We see it time and again. Critical policy messages that miss the mark.  The reason is simple: they were vetted with the wrong people.

If you are based in the Washington, DC area, whether you’re a corporation, association, think tank, or politician, here’s some free advice: Test Your Message Outside the Beltway.

We do policy message testing for a living.

➤ Please reach out- we’d love to help.

That’s what we’ve been telling our clients for nearly two decades. And even though they know that—of course they know that—clients are always surprised at what outside-the-Beltway testing turns up.

Here’s why it matters:

➤Average Americans Only Consume a “Trickle” of News

Most people outside the Washington metro area are not immersed in the details of your issues—sometimes they’ve never even heard of the issues. We’ve validated this again and again through our Swing Voter Project, which taken us to swing states every month for the last 18 month. Average Americans by and large get their news is small doses from LOCAL SOURCES. Yes, some watch cable news  but are almost as likely to get their news from Facebook.

➤Average Americans are Fixated on Themselves

This is not to imply that they don’t care about other people or the world as a whole. It simply means that while trying to pay their bills and care for their family, they don’t have the LUXURY of immersing themselves in DC news.

Some of them are working multiple jobs.
Some of them are a health crisis away from bankruptcy.
Some of them are working 18 hour days to keep the family farm afloat.
Some of them are caring for a chronically ill family member.

Their challenges are real and immediate.  

➤Validate That Your Policy Messages Are Connecting

And the best way to do that is to test your messages with them. Get in their heads. See their reactions. Hear their thoughts. Then refine based on what you’ve learned.

Again, our clients know all this. But they still—regularly—say things like, “I did not expect that one to tank!”; “I am really surprised none of the respondents have heard of that.”; “I didn’t realize our language was so full of jargon until this dial test.”

And we especially like: “Good thing we tested this!”

We do policy message testing for a living.

➤ Please reach out- we’d love to help.

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To demonstrate how different Washington, D.C. is from other parts of the country, here are some facts and comparisons:

—Bigger salaries: highest per capita income in the country ($75,569; the national average is $49,571)[1] with an annual growth rate of 4.5% (vs. 3.6% national average)[2]

—Educated: 55% of the population 25 years or older has at least a bachelor’s degree (29.3% nationally);[3] 31% have an advanced degree (11.2% nationally)[4]

—Expensive housing: median value of a house is $460,700 ($163,900 nationally)

—Lower rate of home ownership: 40.4% own their own homes (63.7% nationally)

—High crime: 6,408.6 crimes per 100,000 people (3,295.0 nationally)[5]

[1] http://www.courant.com/business/hc-per-capita-income-connecticut-20170328-story.html
[2] https://wtop.com/business-finance/2017/03/dc-per-capita-income-25-percent-higher-national-average/
[3] https://www.iowaeconomicdevelopment.com/50states
[4] https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_15_5YR_S1501
[5] https://www.iowaeconomicdevelopment.com/50states

This group of swing voters think the country is in trouble but don’t lay the blame on President Trump. Read this month’s findings to see what they had to say.

Here’s a couple of interesting things this group told us:

President Trump still has their vote — at least 7 of the 9 of them. Only 2 in the group say they would vote for Biden over Trump if the election was held “tomorrow.”

They feel life between now and election day will be chaotic, divided and emotional.

They feel that the demand to “Defund the police” is going too far and could have a negative impact on Biden’s chances.

And they largely want schools to re-open in the fall

View the highlights for yourself: 

Couple of direct takes from this group:

On the pandemic and re-opening the country…

“I believe [scientific experts] should be part of the guidance, but… if we listen to nothing but scientific guidance, we’d be shutting down every business in the country.”

On social unrest and the ramping up of protests in some cities… 

“They (protestors) are still burning buildings. They’re rioting. They’re doing things that aren’t going to bring us together. They’re doing more things that are going to bring us apart.”

➜ Check out all the key findings in our July summary report

Have you noticed consistent trends in each month’s SVP report? You’ll want to read this month’s findings—there’s been a shift. 

Trump’s support among these swing voters has fallen

• • • The country is in chaos, and he’s not bringing order, he’s bringing more conflict.
    • They’re still not crazy about Biden. But they’re more willing to give him a chance.
    • How are they feeling in general? No surprise here—anxious, depressed, frustrated, fearful.

• • • They’re horrified about George Floyd’s death, and they’re supportive of the initial protests; but they think the protests have made their point. And protest violence is causing more division. They want it to stop.
    • They oppose defunding the police, and if Biden supports those efforts, he’ll lose many of their votes.
    • They want a national conversation about race, but they don’t want politicians to lead it.

