What They Are Saying About DMI’s Google AdWords Campaign

Jon Fine, “Rise Of The Lowly Search Ad,” Business Week: "[Google] search[ing] is a defining media behavior of the here and now, and so the search ad itself occupies valuable real estate. This is why savvy big-name marketers are now tying search ads into more traditional campaigns. . . .  The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, a nonprofit think tank, began placing its grades of New York legislators' records alongside search results whenever a New York state legislator is Googled. Now, could that work with an Herbalife flyer? Didn't think so.”

Rick Carlin, Albany Times Union:  “Googling” people or looking up their names on the Google search engine has become a pastime. But now, a New York City-based think tank is taking the game a step further by posting the results of their scorecard for state Assembly and Senate members in Google’s growing "Sponsored Links" section. By paying for an ad that is posted when someone Googles a state lawmaker's name, the organization gets its message out… The strategy should also help the Drum Major Institute gain a bigger Web presence, noted Toby Berkowitz, associate dean of Boston University's School of Communications. "It's a smart way to get clicks to your organization," said Berkowitz.

Micah L. Sifry, Personal Democracy Forum:  “This [Google AdWords campaign is] a very smart move. Instead of hoping that potential supporters will find their way to Drum Major’s home page, the institute is going where people are already searching for information and, for what I’m sure is a few pennies per click-through, offering to connect them to timely information.”

State Senator Liz Krueger:  “DMI has creatively demonstrated a new way to connect the public to what happens in our State Capital and how we, their legislators are voting on important bills.  I am pleased that DMI is taking a leadership role in providing sunshine and improved access to the decisions being made in Albany, while also illustrating an innovative new model in the evolution of digital information and politics.”

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer: “[Because of DMI’s Google AdWords campaign,] any legislator who got a D or an F on middle class issues is going to [be] freak[ing] out.”

Kate Kaye, ClickZ News Blog:  “We’ll definitely be seeing more of this, especially from candidate campaigns, not just advocacy groups.”

Ami Ngai, Gotham Gazette:  “A particularly innovative feature of [the DMI] scorecard is the ability for anyone to access the grades of their respective state legislator by simply typing the member’s name into a Google search. The search results also provide a link to the full report and an opportunity to view the individual votes on the specific legislations. By pioneering such a feature, DMI not only took what could have been an obscure report mainstream, but also provides access to more New Yorkers and sheds light on important decisions made in Albany.”

Matt Singer, The Daily Plan:  “New York’s Drum Major Institute deserves high marks for ingenuity. Today, . . . [t]hey’ve released a new scorecard rating legislators from 2001 to 2005 on a whole host of issues affecting the middle class: insurance fraud, fair wages, college tuition, day care, and health care. Of course, putting out a scorecard is nothing new. . . . What’s unique is the way they are promoting the findings.”

Scott Shields, MyDD.com: ...this is an incredibly valuable resource…To me, this is brilliant. What better way to get relevant information to people looking up their state representatives than a Google AdWords campaign?