– That’s why video and paid advertising are central for us, says Johanna Lind, communications officer for The Centre Party in Jönköping County Region.
Working strategically with the brand has been central for Johanna Lind since she joined The Centre party in Jönköping County Region as a communications officer in 2020.
– My task is to increase understanding and interest in regional politics, especially the Centre Party's proposals and ideas. Building trust is incredibly important for us, and we deliberately avoid short-term gains and poster messages. But, of course, this means we often have to create interest around things that might seem uninteresting.
– Sometimes I think it would be easier if I were selling shoes. There's a difference between getting someone to join a political party and getting them to click home a pair of shoes for 300 SEK.
Building a solid communicative foundation: Johanna’s strategy for long-term success in social media
To help herself think long-term and build relationships, Johanna has created a solid communicative foundation, which is very helpful in the chaotic social media climate.
– The advantage of social media is that the target audience is there. The downside is that the platforms are not always perceived as credible, so it’s especially important to be a serious voice in that landscape.
For this reason, Johanna has chosen to avoid activity on certain platforms.
– It wouldn’t suit us to post dance videos on TikTok, so we focus on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
To create recognition and reliability, Johanna also ensures that she is always consistent in tone and expression:
– We have a clear tone and aren’t afraid to repeat ourselves. For example, we have words that always recur, such as ‘green,’ ‘founded,’ and ‘human.’ I’m not at all afraid that people might think we’re repeating ourselves. If someone thinks, ‘Oh, there’s that image again,’ then I’ve succeeded.
Another prerequisite for long-term work is a clear media plan.
– I make a campaign plan for the whole year, set a budget, and divide it between our primary social channels. Then I know what I need to do, and when, even though I don’t always know exactly which messages will be in the plan. Politics fluctuates, and in January, you rarely know what will happen during the rest of the year.
In Johanna’s communicative work, there are of course organic posts, but also a lot of paid advertising.
– I know many struggle with this, but one challenge for us as a political party is that organic reach is really zero. We might get 15 likes on a post, but if you look closely, it’s always the same 15 likes. So we have to boost posts to reach more people.
How to create cost-effective sponsored posts
Without huge budgets, Johanna makes sure to get bang for the buck when sponsoring posts, and this starts right when she creates the content by considering the following four things:
Topic
– Sometimes it’s already decided which topic we’re going to discuss, like a motion we’ve submitted. Other times, it might be something that comes up, like a question we’ve successfully pushed through and want to create attention around. Sometimes it’s something the national party has pushed through that’s highly relevant for our region.
Purpose
– What do we want to achieve with the post? For example, do we want to recruit members or build the brand? The content can look quite different depending on the purpose.
Target audience
– I create the video or post based on the target audience I want to reach. If I specifically want to reach farmers of working age, the content looks different than if I want to reach young women in the region. Among other things, I often choose which spokesperson to use in the video depending on the target audience. I know who appeals to different groups.
Platform
– I also adapt the video and post to the platform I’m using.
Why using an agency can be beneficial for running campaigns
For the actual advertising, Johanna gets help from an agency.
– I highly recommend this because they help me with all the administration, building target audiences, and understanding how to reach the right people. For us, it’s important to narrow down the target audiences properly so that we’re not spending money reaching the wrong individuals.
Seeing real results doesn’t have to be very expensive.
– If you can spare a few thousand SEK for a post (200 USD), you can get pretty far. You also have to remember that working organically is incredibly expensive – you spend tons of time on posts that almost no one sees. No, you have to work with paid.
Do you see a connection between your content and budget?
– Absolutely, the more relevant the content, the cheaper it is to boost. I also pretty much only work with video for my boosted posts because I see much better results with that.
How to create brand-safe videos
To easily create brand-safe videos, Johanna uses Storykit.
– In the past, I didn’t have an easy way to make videos. I worked a lot with Adobe’s tools, which are incredibly powerful, but we’re talking about a time-consuming process.
Text serves as a natural starting point for Johanna when creating videos.
– I know that the first three seconds are crucial in a video, which can sometimes be difficult with our messages. That’s why the copy is important—to create an engaging start that sparks curiosity. I often try to begin with numbers or with a question. Or I try to create a news headline with some kind of hook.
Another tip is to feature real people in the video, but perhaps not in the way one might expect.
– In Storykit, it’s so simple to take one of our slogans and add a picture of one of our elected officials to serve as the messenger. Then I can also customise the messenger based on the platform and target audience, choosing a woman or man, or an image of the politician in a suit, or one where they’re leaning on a tractor. It becomes very personal.
Why is it better to use still images instead of filmed clips in your video?
– Our elected officials are spread out across the region and work on other things. I don’t meet with them very often, and trying to film them is a challenge. Instead, it’s much more efficient for me to take a few nice pictures or use pictures I already have.
Johanna will soon be changing roles within the region, but she plans to continue using Storykit.
– I really like the tool, and I get so much help and inspiration from our Storykit contact. Also, I get great feedback on my videos, both externally and internally within the Centre Party, where people reach out asking if I can make videos for them too.
Examples of The Centre Party's video campaigns
Here are two videos, each focused on a key aspect of the Centre Party's planned use of its 2025 budget:
1. Increasing the number of new businesses
2. Expanding access to doctors in the country side
Here are three videos, each encouraging new members to join based on The Centre Party's core values:
3. Promoting farm sales and local agriculture
4. Championing equality for all
