Civic Engagement · 2020

Level Up, GA

Gamify voter turnout. Unlock the incredible.

(Concept)

A gamified, non-partisan Get Out The Vote concept designed to energize Georgia's youngest, most connected voters by turning record turnout into the key that unlocks unforgettable cultural, celebrity and brand-led moments.

The Problem

In the 2016 elections, over 6 million young people (ages 18–29) were registered but didn't vote — including over 400,000 young people in Georgia alone. Young people are statistically the least likely eligible voter age group to cast an election ballot.

6M+ Registered 18–29 year olds didn't vote nationwide in 2016
400K+ Young Georgians registered but didn't vote
#1 Least likely age group to cast a ballot

They are also the most socially connected, tech-savvy and progressive.

Why don't young people vote?

Inspiration, Indifference and Education

  1. 1 They do not believe their vote will make a difference or are uninterested in politics.
  2. 2 They are not asked or encouraged to vote by candidates, campaigns, family, friends, or neighbors.
  3. 3 They do not feel like they know enough to vote.

What if we gamify voting?

Celebrities, CEOs and companies commit to absurd, amazing and astonishing acts in the name of civic engagement and voter turnout.

Voters have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to unlock the incredible.

A marketing strategy used by brands to effectively engage consumers.

The Thesis

“Motivate the state to maximize voter turnout.”

Imagine a world where…

Six ideas that could light a fire. Each represents a tier Georgia could unlock.

Founder, Home Depot

Arthur Blank

gets an ATL UTD logo tattoo on his butt.

Hip-hop legends

Outkast

releases a brand-new song.

Adult Swim

Rick & Morty

airs a new FREE episode about democracy.

Limited edition collab

Waffle House × Krispy Kreme

release the “donut waffle.”

CEO, Delta

Ed Bastian

skydives with The Migos.

NBA on TNT

Shaq & Charles Barkley

go head-to-head in a hot dog eating competition at Varsity.

Illustrations only.

How does it work?

A socially optimized website that encourages visitors to share, engage and learn — ultimately energizing and compelling voters.

The webpage showcases the content (or “Levels”) that Georgians can unlock by increasing voter turnout in the 2020 general election.

Each Level corresponds to a percentage increase in statewide voter turnout as compared to the 2016 election.

The greater the turnout in Georgia, the more Levels unlocked.

A/B testing, analyzing and updating for maximum impact.

The Levels

The higher Georgia's turnout climbs above 2016, the more "Levels" get unlocked — each one a cultural, celebrity or brand-led act big enough to make young voters pay attention.

3 / 5
Levels Unlocked +9% turnout achieved · next milestone at +12%
  1. +15%
    Level 5 · Locked
    Unforgettable act by (CEO)
  2. +12%
    Level 4 · Locked
    (Celebrity) does (amazing thing)
  3. Just Unlocked
    +9%
    Level 3 · Unlocked
    OMG I can't believe this ______
  4. +6%
    Level 2 · Unlocked
    Unforgettable act by (CEO)
  5. +3%
    Level 1 · Unlocked
    (Celebrity) does (amazing thing)

Illustrative tier model. Final thresholds and rewards to be finalized with partners.

Why It Works

Solves for apathy and indifference.

Friends, co-workers, family members, celebrities and strangers alike will be rallying behind Georgia voters to unlock the Levels.

Everyone in Georgia, and beyond, is on the same team.

Approach

  • Create Awareness
  • Generate Excitement
  • Educate

Key Elements

  • Once-in-a-lifetime
  • Immediate results
  • Irreverent and funny
  • Inclusive and non-partisan
  • Socially optimized for sharing
  • Extremely viral
  • Press friendly
  • Vast amount of earned media
  • Novel and unusual
  • Feel good

Primary Goals

  • Increase youth voter turnout
  • Increase overall voter turnout
  • Increase voter registration
  • Collect voter data
  • Educate voters

Metrics for Success

  • Georgia voter turnout
  • New registered voters
  • Data collected
  • Website impressions
  • Unique visitors
  • Shares
  • Voter commitments
  • Hyperlink clicks
Appendix

How We'd Execute

Operational details, platform design, and campaign mechanics.

Developing Levels

Involve different demographics and interests to maximize impact and reach.

Each level is a curated marketing campaign targeted to engage the most young people in each community.

Categories

  • Sports
  • Film + Entertainment
  • Tech + Startup
  • Business
  • Gaming
  • Style + Fashion
  • Music
  • Art + Culture
  • Food + Drinks
  • Celebrity + Influencers

Criterion

  • Bipartisan
  • Fun, funny and irreverent
  • Georgia focused
  • Non-partisan
  • Accessible to all

Going viral!

The idea and content is developed to maximize the probability of "going viral." The principle behind the concept is to create a frenzy, conversation and excitement around voting.

  • Develop amazing Levels with key principles
  • Create high-quality, fun and shareable content (videos, photos, etc) for each "level"
  • Utilize press relations to gain earned media
  • Creative advertising to boost campaigns (online, billboards, etc)
  • Engage influencers
  • User-generated content

Crowdsourcing

Develop a step-by-step option for people to create their own Levels in order to directly connect with their network.

  1. 1 Sign up for a custom level. Select an "act" and number of commitment goal.
  2. 2 Share dedicated landing page with custom hyperlink.
  3. 3 People can commit to vote (collect data) or share via social media, email, text, etc.
  4. 4 If commitment goal is reached, option is provided to create a bonus level.

