Shadow election USA introduction

A new way to connect people with politics.

© 2012 by Shadow Election USA. All rights reserved.

© 2012 by Shadow Election USA. All rights reserved. 2

What if engaging with politics was as easy as using a slider?

Did you agree?

Slide here.


What if you could see your impact on the debate?


What if your friends could join in?

Fire up political debate!


? ?

5

< > < >

A simple, intuitive way to evaluate candidates.


Shadow Election brings people back into politics.



Pinboard layout is already familiar to users.

Easily converted for mobile devices.

8

See poll results.

Cast a virtual vote.

Rate candidate videos.



Traditional voting applications match policy statements to voter opinions. But politics is personal, social – and in perpetual motion.

Video is most like meeting the candidate in person.

Candidates’ views evolve over time.

The issues evolve too.

Shadow Election keeps up with changing political realities.


10

The election content we see online tends to reflect our established views –

– and the views of people in our social networks.



11

It is the same on all sides –

– much like being inside a bubble.


Shadow Election sources content from all sides of the debate.

Or even submit their

own!

We encourage users to suggest content.


Seven key categories. Users add tags of their own. New issues emerge alongside new content.

contraception

gas prices

tar sands

Obamacare

Afghanistan

drones

McJobs

guns

One Nation Under God

gay marriage

education vouchers

lobbying

investment banks

student loans

Al Qaeda

fracking

the 99%

personhood

Medicaid

Content is organized with crowd input.


●  Users select the most engaging content to share with their friends.

●  Personalized stories and debate create a ‘sticky’ online experience.

●  Frequently updated content and friend participation draws users back to Shadow Election.

●  Communities of interest form around election issues. Engagement is amplified.

●  Users drive attention to stories – not news editors. Political influence is decentralized and democratized.

14

Shadow Election is designed for social impact.

Shareable stories build communities of interest.


●  Unlike traditional elections, users can visualize their impact on the debate immediately.

●  Game-like user experience engages Millennials. Youth turnout is expected to drop in 2012*.

● While rating content is simple, cumulative use promotes reflective decision-making.

● We remind users to register and vote. Personalized reminders can be targeted to users when they are most engaged.

15

* Curtis Gans, (2011) Center for the Study of the American Electorate at American University

Shadow Election is designed for social impact.

Empowering user experience promotes activism.

Election countdown and links to registration campaigns.


●  Political affiliations are connected to personal and community identities. Social sharing amplifies peer influence.

●  Influence can be positive! Strong communities are more likely to be activist communities.

●  Peer influence is offset in environments where diverse opinions are tolerated - like Shadow Election.

●  Slowing down decision-making promotes reflection. Shadow Election is a decision process.

16

Is politics shareable?

Shadow Election is a window onto other peoples’ points of view.

I’m not sure.

What do you think?

My vote.

My ratings.

Our ratings.

Our votes.

I agree.

Users debate content within their social networks.

Facebook friends can see each others’ ratings and votes on Shadow Election.

Other users’ opinions are visible, but anonymized.

17

Debate on Facebook. See the big picture on Shadow Election’s infographics.


2012 is the right time for Shadow Election USA.


Any campaign that doesn’t recognize that the web is now central to winning the election is a dinosaur waiting to become extinct. Andrew Rasiej Personal Democracy Media

Ben Jacobs The Daily Beast

If television is a “nuclear bomb,” Web video is a laser for sending target messages to specific voters.

Thirty percent of Americans don’t watch any live network television... but they’re still watching video.

19

Online video will be huge in 2012.


●  Voter turnout is low while Facebook use is high. This includes key swing states.

●  Shadow Election activates the motivation to vote by engaging users in politics.

●  Shadow Election enhances the ability to vote by linking to voter registration advice.

●  Potentially trigger action by personalizing reminders.

20

Impact in 2012?

Statista: 2008 turnout, Facebook users.

Ohio 5.8m on Facebook Turnout 65.5%

Florida 9.4m on Facebook Turnout 63.8%

Pennsylvania 6.1m on Facebook Turnout 62.4%

BJ Fogg Persuasive Technology

Stanford

“Put hot triggers in the path of motivated people“


●  Online privacy is a hot issue.

●  Facebook is critical for scaling. More Americans use Facebook* than voted in the 2008 Elections.

●  Research points to increasingly active user management of online profiles to protect privacy, even among young people1.

● While Shadow Election encourages sharing in contexts chosen by the user, they are always in control.

●  Privacy settings will be clear and easy-to-understand.

21m

Responsibility

“Privacy is the ability to assert control over a social situation.“

* 156.1m Facebook users in the US (SocialBakers.com). 1. Pew Research Center, (2012), Privacy Management on Social

Media sites.

