A Reputation Rebuilt Before Campaign Season
How a public official fixed what voters found when searching their name, got their own story heard, and built direct lines to voters ahead of a close election.
+127%
More positive coverage in search results
5x
Growth in likes, comments, and shares on social media
92%
Of page 1 search results now tell their story
+210%
Reach on their own site, email, and social accounts
Role
Elected Official
Seeking re-election
Context
Competitive Race
High-stakes election cycle
Duration
12 Weeks
Pre-campaign season
The Challenge
A Scattered Online Presence
Several outdated websites saying different things, and no single official place stating where they stood on the issues.
Bad News at the Top of Google
When people searched their name, page 1 was filled with opposition material and critical coverage.
Little Contact with Voters Online
Barely any social media presence and almost no direct line to the people they represent.
No Way to Respond Fast
When a damaging story started spreading, there was no system for answering it quickly.
"They helped us take back control of our narrative. When voters searched for me, they finally saw the real story, not the opposition's spin."
— Anonymous, Elected Official
What We Did
Three things: fix what shows up when people search their name, tell their story in their own words, and open direct lines to voters.
One Official Home Online
- Replaced the scattered sites with one official site stating their positions
- Corrected the information box Google shows about them and their biography details
- Fixed the technical problems holding their sites back on Google
- Got their social media accounts verified and properly set up
Telling Their Own Story
- Pages on each issue, written around what local voters actually search for
- A plan for getting press releases picked up and republished
- Endorsements and statements from supporters
- Content that answers the criticism directly, with their side of the story
Talking with Voters
- A plan for each social media platform
- Building an email list and writing regularly to constituents
- Promoting town halls and local events
- Watching for new stories and a set process for responding fast
What We Did, and When
Seeing What Voters See
Week 1
- •Searched their name and listed every negative story sitting on page 1 of Google
- •Watched social media to see what people were saying and what topics were building
- •Talked with their team to understand which policies mattered most to them
Building the Story
Weeks 2-4
- •Agreed the handful of core messages everything would be built around
- •Built a single official site laying out their positions on each issue
- •Fixed the information box Google shows about them, and their biography details across the web
Earning Back Trust
Weeks 5-8
- •Published pages on the issues voters in their area actually care about
- •Timed press releases and website content to back each other up
- •Set up a place for endorsements and supporter statements
Getting Ready for the Race
Weeks 9-12
- •Launched campaigns to talk directly with voters
- •Set up a system for responding fast when stories break
- •Grew their presence across social media platforms
The Results
First 60 Days
8
Page 1 spots on Google for the searches that mattered, within 60 days
+85%
More positive results when people searched their name
3.2K
New email subscribers
+140%
More likes, comments, and shares on average
12-Week Impact
+127%
More positive coverage in search results
5x
Growth in social media likes, comments, and shares
92%
Of page 1 search results now tell their story
18K+
Voters on the email list
What Made This Work
We Pushed the Bad News Down
We published well-built official pages that ranked for searches of their name and the local issues, pushing the negative results down the page.
One Story, Everywhere
Press releases, social media, and the website all said the same thing at the same time, so the story stayed consistent wherever voters found it.
A Direct Line to Voters
We built channels that reach voters directly, so the message no longer depended on whether the press chose to carry it.
Answering Before Stories Spread
We set up monitoring and a fast response process, so new stories were answered before they took hold.
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