From the point of view of a custom technology company, one of the most interesting aspects of political elections is how different technologies are used to motivate voters, build campaigns, monitor elections, and share information in the media.

Since elections are less than a month away, it is a good opportunity to look at how some technologies are being used in new and innovative ways, and how Amadeus Consulting’s software expertise can help campaigns take advantage of new innovations.

Google™ Resources

Google is normally mentioned in terms of search engine optimization (SEO), or making a website rank first in Google results. Of course, we can assist with search engine optimization and other search marketing services, but there are some other tools and resources that Google provides which can be useful to political campaigners.

Of these is Google’s Election Center (GoogleElectionCenter.com), a partner to the Voting Information Project (voterinfoproject.org), which does four things:

1. Gathers Election Center Information

2. Creates an interactive app that displays the information

3. Allows people to embed the app onto their own websites

4. Creates an open API so that people can build applications using that data

For example, if a person was promoting a ballot measure, they could use this information to help people know where to cast their vote through an interactive app on their website, or a custom mobile app. The benefit is that using Google’s app is free, or you can build your own custom interface for the information.

Unfortunately, the information is not currently complete for all states, so it may take a bit of extra work in some states to make sure the information is available and accurate.

Mobile Apps

When done right, apps can be very effective at reaching and motivating potential customers, or in this case, voters. We’ve jokingly called many of these "appvertisements" because they are essentially just advertisements that are distributed as apps, and not as effective as they could be. But even though most are still rudimentary at this point, they do symbolize a change in politician’s ability to get into your pocket (read that as you will) and help voters become more involved in the election process, especially when it comes to important ballot measures and initiatives.

Many political apps take advantage of the features that Smartphones provide and offer many unique and powerful tools. Some of these include the ability to:

• Connect with other supporters

• Receive updates, news, alerts and other notifications

• Share photos, videos, ideas and feedback

• Donate

• Call Congress or other key decision makers

• Find events

• View trends, and other data information

In short, mobile apps let users become more involved in the political process, whether it is promoting an elected official, passing a ballot measure, or supporting political participation. Whether your app is an "appvertisement" that only links back to your main site, or a full-fledged application, it can still help people find and support you online. Adding features only helps you connect with your supporters and share information and messages that will help them become informed and overcome claims by the opposition.

As mobile app development becomes cheaper and better developed, expect to see political apps becoming much more commonplace.

Social Media

Even though social media is not a new concept in political campaigns, use of social media in reaching, engaging and influencing voters and donors is changing quickly. Also, as people themselves become increasingly web-savvy, campaigners need to be able to interact and appeal to people in an entirely new way.

This includes:

• Creating a site that has high usability

As people become more web savvy, they will quickly abandon a website if it is difficult to use, slow to load, or presented in a confusing manner, because they have a reduced tolerance for poorly managed sites.

Spending extra time planning and designing how a website will look, how users will navigate, and ensuring that you have a clear purpose for your website, will increase the impact your site has on your campaign. Many campaigns use the skills of a professional web usability and design consultant to help plan and build a website that will quickly appeal to their target audiences.

• Increasing Share-ability

Another aspect of social media is the ability to quickly share and comment on current events. Adding social elements to a website, such as the ability to share content with friends through Twitter™, Facebook, or social bookmarks, can have a huge impact as well, since it allows your messages to quickly and naturally spread.

This also includes adding content in a way that appeals to bloggers and other people who act as influencers. No longer is it appropriate to have a "press only" section of your website, but making information available and accessible to all the people who are going to write about you will make a much more open and friendly environment.

• Using tools to track and monitor buzz

Another advancement in social media is the use of tools and techniques to monitor your reputation online. Free, paid, or custom built tools can help you monitor and track what is being said about you online, which can help craft appropriate response strategies.

Even understanding the advanced features of simple tools can be very valuable in monitoring and shaping your buzz online. For example, advanced tricks for searching Twitter can help you target and identify key people to help share your messages online. However, custom data management and monitoring tools can also be developed which give you a distinct advantage over your opposition and provide increased power and efficiency.