Increases data collection, website traffic and impressions.

Benefits

  • Provides an outlet for those wanting to "do more"
  • Drives consumer-generated content
  • Creates personal engagement
  • Open-source creativity
  • Showcases popular campaigns

Platform Notes

  • Automated and simple process to sign up
  • Landing pages that can be customized
  • Provide a boilerplate agreement
  • Highlight the most popular campaigns
  • Provide options for commitment levels

Commitment Scale

100Dope
250Amazing
500Unreal
1,000Whoa Doggy
2,000You Special!
5,000American Hero

User Experience & CTAs

User Experience

  • View the Levels able to unlock
  • View number of committed voters
  • View original content associated with Levels
  • Information and hyperlinks about voting and registration
  • Explore most popular user-generated campaigns

Call-To-Actions

  • Share a Level via social media, email, text, etc.
  • Commit to vote (collect data)
  • Learn more (link to registration and voting resources)
  • Sign-up for updates (collect data)
  • Create your own campaign

Data is King

This is a data capture, analysis and utilization tool. Using data for good!

Potential voter data collected will be used to increase registration and voter turnout through strategic mobile and email contact campaigns.

Example Messages

  • Registration ends tomorrow
  • Do you have a voter plan?
  • Early voting starts tomorrow
  • Last week to early vote
  • Last day to early vote
  • The polls are open

Example Workflow

A touchpoint campaign turning one-time site visitors into committed voters, using 15–20 coordinated messages across email, SMS, social and ads.

  1. 1WebVisit website—
  2. 2DataCollect data—
  3. 3Email5 key registration & voting facts+1 hr
  4. 4TextMake sure you're registered+1 wk
  5. 5EmailNEW levels just added+2 wk
  6. 6TextWe've reached 500,000 commitments+3 wk
  7. 7EmailDo you have a plan to vote?+1 mo
  8. 8TextRegistration ends tomorrowOct 4
  9. 9EmailHow to request an absentee ballotOct 8
  10. 10TextEarly in-person voting starts todayOct 12
  11. 11EmailEarly in-person voting ends tomorrowOct 30
  12. 12TextDo you have a plan to vote on Nov 3?Nov 1
  13. 13EmailLast day to submit your absentee ballotNov 2
  14. 14TextVote today!Nov 3

Tools: Email, SMS, social media, direct ads · 15–20 avg number of correspondence.

Opportunities

Win, lose or draw…

  • Utilize data for future voter campaigns
  • Share report and valuable information gained with relevant organizations
  • White Label for select organizations and campaigns
  • Re-Launch in battleground states in 2022–24

Final Report

Data Collected Measurable Metrics Value of Earned Media Estimated Voter Impact Budget ROI Errors & Issues Improvements White-Label Plan Overall Assessment
Appendix

Supporting Data

Why Georgia — and why young voters — were the target.

The 10-Year Decline

Presidential Election Results '08–'16

Georgia · Top 10 Counties · Ages 18–29

−17pts Young voter turnout in Georgia fell from 62% in 2008 to 45% in 2016.
62% 2008
54% 2012
45% 2016
+364,156 newly registered (2012 → 2016)
but only
+64,770 actually voted (2012 → 2016)

Registrations grew by hundreds of thousands, but turnout kept falling.

The County Gap

Election Results 2016

Georgia Top 10 Counties · Ages 18–29

392,824 young registered voters in the top 10 Georgia counties didn't cast a ballot.
711K Registered voters
318K Voted
44% Turnout rate
County Turnout Didn't vote
Fulton
43%
99,123
Cobb
49%
53,494
Gwinnett
46%
60,717
DeKalb
45%
62,125
Chatham
38%
28,426
Cherokee
51%
14,681
Henry
47%
16,965
Forsyth
52%
11,109
Clayton
37%
27,299
Richmond
39%
18,885

Sorted by registered population. Fulton alone left 99,000+ young voters on the table.

Fine Print

Can nonprofits provide incentives to individuals to register to vote, to vote, or to reward them for doing so?

No. In any election in which a federal candidate is on the ballot, federal law prohibits any individual or entity — including 501(c)(3) nonprofits, social welfare organizations and unions — from knowingly and willfully paying, offering to pay, or accepting payment either for registering to vote or voting.

Penalties include up to $10,000 in fines and/or imprisonment up to five years. This prohibition applies only when the act is knowing and willful, and does not require that the payment actually be made or that any individuals actually register to vote or vote.

A "payment" includes anything having monetary value (cash, lottery chances, promise of government benefits, a glass of beer or slice of pizza). Therefore, in elections which include federal candidates on the ballot, it would be illegal for a nonprofit to raffle off prizes, hand out free cupcakes, or offer a service at a discounted rate in exchange for proof of registering or voting.

Permissible activities. Offering free rides to the polls or providing employees paid leave to vote are not prohibited — these benefits make it easier for people to vote and do not induce them to vote or reward them for voting. If in compliance with state law, payments may be made to individuals who gather signatures for voter registrations as long as those payments are not shared with the person being registered to vote.

Level Up, GA is designed as a non-partisan, educational and cultural campaign that stays within these boundaries by rewarding turnout thresholds across the state, not individual voter behavior.

Status Unrealized 2020 concept. Its strategic foundation — meeting young Georgia voters where they already live, on culture and social — carried into the VOTE! For John Lewis campaign later that same year.

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