NDC MARCOMM
Marketing Lead Report (Aug & Sept 2023)
OVERVIEW
As the interim Marketing Lead for the NDC elections in August and September 2023, my role involved addressing challenges, redefining objectives, and implementing strategies to maximize our marketing efforts. Joining the MarComm and NDC Marketing workgroups was a real “thrown into the fire” experience and although things were off to a bumpy start, I quickly processed the dynamics and applied the learnings in real time so I could be most useful to the team.
GOALS & OBJECTIVES
The key goals and objectives for our marketing efforts were strategically aligned as follows:
Communication: Fostering collaboration between the Marketing and Communication (MarComm) teams and NDC Marketing workgroups was a primary focus.
Strategic Marketing: Our goal was to formulate and execute data-driven campaigns to promote the NDC elections, identifying target audiences, refining messaging, and selecting the most effective channels for outreach.
Partnership Development: Establishing and strengthening relationships with organizations and communities that could amplify our campaign’s reach was essential.
KPIs & Data Analysis: Setting realistic KPIs and strategic adjustments for better results.
OVERALL CHALLENGE
As previously mentioned, stepping into the role posed some initial difficulties due to the sudden departure of the former Marketing Lead. This presented a unique challenge because, without proper onboarding, I had to invest additional time in understanding the nuances of the team and the existing system practices to effectively contribute. Upon assuming the position, I also took on the responsibility of addressing unresolved issues from July. These issues included tasks left incomplete and partner concerns, primarily stemming from workgroup members who had encountered challenges related to the creative process or miscommunications.
SOLUTION
Clearer Communication: I provided clear communication and guidance through 1 on 1 conversations, direct messages, group meetings, tasks reminders, and at times creative support to creative team members, ensuring everyone was aligned with their responsibilities and deadlines. Constructive feedback from team members and partners helped to improve communication and marketing initiatives.
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
In my initial conversations with key members of the GWG my KPIs were as follows:
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3500 Verified Humans via “I Am Human”
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500 Voters
Manage Partnerships (i.e. NEARTasks, NEARWeek etc)
RESULTS
In the end, our KPIs reflected the following:
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3997 Verified Humans via “I Am Human”
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854 Voters
Partnerships launched
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NEARTasks
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NEARWeek
TAKEAWAYS
Key takeaways included:
Effective Communication: Because we are dealing with somewhat of a decentralized process it is easy to lose a grip on NDC’s core brand identity. A central lead within marketing will always be useful in helping to keep everyone on the same page.
Resilience and Adaptability: Due to the NDC’s rapid speed and growth thereof it is super important that those in these marketing roles have a high level of emotional intelligence as to adapt to the consistent changes and updates.
Toxic Culture: At times, the echoes within the community about bounties etc can be a real downer creating less excitement to contribute. Not to mention some joined the NDC community with a lot of excitement about the future of NEAR but were hit with tons of non inclusive sentiments. My hopes are that we find some balance and structure to our criticism and overall feelings of entitlement.
AUGUST HIGHLIGHTS
In August, our achievements included:
COMMUNICATIONS
Facilitated weekly MarComm Calls, providing crucial updates and maintaining alignment.
Ensured regular communication through updates and check-ins, keeping the team focused.
Conducted individual team member calls to address specific needs efficiently.
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Kenny: Video etc
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Rhiannon: Video, Social Media etc
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Lex: Graphic Design
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Blessed: Writer, Outreach, AMAs, NDC TV Content etc
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Wax: AMAs, Memes etc
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Russ: Community Engagement, Events etc
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Sharufa: AMAs, NDC TV Content
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Logic: NDC TV Content
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Sarah: Writer, Strategy
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Maia: Event Planner
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Kimani: Event Planner
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Rahul: SMM
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Vikash: SMM
GRAPHIC DESIGN SUPPORT
Overall support and communication to Lex for all incoming requests from Blaze
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Promotional “Vote for Me” Candidate Graphic Cards
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Promotional “Vote for Me” Candidate GIFs
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Voter Guide
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Candidate Guide
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HOM, COA, TC graphic cards
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Want to Run? - 2408 views
VIDEO CONTENT SUPPORT
NDC Election Explainer Video - 82.9k views
Collaborated with Kenny on the 3 min NDC Election Explainer video, optimizing messaging (i.e created copy for script, reviewed edits and provided notes. etc)
SOCIAL MEDIA SUPPORT
SMM: Overall support and communication to Rahul and Vikash for various incoming requests from Blaze etc. Helping to boost growth and engagement for all NDC social media accounts.
Expansion: Oversaw social media expansion, enhancing audience engagement and content strategy by bringing in additional MarComm workgroup members (i.e. Rhiannon) to launch several SM accounts (Instagram, YouTube and Tik Tok) and create SM content formats.
