About

Kate Dembowski

Voting Campaign: Build The Future

What is #WHYVOTE?

As Election Day approaches, we all know how important voting can be. Those who are new to voting may look for guidance, influences, and empowerment during their voting processes. Yet, so many people of voting age do not participate in this important process of sharing their voices. #WHYVOTE is an annual design contest in which participants create dynamic, visually-engaging campaigns that appeal to first-time voters. Each entry can be a series of still images for social media, a 10-15 second motion sprite, or a 30 second vlog, each of which emphasize the importance of voting to a unique audience.

Overview:

I had the pleasure of collaborating with Lauren Mehl to create an engaging campaign for first-time voters. Following the subtle visual guides of the #WHYVOTE contest, Lauren and I worked closely over a timeframe of 3 weeks to create a nonpartisan campaign aimed at those in the trades industries.

Audience:

First-time voters working in the trades industry.

Process + Outcomes:

We began our collaboration by conducting in-depth research about our chosen audience. This included the demographics, values, and visuals often associated with trades workers.

We quickly discovered that our audience values hard work, community, and stability.

To further represent this in our campaign, we created a series of visuals centered around construction sites, tools, and materials that our audience engages with on a daily basis.

A few important visuals seen throughout our campaign include images with working hands, chevron construction lines, and building foundations in progress.

Lastly, we integrated important language into our campaign that mirror these job experiences and reinforce a sense of familiarity.

Phrases like, “Caution: Voter Zone,” “Put On Your Political Hard Hats,” and, “Don’t Be A Tool,” add a unique twist to construction site culture.