Why Taking a Political Approach to Public Affairs is a Catalyst for Your Success
There’s nothing quite like the energy of a political campaign. The quick start, fast-paced action and dynamic landscape. After decades of real-world political campaign wins, it became clear we could successfully utilize this same approach in the public affairs space.
At Calkin Public Affairs, our approach is grounded in our decades of executing winning political campaigns – often against tough odds. We have found success in applying the urgency and mindset of a must-win Tuesday in November to a strategic and intentional public affairs approach that helps our clients achieve transformative results.
And it’s not just successful, clients love it. We hear repeatedly people are initially drawn to our firm, and keep coming back, because we take the valuable expertise and best practices developed from decades in politics and help them win their toughest fights.
We took this experience a step further by trademarking a unique and proprietary approach to the broader work we do in public affairs. Our Catalyst Model™ brings the rigor, pace and overall most effective elements of a political campaign to our public affairs work.
The critical use of real-time data, research and polling, clear message development and ongoing refinement, and managing crises in real-time creates a competitive edge in a competitive world.
Drilling down deeper, our Catalyst Model™ translates 25 years of winning political campaigns to the public affairs arena. Just like a political campaign, successful public affairs campaigns need clearly defined outcomes, intensity and focus on speed and nimble strategies. Our five-step approach is tailored to every unique client or campaign, and sets each engagement up for success.
Catalyst Model™
1. DEFINE THE SITUATION: We start every campaign by first understanding the problem, clearly defining what success looks like and fully appreciating the state of play. We’re data driven – we identify and listen to our target audience about how they feel and what they believe and want.
2. FRAME THE MESSAGE: A good campaign starts with the best story. We define a message frame by turning data into insights and crafting a messaging platform that is the foundation of our campaign strategy and plan.
3. IDENTIFY THE TARGET AUDIENCE(S): We immerse and communicate with the right audiences, eliminating those who are not relevant to the conversation and do not move the needle. We are efficient and effective in our use of time and resources.
4. RECRUIT THE MESSENGERS: Nobody is better at building coalitions of diverse voices that can amplify our position, add credibility to our campaign and advocate on our behalf by conveying the right messages to the right audiences, a critical component to success.
5. REPEAT THE MESSAGE: Message amplification and repetition are critical to audience education and understanding. We utilize a broad and creative suite of tactics to consistently put our key messages in front of the right audiences at a cadence that is proven to maximize effectiveness.
We tailor this framework for the individual and unique needs of every campaign or client, which we have done successfully for many organizations and coalitions. This includes changing the narrative on the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, shaping the new rules of advanced recycling in the state, educating the public around misinformation surrounding gas stoves and more.
The process of taking the nimble, fast-moving mindset and best elements from political campaigns and applying the Catalyst Model™ is not rooted in perfection but instead the ability to adapt in real-time and manage dynamic situations. While no two campaigns are the same, taking a political approach to public affairs sets up a winning strategy time after time. Get in touch to learn more about how we can succeed together.