SOAP Campaign Proposal by Melissa Gridley

MELISSA GRIDLEY GR4900 Graphic Design Capstone Instructor Ms. Beverly Fanning Art Institute of Tampa Winter 2012 Quarter

TABLE OF CONTENTS The Problem

My Solution

Demographics 8 SWOT Analysis

Quantitative Research

Ethnographic Research 14 Inspiration 16 Ideation & Process

Graphic Organizers

Deliverables 26 Personal Reflection

Production Notes

“The duty of youth is to challenge corruption.” KURT COBAIN

THE PROBLEM

The economic downturn and rising unemployment rates are a source of widespread popular discontent in the United States, and as a result, studies show public confidence in government officials is at an all-time low. The extremism and lack of political experience of members of the 112th Congress is partly to blame, but as members of a democratic republic Americans also share in the responsibility to elect capable representatives to public office. The corruption and inefficiency of the legislative branch of the government is a direct result of an unnecessarily prejudicial, inequitable, and often inefficient campaign process that confuses voters and discourages educated participation in elections. Campaign reforms have proven ineffective in equalizing election opportunities, so other avenues must be explored to assist voters in making educated voting choices.

THE SOLUTION

Research pointed to three main obstacles keeping the target demographic from getting actively involved in the democratic process: disinterest in the topic, intimidation by the perceived complexity of the topic, and lack of time. The SOAP/Don’t Vote campaign will address each of these issues.

Disinterest In order to spark interest in the topic, a guerilla campaign was designed around the theory that it’s better not to vote at all than to vote blindly. The ‘Don’t Vote’ campaign attempts to startle the demographic and open a conversation about civic responsibility.

Complexity To make the complexity of government and politics less intimidating, the SOAP website component offers visuals and infographics to aid in understanding. Information is sorted into user friendly Q&A format, and will link to more information where necessary.

Lack of Time To overcome the time obstacle, information will be broken down into small chunks that can be quickly sorted through and shared. The website will feature variable content that will feed users a steady diet of fresh facts in an attractive visual format.

DEMOGRAPHICS Primary Audience Age: 18-24 years old Gender: M/F Race: Any Language: English Education Level: College Income Level: $15,000-$20,000 Occupation: Student Location: US Household Size: 1-2

Secondary Audience Age: 25-29 years old Gender: M/F Race: Any Language: English Education Level: HS diploma Income Level: <$30,000 Occupation: Laborer or entry-level professional Household Size: 1-2

Primary Persona Name: Carlye Age: 22 Gender: F Race: Caucasian Language: English Income Level: <$15,000 Location: Midwest The ideal target audience for this project would be someone like Carlye, a 22-year-old college student living in the dorms with a roommate. Her income is limited, and she works part-time at a popular retail chain to

support herself through school. A senior now, she is always stressed, short on time, and very connected to her friends and family. She is an avid user of social media and updates her Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+ accounts constantly. In her free time, she goes to parties, clubs, movies and concerts, and tries to catch up on her sleep. She never goes anywhere without her iPhone. In her view, politics are for older people. When she sees anything about the upcoming 2012 election on the news, she quickly changes the channel. She is registered to vote, but has never participated in an election. She

intends to vote for whoever her parents tell her is the best choice, unless all her friends vote otherwise. She thinks of herself as educated, independent, and progressive; she supports gay marriage, tax cuts, legalization of marijuana and finding viable substitutes for fossil fuels, although she canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t articulate why. She would like be more informed about important issues, current candidates, and the election process in general, but right now itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a boring, timeconsuming and complicated task she just doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have interest in tackling.

SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS • Brief & succinct chunks of information • Light, humorous tone • New approach • Age-appropriate look and feel • Answers only most important questions • Serves as a portal to sites with more information Of the few basic government education websites out there, most are geared toward kids in both look and language. The fresh, modern style and snarky tone of the campaign makes it more attractive to a young adult demographic. Breaking the information into small chunks will make the information less intimidating and more palatable, even to users who don’t have a lot of time to spare. By focusing on only the basic questions, the SOAP site draws young voters into the conversation and gives them easily-navigated avenues to pursue more thorough research.

WEAKNESS • Time • Budget • Web expertise • Ability to simplify complexity of subject • Not a substitute for thorough self-education The relationship between youth and government is complex and steeped in a long and volatile history. It is difficult to simplify the information without losing a lot in translation. Some concessions to brevity over accuracy had to be made in some areas. In this sense, the site is merely a gateway to civic self-education, not a substitute. As a central component, the web site will have to be easy to navigate and understand, which will be a challenge to design and script. There are a large number of interconnected components to this project, so both time and money will have to be budgeted wisely to reach completion.

