People planning a communications strategy are usually advised to define a clear and simple message, reducible to a single slogan. This works for many organisations, from a company selling a product to a group lobbying for policy change.

Electoral managers, by contrast, have a large number of different messages that they need to communicate to different audiences at different stages in the campaign.

Here is a genuine list of messages formulated by an African electoral commission in the course of its communications planning:

• Don’t sell your vote
• Where you register is where you vote
• Who is entitled to vote
• Card is not for sale/no bribery
• Vote is secret
• Do not register more than once
• Respect other’s views
• Encourage women to vote
• When to vote
• Where to vote
• How to vote
• Have you registered?
• Nomination deadlines
• Campaign lull
• Exercise your right to vote
• What were the results?

It is apparent that these messages, while all important, are aimed at different audiences and will assume different importance at various stages in the electoral process. For example, “Do not register more than once” is aimed at those entitled to vote and is specific to the registration period. “Where to vote” is aimed at the same audience, but is specific to the period immediately before polling day. “Nomination deadlines” is aimed primarily at potential candidates and is specific to the period before nominations close. “What were the results?” is aimed at everyone, but is again specific to the period after votes have been counted.

For practical purposes, it is usually useful to break down target audiences further. Hence, although “Have you registered?” may be a message of general relevance, the EMB may in practice want to target it at first-time voters, voters with disabilities or others who may not know how to register or be able to do so.

It may be useful to develop a simple matrix to define this relationship between messages, audience, and timing.

(For a matrix example, click here)