They seem to be some sort of security blanket to politicians. They all say they mean very little, but don't feel right unless every square inch of their voting district is covered with them. To be sure they reach everyone, some even go outside.Northampton County Exec John Stoffa would go out after midnight with a little drill, planting signs like corn. He was one of those guys who went outside his district, planting signs at 3 AM in Allentown as the gangbangers would whizz by. No wonder he thinks the Queen City is unsafe. I planted a few for him around Nazareth, and he'd check after midnight to make sure they were in right. He nearly caught a goon one night, driving over his drilled in signs with a pick-up, but Angle got away.
After all that work, Stoffa would claim those damn signs don't mean that much anyway. Huh?
Don Albanese, who is squaring off against Joe Emrick in the 137th legislative district, is anti-sign. He told me they mean nothing and apparently means it. There are no Albanese signs.
One week from today, we'll see how that works out for him.
10 comments:
just as effective as mis-guided bloggers-no one really pays attention
Only to the printers who make $$ off the practice.
On somebody's front lawn or in their business window, they mean something. Planted along the road, not so much.
I think they are more of an outlet for the candidate. Remember, these folks are nervous as all get up, so they need something to distract them for a couple of hours until the coffee cycles out of their system before they fall asleep, only to be started back to alertness by another streak of anxiety.
Not true at all..They are a waste of time when the candidates are familiar to everyone but in the case of a Joe Sestak or someone else that needs name recognition they are helpful..They are obviously more helpful when they are on private laws than they are littering the highway..If someone is a respected voice in a neighborhood I am sure a sign on their lawn is helpful.
I disagree with all. It has been proven by studies that having the name repeated time and again, ie., lawn signs, do have an effect on peoples' memories as recall.
Do not underestimate the value of lawn signs.
Bob Romancheck
They do influence IF they are on private lawns, and are not inplace so long that they become part of the landscape or really messy, then they are a negative.
They must be highly visible and easy to read.
Don't care whether they put them up or not. All I care is if you do choose to put them up in public areas, take them down May 19.
anon 10:24
Agree
I have to agree with Bob:
There is a reason repeat advertising is important (two McDonald ads in a row, for example).
While perhaps a well known candidate may need fewer signs, creating original name recognition is important.
For me, I think I needed to be out there with signs, even if people said who is Donovan?
Nevertheless, running a campaign is a marketing exercise and requires strategy that incorporates multiple thrusts.
Also, it is important to know where to place an ad -- in someone's yard is important, yes. But I see some sign placement that makes no sense whatsoever.
Perhaps the one expense I do question is renting a billboard. It uses a lot of money and the number of impressions are often wasted on the wrong voter. Signs accomplish about the same result and can be more targeted into the right neighborhoods.
Finally! There is nothing that beats walking and knocking. There are critical precincts that should be hit and other precincts ignored. Knowing which to hit during a primary is different than the general election.
I guess, in the end, a question is does the candidate work? Does he or she think about a holistic strategy? Does he or she not take things for granted.
Best regards,
Michael Donovan
Romancheck,
Would you mind sharing any of those "studies" on the effectiveness of lawn signs with us pitiful laymen? Otherwise, it seems you're just trying to justify your unfounded personal opinion with imaginary data.
(Also, it's "e.g." not "i.e." Shouldn't a Ph.D. know such things?)
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