“Our entire year has been taken away from us,” they said, with the prohibitions on weddings, funerals, and other public gatherings. Meanwhile, thousands are allowed to crowd together for protests. They want consistent pandemic gathering rules.

➜ Like we said, you’re going to want to read the whole thing

Have you noticed consistent trends in each month’s SVP report? You’ll want to read this month’s findings—there’s been a shift. 

Trump’s support among these swing voters has fallen

• • • The country is in chaos, and he’s not bringing order, he’s bringing more conflict.
    • They’re still not crazy about Biden. But they’re more willing to give him a chance.
    • How are they feeling in general? No surprise here—anxious, depressed, frustrated, fearful.

• • • They’re horrified about George Floyd’s death, and they’re supportive of the initial protests; but they think the protests have made their point. And protest violence is causing more division. They want it to stop.
    • They oppose defunding the police, and if Biden supports those efforts, he’ll lose many of their votes.
    • They want a national conversation about race, but they don’t want politicians to lead it.

“Our entire year has been taken away from us,” they said, with the prohibitions on weddings, funerals, and other public gatherings. Meanwhile, thousands are allowed to crowd together for protests. They want consistent pandemic gathering rules.

➜ Like we said, you’re going to want to read the whole thing

Last week, we conducted a virtual focus group made up of 10 swing voters all of whom live in the Canton, Ohio area, and voted for President Obama in 2012 and President Trump in 2016.

Key Takeaways from the Canton, Ohio swing voter group:

• Some advice for the president:  Take some cues from Governor DeWine. They’re happy with how the Ohio governor is handling the crisis, giving him high marks for taking the problem seriously early on, and being decisive, and apolitical. They’d like the president to follow suit.
• Some of the shine has faded but he’s still their pick: they think the president’s initial response to the coronavirus crisis has made it harder to contain the virus, but overall, they still approve of how he has handle the crisis, and plan to stick with him.
• Has their confidence in Trump taken a hit? The short answer is yes. Half of our group has lower confidence in the president as a leader now then they did three months ago.
• What do they worry about the most right now? It was even split between their financial health and their physical health.
• No rush to normalcy: At least half of the group said they’d be willing to wait until August or September to return to more normal activities, with some indicating that they’d need to have several conditions in place before they’d go back.
• WWBD (What would Biden do?) Most of the group were not familiar with the Democratic challenger’s comments on the coronavirus crisis or what he would do different than what Trump is doing.
• Pro or against protesting? Generally against those protesting the stay-at-home restrictions and business closures.
• And what about suspending immigration? Unanimously in support of the president suspending immigration into the US due to the coronavirus crisis.

Next month, we will NOT be heading to Davenport, Iowa, but we will virtually meet with a new set of swing voters who live there. Stay safe and well.

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If you are receiving this email it is because I consider you a friend or I greatly respect you and your work.

I feel as a nation we are facing two very dangerous curves that if not checked will create a crush with devastating long term consequences. The first we are addressing with #SocialDistancing.

This is helping us to not overwhelm our healthcare system, limit contagion and allow our healthcare workers to methodically help those in need.

The second curve, the one we are not addressing, is the current blow to our economic system and our own financial lives. Obviously, there are some businesses and industries that will have a difficult time no matter what. If you are in the travel industry or work in a restaurant or hospitality, you will have to wait for a recovery. However, in my colleagues’ clients, I am seeing a lot of people ceasing to do business out of fear or just holding to see “where this is going.” I am comparatively insulated from this, unlike many working Americans who are living completely check to check. I was raised in extreme abject poverty but also graduated from the London School of Economics, spending a full year studying the 1929 global economic crisis––the Great Depression.

Here is the issue. If we fall into the category of businesses that are “holding off” out of fear––the majority––I am exceedingly nervous about the domino effect we are setting up economically. If we all shut down––even though most of us offer products and services, remotely deliverable, that are still vitally needed by all––we shut down the economic system. If our economic system shuts down, the long term effects of this will have severe, even longer-lasting effects on our physical and mental health. Many will perish if there is a global economic crisis, as they did during The Great Depression. We cannot wait for our national governments or hope that a stimulus package will solve this.

We must do what we can, together, NOW. The economy is a human health issue.

