DC INSIDERS

One of Network Relations’ resources is an active database of the most influential people in the Washington, DC media market.  There are well over 4 million people in the DC market, but the universe of those that play an active role in public policy is much, much smaller.  So we conducted tens of thousands of interviews, matched millions of records with consumer and political data, and used a method known as micro-targeting to identify the most influential.  To boil down the larger market to just the top one-third, we used seventeen filters (such has how often they check email, how often they contribute to public policy associations, do friends and co-workers rely on them for policy advice, and how much and what types of information they consume). 

The DC Insiders are more educated (half have graduate degrees, more than 80% have college degrees), more affluent (over half make $100k or more) and more politically involved (93% vote in most or all elections) than the overall market.  Furthermore, two-thirds have a job that requires them to be involved with public policy.  And the DC Insiders is just the starting point. 

Using tighter filters on our influential scoring, we can dive deeper to the 243,006 that we call “Influentials”. And setting the bar even higher gets us to the 125,298 that we call “Elites”.  These are the best targets for any sort of public policy campaign, since they are the most likely to have an impact on policy in the halls of our capital. 

Issues and Messages
Beyond identifying the most influential members of the DC Establishment, Network Relations has the ability to uncover those with particular issue preferences.  For instance, among the elites, we have identified 36,560 that have a particular interest in technology policy and 43,364 individuals with serious environmental interests. 

Finding the relevant groups that match up to your issue is just the opening.  We have the ability to model further to find the sub-groups were your message has appeal.  These niche pockets of people are the perfect targets for any public policy campaign. 

Information and Media Habits
So how do you reach them?  You can use this data to find the perfect targets and what medium to reach them.  The mail, phones, and internet are simple routes, but we can also identify what TV they watch, what radio they listen to and what websites, magazines and newspapers they read.  For instance, that elite crowd that follows tech policy (mentioned above) is more likely to watch This Week on Sunday mornings than the other shows; they spend more time reading Politico than they do the New Republic or The Weekly Standard; and online, you’ll find them more often on Slate.com than Salon.com. 

Conclusion
With this data, you can pinpoint your target niche audience – and the most influential among them – and you can create media plans and direct contact plans – woven together seamlessly to echo your message and increase efficiency.  In a time when the dollar needs to be stretched, this is the best tool for any public policy campaign to find your target, and deliver them the right message, to the right person using the right medium.