AMAS: Orchestrated multiple AMAs, boosting engagement through strategic insights. AMAs August schedule included:
Produced and Hosted by Wax
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1st TC Elections Candidate Spotlight 173 Tuned in
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1st CoA Elections Candidate Spotlight 149 Tuned in
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1st HoM Elections Candidate Spotlight 379 Tuned in
Produced and Hosted by Blessed & Sharufa
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Africa Mega Space: Election Education 132 Tuned in
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NEAR Africa United : OG Election Rally 470 Tuned In
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1 Regional AMA (West Africa)
Produced and Hosted by Wal and Ana of Block and Change
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Near en Español: ¡Participa en las elecciones! 108 Tuned in
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1 mega AMA En Espanol (Election Education)
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1 mega AMA En Espanol (Election Education)
Blogs: Mediums posts etc:
GWG Requests:
- Proof of Kudos
Multilingual Efforts: Translated the english version of election guide into several languages i.e. spanish, French.
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Spanish Translation posted to Medium
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French Translation posted to Medium
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Hausa / West Africa Translation posted to Medium
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Arabic Translation posted to Medium
Memes: Several created by Wax:
- Meme #1 - 3,412 views
Partnerships Support
Leveraged our network to bolster partnerships with Lit Collective, NEAR Tasks, and NEAR Week.
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Lit Collective Target: Partners, Backers, Founders, NEAR ecosystem OGs
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NEAR Tasks Initiative: Launch program to help boost IAH sign ups
NEAR Week Marketing Plan:
Events Support
Successfully coordinated the NEAR Toronto Launch and ETH CC events.
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NEAR Toronto Launch
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ETH CC
Bounty Support
Completed pending bounties efficiently, demonstrating our commitment to task resolution. These highlights reflect the significant impact of our leadership and the successful execution of our marketing initiatives during August 2023.
SEPTEMBER HIGHLIGHTS
In September, our achievements included:
Communication
Continued to facilitate weekly MarComm Calls, updates, check-ins, and individual team member calls.
Graphic Design
Provided continued support to Lex for graphic designs i.e.
Whistleblower - 7,251 views
Elections Guide - 23.3k views
Content
NDC Election Explainer Video / Cut Down - 3,424 views
This was a cut down of the 3 min NDC Election Explainer Video
Promotional Nominee Video
Collaborated with Kenny on the NDC Election Nominee Video Template
The candidates seemed a bit reluctant to participate and 5 videos were completed
This prompted us to create the “Meet The Candidates” series
Voting Process Mock Up
NDCTV presents “Meet the Candidates”
20 NDC Candidate interviews broadcasted live on Twitter
Collective Twitter views: 10k+
NDCTV presents “NDC Election Watch Party”
NDC Election discussion broadcasted live on Twitter
Twitter views: 642
NDC Video Blog Program:
I developed a Video Blog program that got 25 NDC members to post video opinion pieces to Twitter about the NDC election.
Social Media
SMM: Continued support and communication for various requests, further expanding our social media presence.
AMAS / English: Continued production of a variety of AMAs to help promote Election Education
Produced and hosted by Wax
2nd HoM Candidate Spotlight 304 Tuned in
3rd HoM Candidate Spotlight 125 Tuned in
2nd CoA Elections Candidate Spotlight 118 Tuned in
3rd CoA Elections Candidate Spotlight 126 Tuned in
2nd TC Elections Candidate Spotlight 117 Tuned in
Candidate Spotlight Space with NEAR Ukraine 85 Tuned in
NDC x RCDAO 90 Tuned in
NDC x Creative DAO 204 Tuned in
NDC x MetaPool 80 Tuned in
1 NDC Election Debate 31 views
Produced and Hosted by Blessed & Sharufa
1 NDC x Regional Communities
1 NDC x Creative DAO
AMAS / Spanish: Produced and Hosted by Wal and Ana of Block and Change
Near Hispano: ¿Cómo votar en estas elecciones? 112 tuned in
Cierran las votaciones: ¡Llamada final! - 63 tuned in
Expandiendo horizontes con Metapool - 95 tuned in
Partnerships
Continued collaboration with Lit Collective, NEAR Tasks, and NEAR Week, capitalizing on our network.
Lit Collective
NEAR Tasks
NEAR Week
Events
APAC Convention: Successfully organized the APAC booth and side event activations during this year’s APAC Convention in Vietnam.
Bounty Support
Completed pending bounties efficiently, demonstrating our commitment to task resolution. These highlights reflect the significant impact of our leadership and the successful execution of our marketing initiatives during September 2023.