except with people's interests instead of their searches


 * Your ad should be a call to action. With banner ads, you have one or two sentences at most so you need to make every character count.


 * Use more than one ad. You never know what ad will bring the masses to your website so when you're placing ads online, create two or three and rotate them. Then monitor them throughout your campaign and if one ad is producing significantly fewer clicks than the other, take it down.



How to get the most out of blogs

 * Research blogs that are relevant to your platforms. Look into both political and non-political blogs that align with the issues that are important to your campaign. If your campaign is pertinent to the blogs you've researched then it's likely that your issues are pertinent to the readers of those blogs and they'll be more likely to take to heart the information you present.


 * Send bloggers a personal email. Your research should include not just the blog but also the person writing the blog. Bloggers are always looking for something new and interesting to write about especially if it appeals to their readers. If your campaign will appeal to the blogger's readers, try getting her to write a post about you. You'll reach a large group of readers/potential supporters without the trust barrier that comes along with traditional advertising.


 * Don't send bloggers mass emails. They have the ability to reach people who want to read about topics relating to the issues surrounding your campaign. Don't irritate these bloggers by spamming them with mass emails.


 * Don't email too much. Not so much about blogs but, if someone has indicated that they want to receive updates about your campaign, don't violate that trust by emailing them several times a week.



Source: [|newmediacampaigns.com]

= = = Voting =

Alternative voting method vs First past the Post
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Examples of other voting methods: [|download.oracle.com]

= Lobbying =

Lobbying is originally an Anglo-Saxon concept, based on the right to be heard.

One theoretical approach to lobbying is based on the group theory of politics: a society that does not have autocratic decision-makers must use a group process to make political decisions. This will include citizens organised into groups to influence decision-makers.

The second approach considers lobbying as an “aspect of the legislative process”.

The European Commission has chosen this second approach and defines as lobbying “all activities carried out with the objective of influencing the policy formulation and decision-making processes of the European institutions.”

In Brussels, all those involved in EU policy-making lobby each other: Commission staff lobby their service and colleagues to obtain support for specific projects, Commissioners lobby each other to exchange support for draft proposals, Members of the European Parliament lobby each other to negotiate amendments, lobbyists lobby Members to modify amendments, and lobbyists lobby each other to create synergies and common positions.



A major **problem** lies with public perception of the verb “lobbying”: “One man thinks of lobbying as the factual presentation of useful data to legislators. To another, it means sinister influence peddling by pressure groups with recklss disregard for the general welfare.” The generally prevalent negative image based on the assumption of corruption and morally non defendable practices, is certainly due to some isolated scandals highly publicised by the media and the fact that the results of lobbying are not visible to the public.

The negative connotations associated with the word “lobbying” have prompted most lobbyists to use other terms to describe their profession: in Europe the term “public affairs” is used. In the US the same activity is called “government affairs.”

Whom Lobbyists represent[[image:Lobbying-environment.JPG width="363" height="279" align="right"]]
Lobbyists work for consultancies, for industry, trade bodies or associations, civil society, unions, regions or municipalities and even to defend countries’ interests. The latter are more difficult to identify as they are sometimes lobbying consultants working inside an Embassy or even diplomatic personnel practising lobbying functions.

Source: [|epaca.org] For further reading and lobbying in the US: [|meyersandassociates.com]