OPPORTUNITIES • Lack of other age-appropriate resources • Unique guerilla campaign approach • Familiarity of irreverent subject matter • Readily available feedback While there are plenty of voter education resources available on the internet, there are few geared toward the 18-26 year old demographic in an attractive, simplified format. The sites that do exist tend to be very straightforward but either geared toward grade-schoolers or too complex and labyrinthine to navigate. Most are attempting to present the entire subject of civic responsibility with all its layers and sublayers, and the result is an intimidating maze of facts. The SOAP site is much easier to navigate, and speaks more to the demographic’s interest level. Subtle use of sarcasm and irreverent verbiage also give the target audience a sense of exclusive ownership derived from the alienation of disapproving authority figures. The ready availability of a test audience is also helpful. Being surrounded by college students provides the unique advantage of instant feedback from a variety of viewpoints within the target demographic.

THREATS • Perceived boredom of subject • Disengaged from process • Lack of enthusiasm • Redundancy of efforts • Personal understanding of demographic Ethnographic research shows an overwhelming number of the target demographic find even the word ‘politics’ boring. It’s important to engage them instantly and keep them engaged long enough to impart SOAP’s central message; it’s our responsibility to see the good guys get elected to government. VoteSmart has launched a very similar effort, and there are half a dozen other sites that purport to give non-partisan facts about candidates. This project must find a way to distinguish itself in tone, content and style. One way to do that is to get a deeper and more thorough understanding of the demographic, one from which I am removed by almost a decade. Getting to the heart of the audience will require a good deal of research and personal involvement.

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

SURVEY To help me better understand my demographic’s attitude toward politics and government, I designed a survey and raffled off a $10 Starbucks card as incentive. Of the nearly 20 participants, 15 answered all 10 questions, and a few offered extra insights in the comments. The results of the last two questions —arguably the most relevant to my project—indicated a need for more information in specific areas.

ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH Compared to other generations,

Millennials are: • Most supportive of interracial dating and marriage • Most ethnically, culturally and racially diverse • More politically progressive • Least religious • More trusting of institutions • Most dependent on social media and communications • Less cynical, more upbeat about the future in general • More receptive to new ideas • Confident, optimistic, secure and self-expressive • More liberal and progressive • More peer-oriented • Closer to their parents • Most active in and conscious of environmental issues

The target demographic—young adults between the ages of 18 and 26—falls into the generational category called ‘Millennials,’ so named for their relationship to the turn of the millennium. The Millennial generation spans 20 years, including babies born between 1980 and 2000. Millenials are sometimes referred to by the alternative terms Generation Y, Generation Next, Net Generation, Peter Pan Generation, Trophy Kids, Boomerangs and Echo Boomers. They are more culturally and ethnically diverse, and are more likely than their generational counterparts to demand that their racial or ethnic identity be recognized and respected. The Millennial Generation’s economic prospects were initially optimistic, as it was noted throughout the 1990s that kids born between those years spent more than many adults: however, the worldwide economic recession has hit young adults hard. As of July 2011, less than 50% of 16-24 year olds were employed, the lowest number ever recorded since the statistic was first tracked in 1948 (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). In an article for the New York Times published in 2011, William Deresiewicz described Millenials as “polite, pleasant, moderate, earnest, friendly. ... a “post-emotional” generation. No anger, no edge, no ego.” Finally, if anything helps to define the Millenials, it may be their contributions to the world around them. It is their generation that gave us flash mobs, Kickstarted, Facebook, Twitter, Hipster culture, urban farming and eco-friendly versions of just about everything.

89% 71% 69%

of Latinos ages 16-25 agree that a college education is needed to get ahead in life.

of teens ages 12-17 have a cellular phone, compared to only 45% in 2004. of voters ages 18-29 favor an expanded role for government and agree it should do more to solve society’s problems.

61%

of those under 30 completely agree that “it’s my duty as a citizen to always vote,” up from 46% in 2007.

49%

of 16-29-yearolds often listen to rock music — the generation’s favorite music; 41% often listen to rap.

29%

of Americans ages 18-29 say they are not currently affiliated with any particular religion.

26%

of Americans say there are major conflicts between young people and older adults, down from 42%.

If you were free to do anything you want right now, what would it be?

“I LIKE TO GO OUT AND EAT WITH FRIENDS, BUT IT’S HARD TO COORDINATE OUR SCHEDULES.”

“SLEEPING. I LOVE TO SLEEP.” “ANYWHERE OTHER THAN HERE [IN CLASS].”

“LAYING OUT.”

What kinds of activities take up most of your free time?

“FACEBOOK AND PINTEREST. I’M ADDICTED.”

“VIDEO GAMES.”

“CHILLING WITH FRIENDS.”

“I LOVE TO SHOP! BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN I CAN SHOP.” How do you feel about free soap?

“SERIOUSLY? I LOVE FREE STUFF.” “I’D TAKE IT. COLLEGE KIDS NEVER HAVE ENOUGH MONEY.”