Danah Boyd Microsoft Research


Social Mission

Viral Content

Social Networks

✔

✖

✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

✔

✖ ✖

✔

✔ ✖

✖ ✔ ✖

22

✔ ✖ ✔

Where does Shadow Election stand among the competition?

Identifies party affiliations among members of users’ social networks.

Internet-based nominating process for 2012 primary elections.

Matches voters to candidates using online dating technology.

Dedicated 2012 Election channel with leaderboard.

Get friends to participate in ‘Rucks’ – citizen-led political actions.

Connects people with politics by sharing and rating election videos.


●  Users only share information that captures their attention.

●  Informational Facebook updates do not ‘go viral’.

● Motivation is amplified in competitive situations.

●  Sharing options should appear at points of maximal engagement.

●  Users will not return to sites unless they expect to find new information that interests them.

●  Negative publicity about site transparency alienates users.

23

What have we learned from our competitors?

Observed user behavior is the beginning, not the end point, of our approach to design.


Kellie Hodge Executive Director Shadow Election USA

Duncan Goldie-Scot Director Shadow Election USA

Richard von Kaufmann Chairman Reality Creating Media

Maari Fabritius Head of Brand and UX

Reality Creating Media

Alex Keskitalo CTO


Juha Mattila CEO


Hello! Shadow Election was born in Finland. It was built by our friends at Reality Creating Media.

25

Apri

l 201

1

Janu

ary

2012

June

201

2

July

201

2

Augu

st 2

012

Sept

embe

r 20

12

Oct

ober

201

2

Nov

embe

r 20

12

Finnish Presidential Elections 22 January 2012

US Presidential Elections 6 November 2012

Finnish Parliamentary Elections April 2011

Incorporation Shadow Election USA

Beta (Version 1)

Alpha* (Version 2)

Election Season

Election Season

* Sufficient funding secured. 1. Estimated. All impressions organic (not paid for by Shadow Election).

Shadow Election

Launched

Launched in 2011, Shadow Election is going from strength to strength.

Reached 30% of the Finnish Facebook population in two weeks during January 20121.

What could we achieve in the US?


26

After 2012.


●  Shadow Election is an effective way to evaluate any political message.

●  It will remain free for political use.

In future:

●  “Kickstarter for Candidates” crowdfunding model to lift off independents.

●  Institutions can license and customize Shadow Election.

●  Targeted messaging can be applied to fundraising campaigns.

●  Potential to formalize interest groups for collective messaging and engagement strategies.

27

A level playing field for independent candidates.

A way for institutions to connect and grow activist interest groups.

Elections not (always) required.


●  Currently filing for 501(c)3 status in the United States.

●  Shadow Election USA is a non-profit entity with the mission of promoting online democracy in the United States.

●  No ties to political parties or news organizations. No campaign funding.

●  Shadow Election USA has been the work of passionate volunteers.

●  Now we need advice and help to deliver the transformational potential of Shadow Election for the Fall 2012 Elections.

28

About Shadow Election USA.

Kellie Hodge Executive Director Shadow Election USA

Duncan Goldie-Scot Director

Shadow Election USA


●  Our fundraising strategy reflects the ethos of Shadow Election: for and by the people.

● We gratefully accept donations from pro-democracy foundations and individuals who support our mission.

●  A Kickstarter campaign is planned to commence in June 2012.

● We will accept micro-donations via the Shadow Election site.

●  Beyond 2012, Shadow Election USA is capable of becoming self-financing through institutional licensing.

29

Fundraising Strategy

Shadow Election should be built, at least in part, by the people who use it.

30

June July August September October

2012 Development Roadmap with Key Feature Costs

Costs and delivery dates are estimates.


November

V1.0 V1.2 V1.3 V2.0 V2.1 V2.2 V2.3 V1.1

BETA ✔ ALPHA

$100k

$7k

$33k

$10k

$18k

$35k

$30k

✔

3m >10m <10m $125k

$44k

tags 3 2 1

$14k Election

Countdown

Tagging Archi-

tecture

User Campaign Dashboard

Personalized ‘Trigger’ Messages


Budget 2012 Beta

V1.0 - V1.3 Alpha

V2.0 - V2.3 Scale

10m+ users

($ thousand)

Incorporation 13.1 0.0 0.0

Administration 103.4 3.6 69.0

Marketing 23.0 0.0 2.0

Election Season Staffing 9.0 0.0 15.6

Software Development 203.2 175.4 160.6

Total (incl. 20% reserve) $421.0 $214.8 $296.6

Beta + Alpha, 10m+ users $932.4

Funding will determine achievable levels of service delivery and scaling.

32

Thank you.


We hope to keep in touch!

Shadow election USA introduction

News & Politics