There are countless brands, individuals, and organizations that have rolled out campaigns aimed at encouraging civic involvement to their audiences. But the ones that have excelled in these efforts are those who have done so while staying authentic to their core values, even if talking about voting isn’t ordinarily in their communicative wheelhouse. Here are some of our favorites:
As a cause-focused marketing agency, Consciously Studio is no stranger to philanthropic or political work. But even by their standards, they’ve taken things to an entirely new level this election season. Starting in August, and continuing through the election, Consciously has eschewed working on any other campaigns in favor of focusing its energy on #bringontheballot—a massive effort to mobilize Gen-Z voters from registration, to following through come election day.
Outdoor apparel giant Patagonia has never shied away from activism, and this year isn’t any different. Patagonia isn’t just encouraging people to vote—it’s encouraging people to vote with climate change top of mind. From a special landing page, Patagonia offers voter guides for several key Senate races (with an eye toward candidates’ proposed policies on land use, clean energy, and more). The site also helps interested would-be voters make a plan to get registered, and make their voices heard.
LeBron James—now four-time NBA Champion, and noted philanthropist—has had a busy fall so far. From the NBA Bubble in Florida, he has been hard at work overseeing “More Than a Vote,” an athlete collective pushing for greater participation in the upcoming election. And on top of the organization's work in driving voter registration, it’s also succeeded in attracting over 10,000 individuals to volunteer as poll workers in predominantly Black electoral districts. It’s a challenging, at times high-stress position, but also an essential one.
Baltimore, Maryland-based fitness powerhouse Under Armour has launched a unique GOTV initiative, aimed at the large community of runners who love to train in the brand’s shoes, and log their miles on UA’s proprietary running log, MapMyRun. #RunToVote encourages participants to log 11.3 miles (or more) between the start of the campaign and Election Day, then post about the run across social media as a means of encouraging mass voter registration and participation.
And Live Nation—one of the country’s premiere event promotion and venue management companies—has stepped up in its own unique way. With large concerts largely off the table for 2020, Live Nation has converted many of its music venues into temporary polling places, to help alleviate the strain on existing voting infrastructure and provide more options. They’ve also partnered with Global Citizen on a platform called “HeadCount” that guides prospective voters to check the status of their registration, register online, and push their friends to do the same.
Have a favorite brand that’s leading a push to drive voter participation? Let us know!