INSPIRATION: AESTHETIC

For the environmentally conscious Millennial, everything old is new again. Recycling, repurposing and reusing are strong themes across the demographic on Etsy, Pinterest, and in brick and mortar businesses like Urban Outfitters. The vintage aesthetic gives the organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s look some rough edges that coincide with the blunt tone and seemingly incongruous central message, and mesh well with the well-recognized look of the eCards already in circulation.

VINT

TAGE

SARCASTIC

INSPIRATION: TONE

Sarcasm sar·casm [sahr-kaz-uhm] noun 1. harsh or bitter derision or irony. 2. a sharply ironical taunt; sneering or cutting remark.

OUTRAGEOUS

The art of the sarcastic barb has risen to a new level with the popular internet meme of Blunt Cards, SomeEcards and Your eCards. Passed around on Facebook, pinned on Pinterest and Tweeted daily, these strongly-worded jabs are a popular and humorous alternative to confrontation.

Web traffic statistics for the sites that generate most of the cards indicate a demographic that is more female than male, mostly in the age range of 18-24, has a college education and makes under $50k annually. In other words, their target audience is SOAP’s target audience, so it makes sense to play off the blunt, direct, and irreverent tone that’s made them so popular.

CONCEPT IDEATION

Listing and challenging assumptions gives a new perspective on the problem.

Word lists help draw associations between ideas that may appear unrelated.

I challenged myself to brainstorm 5 ideas a day for 5 days.

IMAGE IDEATION

GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS: CONCEPT MAP

GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS: WORD CLOUD

DELIVERABLES Website PURPOSE: To provide information on government structure, top issues, political candidates and voter registration in an attractive, easy-to-navigate format. A sense of humor, strong visuals and simple language help make an intimidatingly complex subject more accessible to the target audience.

Home Page

COMPONENTS: Rotating political definitions, quotes from voters, a video, links to other key information websites, infographics, and a list of frequently asked questions. The site also contains links to the CafePress storefront for the purchase of t-shirts.

“How Do I...?” Links Page

Product Page

US Government Infographic

FAQ Page

DELIVERABLES Activist Kit PURPOSE: The components of the activist kit are intended to grab attention and open discussion about the potential harms of making uneducated choices in our government officials, but it does so with a sense of humor and a dash of sarcasm.

COMPONENTS: SOAP box, soap bar business card, Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Vote stickers, SOAP stickers, downloadable eCards, t-shirt, posters.

T-shirt PURPOSE: The Don’t Vote t-shirt is a wearable billboard for SOAP, designed to startle viewers and draw attention to the organization’s mission of educating voters.

COMPONENTS: Logo & emblem design, t-shirt decal application.

DELIVERABLES

Bar Soap Business Card PURPOSE: This mini bar of soap is designed to be left with an interested party to provide contact information for the organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s representative as well as a scannable QR code for the website.

COMPONENTS: Package design & construction of inner wrapper and outer sleeve.

Soap Box PURPOSE: The SOAP box, in addition to being a simple container for the activist kit’s contents, provides the user with an overview of SOAP’s mission with a sense of humor. It’s designed to capture the audience’s attention and underscore the relationship of SOAP and soap, both used to clean up dirt and grime. COMPONENTS: Design and construction of box and wrap, as well as organization and creation of written content.

DELIVERABLES Downloadable eCards PURPOSE: More than any other component of the SOAP activist kit, the downloadable eCards are designed to startle readers as theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re passed around through social media. The message is driven home with outrageous sarcasm and a few strong adjectives. COMPONENTS: Creation of written content, design of individual cards, illustration of figures, generation of QR codes, design of final postcard for inclusion in kit.

Posters PURPOSE: The two poster designs use color and abrupt messaging to grab the viewerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attention, enticing them to snap the QR code that will take them to the website. Each poster is 16" x 20", which makes them easier to carry around and tack up in public locations. COMPONENTS: Poster design, QR code generation, figure illustration.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

I wasn’t always interested in the political machinations of our government, and to honest, I graduated at the top of my high school class with no clear idea of how a bill even got passed. Over the next decade, I paid little attention to headlines, political ads and presidential debates, and I usually voted based on who seemed to be the least creepy old guy of the bunch being offered. I assumed that was the extent of my civic responsibility, because I ‘Rocked the Vote’ didn’t I? No one ever told me to ‘Rock the Educated, Well-Researched Vote’. The idea behind the SOAP/Don’t Vote campaign is to present information about the way our country is governed in a format that is both interesting and brief. It is not by any means an attempt at a thorough eduction in politics and civic responsibility; it’s merely a gateway through which I hope a few young voters will pass on their way to imagining a better future. It’s my purpose and passion to get young adults involved in a spirited, informed conversation about where our government is taking us and what we can do. In the short term, I don’t even care if they vote; I only want them to care.

“We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.” F.D. ROOSEVELT

PRODUCTION NOTES Editorial Design Melissa Gridley

Printing & Binding Tampa Print Services, Inc.

Photography Melissa Gridley Getty Images