This weekend David Paull, CEO of Engagious, posted across his social media his thoughts about turning the “economic curve.” The writer Michael Lewis did an interview on CNN echoing the same. If we want to take our lives into our own hands we need to make #DoBusiness relevant in the world as a message, share what is working, discourage paralysis created by fear, and ensure we all––as a collective––prevent an economic crush that could destroy lives. This is the most, yet relatively unexpressed, truth in the world right now. Obviously, supermarkets and toilet paper manufacturers do not need to be “holding” in their efforts to do business. Many of us are still offering vital products and services that we all need, but are holding out of fear. Let’s STOP holding and turn the curve, freezing the domino effect that comes from holding––by DOING EVEN MORE BUSINESS REMOTELY––for all of us who can. The world must go on, the world will go on and, as it does go on, commerce needs to go on––to save lives and prevent any more suffering. We need to work together––#DoBusiness––to stop the domino effect.

You can help by SPREADING #DoBusiness

1- POST the #DoBusiness graphics below (3 JPEGs attached) to your social media. Pin them to the top of your feed and make them your cover pages.

2- Post these once a day and then, with the below images, share content that expresses your thoughts in your field, in your life, and what you are doing to TURN THE ECONOMIC CURVE.

3- Make the sentiment of us continuing to provide each other the vital products and services we still all need––#DoBusiness––as popular a notion as #SocialDistancing so that we can all start addressing the second curve that is equally vital to our global physical and psychological well being.

Here are three assets for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn created by me and a local industrial designer.

PLEASE COPY/SAVE THEM AND POST URGENTLY REPETITIVELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY––AND PUSH OUT TO YOUR NETWORKS––ASKING THEM TO POST REPETITIVELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY.

To download: Right-Click > Save Image As…

Our team was in Saginaw, Michigan, last week, with ten respondents who voted for Obama in 2012 and then Trump in 2016. What we uncovered was surprising, and not surprising. Surprising in relation to typical media coverage. But not really surprising, because it tracks with what we’ve been hearing in our past swing voter groups.

Here are some highlights:

Buyer’s remorse? Nope. They would vote for Trump over Hillary all over again.

But they voted for Obama. Yes, they did. But in a hypothetical (constitutionally impossible) matchup between Obama and Trump, eight of them would vote for Trump.

Are they better off than they were four years ago? Yes. The economy is booming, and they are personally seeing the benefits. They like what the president is doing on trade, healthcare, and immigration.

Would a recession erode their support? They don’t think there’s going to be a recession in the next year, but it wouldn’t matter, they’ll still support the president.

But don’t they watch the news? They don’t trust mainstream media coverage of what’s going on.

So, impeachment . . . A waste of time and a big waste of money. They want the attention to be on them and their needs, and they want government resources (their tax dollars) spent on America. In a word: they resent it. (“Resent” is an . . . interesting emotion, but we’re skipping the psychology sidebar in this post.) (Maybe just a footnote.[1])

Anybody exciting on the Democratic side? Not really. They only really recognized three of the 10 we showed them. When we dial tested segments from the last debate, Andrew #Yang rated highest while talking about the importance of early childhood education. Despite this group’s general disinterest with the candidates, they had a lot of positive comments about this one segment. See that here: https://youtu.be/1EviMd22Ms8

They want to keep their health insurance. Most of them (eight of 10) said they can’t vote for a candidate who supports Medicare for All.

For the full report go here; for clips and commentary go here. 

[1] See Ressentiment, Max Scheler; also https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/articles/whats-ressentiment-got-do-it

Here are my Top 10 recommendations for How to Hire a Messaging Agency.

Do Your Homework: Keep a running list of agencies and campaigns that impress you.
At least you will have a starting place.

Be Honest with Yourself: How much bandwidth can you commit to managing an outside team?
Know this going into it.

Get Specific: Every agency has a specialty.
Know what you need (advocacy messaging? advertising messaging?) and find the right match.

Find the Right Size: Make sure the agency’s size matches your expectations. You don’t want to be the smallest client, making it easy to relegate your projects to the B-Team.

Go With Experience: If you are looking for a real partner, find a team that has related experience in your field. If you need messaging for B2B, find a team that has done B2B.

Secure Top Talent: Know who will be managing your account. That individual is your lifeline– and can sink a project if they are not strong or experienced enough.

Know Your Status: Know who their big clients are and what % of their bandwidth they occupy. You don’t want to be playing second fiddle to them for the duration.

Be Smart With Money: It’s a major factor and often an agency will cut a deal on the first job. But know that going in so you can prepare
for future projects.

