When under relentless attack.

In a three-way race for the Republican nomination, the incumbent client was facing a barrage of tag-team attacks from the other two candidates hoping to knock us into a runoff. Unable to effectively punch in both directions without risking critical votes, to win outright we needed a message that firmly rallied conservatives behind us.

“Outnumbered” tied together the ideas that Rep. King was outmanned in both the campaign and as a rural legislator fighting against urban interests at the Capitol – but that his grit, resolve, and hard work is what makes King the best voice for his district. Voters circled the wagons for this tough conservative and Rep. King won the race in the first round.

Ken King’s “Outnumbered”
TV

Swiftly turning the tide.

Keith Bell was an underdog candidate in a runoff against a well-funded former State Representative with almost universal name-ID among the conservative electorate. With only one chance to make our case, we needed a TV spot than accomplished more in 30 seconds that any we had previously produced.

By focusing on our opponent’s poor voting record and employing the visual theme of a Texas House member’s voting desk, we drew the viewer’s full attention to each piece of information and efficiently guided them through the contrasting stories without any distractions from the message. Keith ran right past his opponent to a resounding, upset victory.

Keith Bell’s “Strong” Ad
TV

Making an unforgettable impression.

Today, it’s easier than ever for people to tune out advertising. So you need a message that will reach your audience with a bang – sometimes literally. We asked: how do you introduce a tough, conservative, anti-Washington, pro-gun, pro-life, pro-border security, pro-jobs member of the Texas Legislature in a way no one will ever forget – and Charlie Geren’s “Cannon” was our answer.

Precisely targeted to voters across the most effective platforms, the ad raised our client’s “favorables” early and kept them there throughout the entire primary race. Every opposition attempt to portray Geren as anything except what he is: a strong, Texas conservative – fell on ears deafened by the blast.

Charlie Geren’s “Cannon”
TV / Digital

Winning hearts and minds.

In a wide-open, five-candidate race, how do you break ahead enough to win without a runoff? You need a big splash that convinces everyone you’re the person for the job. Robert Chody’s “Trust” employed the most impactful, poll-tested messaging and cinematic imagery to give voters a series of snapshots into the life of Robert Chody.

Our goal was that by the end of the ad, viewers would already view Chody as their sheriff. Targeting the highest propensity voters on digital and cable platforms, we measure the ad’s success by the election results: Chody won the race outright by 58% – besting the second place finisher by a remarkable 44 points.

Robert Chody’s “Trust”
TV / Digital

In case of relentless attack.

You need speed, mobility, and creativity to fight your way to victory. Produced in a single night just days before the election, Cindy Burkett’s “Slideshow” ad quashed every untrue negative attack against her in one swift, humorous parry.

From conception to on-the-air in 36 hours, “Slideshow” helped lift Burkett to a 12-point victory in the face of sharp adversity. Later, the idea was lifted and used by the Ted Cruz presidential campaign. We take it as a compliment.

Cindy Burkett’s “Slideshow”
TV / Digital

Turning the opponent’s strength into a weakness.

How do you take the field when you’re overwhelmingly outspent and outgunned? With Linda Koop’s “Dear Carrier,” we turned the opponent’s $400,000 negative campaign against her with a humorous, one-of-a-kind call to action.

When the mail piece hit boxes, Koop’s fan page lit up with tagged images of the cut out carrier message taped to voters’ mailboxes. We even received a phone call from a voter reaching out simply to say that it was the best mailer she had ever received.

Nationally awarded “Best Mail Piece for a Republican Candidate,” “Dear Carrier” presented a unique, memorable message that played to the voters’ frustrations and positioned Koop as the positive choice in the midst of a highly negative campaign.

Telling an emotional story.

Big campaigns trying to reach an audience of thousands are often distant and impersonal – losing sight and failing to connect with people. You need emotional advertising that creates an intimacy with the reader.

Angie Chen Button’s family story of escaping oppression from Communist China is the quintessential tale of the American Dream. Combined with powerful imagery, Angie’s story made for some of the area’s most effective direct mail that many readers still remember years later.

Putting you in the spotlight.

The average reader spends just 7 seconds reading a mail piece – so you need to connect and persuade almost instantly. We pride ourselves on producing mail that does just that.

In a heated re-election campaign, we needed to show the electorate the results of the incumbent’s steady, effective leadership at home. In this case, Representative Geren had succeeded in creating many jobs by attracting a new Facebook Data Center to his district.

By combining the most fascinating facts with compelling, native imagery, Geren’s “Facebook Like” presented our targeted audience with an ad that made them proud of their city and the leadership they had chosen.

Making the message personal.

The task at hand was clear: we had to substantially boost turnout in a low turnout school board race to win. Using a remarkable combination of local data-mining, geo-targeting, and digital printing we were able to produce a mail piece that targeted each voter by their closest elementary school.

By asking every voter to support their local school by voting for our candidate, we personalized the message and tapped into the great sense of neighborhood pride to mobilize the electorate. In the end, our candidate won with 66.4% of the vote in a very competitive three-way race and “The Bus That Stopped At Every School” won a national award for best direct mail in a local race.