Trust Your Gut: At the end of the day you are choosing a group of humans that you need to work with. Are they switched on? Do they have that sparkle in their eye?

Pull The Trigger: Your final decision will likely involve a leap of faith. If you’ve been diligent, odds are good you will end up with a partner you can work with.

In the end, your success depends a lot on your own preparation. I have faith in you; You can do this! We’re with you all the way.

If you need help with brand messaging or customer insights, we’ve got those chops. So put a check mark in our “been there, done that” column and give us a shout. Happy to talk through whatever you need.

See more of my blog posts here.

For this research, our main focus was their recently introduced Parent Ambassador (PA) program. PAs are current CSFP parents selected to represent CSFP within their school communities. They help build relationships with other CSFP families within their child’s school and assist with questions about CSFP’s scholarship program, such as registration requirements, deadlines, and events. Our first group consisted of CSFP parents of children attending a school that has had a PA for at least one year, while our second group consisted of CSFP parents who have children attending a school that will have a PA starting this upcoming 2018-2019 school year. In connection with a grant CSFP received, the PAs will also help with educating low-income families on how to evaluate and locate quality pre-k options. Therefore, we also explored with respondents the factors they consider when choosing an early childcare program for children ages 3 – 4, their familiarity with pre-k rating and accreditation systems, and which organizations influence their decision-making with regard to high quality early education options.

Some highlights from our research include:

• Respondents had very little familiarity with CSFP’s Parent Ambassador Program. Interestingly, half of respondents who have had a PA in their school for at least one year were unaware of that.
• CSFP parents who will have a PA in their child’s school starting this month were excited about it. They thought that it would be good to have someone to talk to, and they expected to learn about scholarship opportunities.
• The most important factors when choosing an early childcare program for children ages 3 & 4 were: safety, highly rated in quality/quality certified or accredited, educational/academic program/school-based pre-k, class size, and affordability.
• The least important factors for choosing a pre-k was whether it is religious or faith-based and referrals by friends and family.
• Overall, a slight majority (14 of 24) of respondents have considered changing schools or changed schools since entering the CSFP scholarship program. For most, the reasons focused on the quality of their child’s educational experience rather than issues of affordability.
• The pre-k rating or accreditation system that respondents were most familiar with—by far—is Keystone STARS. Interestingly, fewer than one-third of respondents (seven of 24) knew that the highest STARS-rating possible to attain is four stars.
• School District of Philadelphia (SDP) is the organization that the most number of respondents overall (13 of 24) told us influenced their decision-making with regard to high quality early education options, but when probed, it appeared that the reason was that SDP was not quality and respondents were looking for something better.
• The best way for CSFP to get in touch with parents to notify them about an issue relating to their child’s program is to send an email to them.

This information will help CSFP plan the upcoming expansion of the PA program in multiple ways, including at the most basic level, knowing the best way to communicate updates and information to its scholarship parents. CSFP will also use this information to prepare materials about how to evaluate quality pre-k options for distribution to low-income parents and the public. Engagious was proud to be part of data-driven solutions that will help Philadelphia families struggling to find easily understood information about quality educational opportunities.

If you’d like to learn more about the fine work of CSFP, please visit: https://www.csfphiladelphia.org/.

Here at Engagious and Dialsmith, we’re as guilty as anyone else of getting caught up in the business of our business.  But every once in a while, we need to remind ourselves that there’s important work being done outside of our focus area. That’s why every September, Dialsmith gets involved in supporting the amazing efforts of Portland’s Community Transitional School (CTS).

The Community Transitional School provides a safe, stable, and welcoming educational environment for children who are experiencing homelessness or are in transitional housing. They support these families by providing flexible transportation throughout the greater Portland area so kids are able to attend the same school year round, developing a stable sense of community and support. CTS also offers after-school programs so students can be involved in sports and other activities they might otherwise miss out on.

A small way we, at Dialsmith, help support CTS is through a donation of new books requested by CTS teachers for the school year. This year, we donated copies of two requested books: Beyond the Bright Sea by Lauren Wolk and Louisiana’s Way Home by Kate DiCamillo.

Another, more traditional, way we’ve supported CTS is through their annual holiday gift program where we’ve been able to purchase and deliver items from the students’ wish lists.

It’s been a humbling and rewarding experience to get to know CTS through the support we’ve been able to provide. It’s also a good reminder that while giving during the holiday season is always welcome. There are 10 other months of the year where great organizations, like CTS, can also use our support.

To learn more about the Community Transitional School, please visit www.transitionalschool.org.