Are you anxious to get your issues before Congress? Is it stressful to know that you’re just one of many organizations trying to do the same thing? With an unprecedented number of groups advocating for so many issues, you need to catch the attention of elected officials by recruiting and mobilizing your supporters in effective, innovative ways.

Government relations professionals, meet your new best friend: the AdvocacyApp for Facebook.

The first of its kind, the AdvocacyApp for Facebook allows users to take action on your alerts without leaving Facebook, as well as virally share your action alerts with their friends and via Twitter.  Then you can track activity in detail and fully integrate your Facebook efforts into your overall advocacy program.

Launched earlier this year, the AdvocacyApp has helped clients benefit from Facebook’s growing million-plus …

Follow DDC Advocacy

As we gear up for an exciting day at the races in November, the battle for control of the U.S. Senate is as competitive as it’s been in a long time.  Two of the best political forecasters, Real Clear Politics and Cook Political Report currently rate several Senate races as competitive.  Rasmussen Reports has polled on several races that confirm this current trend.

Twelve Senate races currently have a candidate who leads by less than eight percentage points, according to the most …

Both on and off the green, DDC Advocacy maintains its winning reputation!

Our very own Fantastic Four - Matt Roskovensky, Tara Galvin, Andy Gabron and Josh Martin participated in the 2nd Annual PAC PALS Golf Tournament yesterday under rain-free skies at the Penderbrook Golf Club in Fairfax, VA.

Matt took home the award for Closest to the Pin. Tara was a two-time winner: she received the prize for "Women’s Longest Drive" and "Top Foursome" along with teammates Karry La Violette of Boeing and Dee Grothe and Courtney Watson of Raytheon.

Thanks to Kristine Kilbride and Ellie Shaw for putting together such a fun event! It was great to spend a day on the green with our fellow PAC PALS members in the government relations community.

DDC Advocacy’s very own Ray Bell was featured in today’s Washington Post for the great work he is doing as the founder of the HOPE (Helping Other People Excel) Project, which offers job and computer training for young adults in D.C.-area neighborhoods.  With his organization, Ray is striving to help students improve their lives by preparing them to find better jobs and build a career.  With a lot of dedication and the help of volunteers and donated equipment, Ray has built a program that turns out students with Microsoft software training and CompTIA certifications—essential skills for today’s workforce. 

The HOPE Project is making a real difference in people’s lives, and we admire what Ray is doing.

To read the full article, click here.

Where can aspiring young leaders interested in international political affairs have the opportunity to gain professional experience in Washington DC's most prestigious offices? The Washington Ireland Program for Service and Leadership (WIP).

This six-month personal and professional development program brings exceptional university students from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to Washington, DC for summer internships and leadership training.

WIP Board Member and DDC Advocacy CEO, B.R. McConnon, along with other members of DDC Advocacy were key supporters of the 5th Annual Celtic Cup at Lake Presidential on July 26th to benefit WIP.

The support received will continue to help the lucky DC participants gain first-hand experience of our political process and expose them to a culture of diversity in prominent offices including:

• Congressional offices:  Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator John McCain, then Senator Barack Obama
…

With all the chatter about social media strategy and marketing these days, it’s refreshing to see a truly buzz-worthy campaign in action. 

Old Spice, meet Isaiah Mustafa. The former football player is the new but already well-known cyber-spokesmodel for the popular brand. You may remember him from the Super Bowl commercial where he spoofed the heroes of Harlequin romance novels.

Not only does Mustafa have over 640,000 Facebook fans and 84,000 Twitter followers, but he’s answered questions posted from these individuals by name, and often in a personalized YouTube video message – causing a fan-frenzy that hasn’t let up since the campaign started. His video @replies on Twitter include celebs, media and other fans.

So what’s the takeaway for government relations professionals? Old Spice may be a line of men’s grooming products – but you can …

Ogilvy PR recently hosted a discussion with Facebook Washington DC representatives Adam Connor and Andrew Noyes, on how organizations could leverage the global, 400 million -strong social platform to facilitate citizen engagement and build online brand equity.

Some key takeaways:                   

• Facebook isn’t for kids (anymore) – the fastest-growing demographic within Facebook’s community is 35 years and older, representing 27% of Facebook’s total audience.  More than 50% of their U.S. audience is over 25 years of age.
• Audience growth continues – Facebook continues to add nearly 5 million users per month in the U.S. alone, with more than 108 million in the U.S., and 400 million worldwide.
• Product Innovation - many organizations looking to increase community interaction, registrations, and showcase content on their sites, have integrated Facebook Connect.  More than 100,000+ sites are using these …

DDC Advocacy’s Director of Marketing, Jenn Barton, was recently profiled in National Journal’s People section by reporter Gregg Sangillo:

Techno-File

Sometimes a sibling can help point you in the right direction. When Jennifer L. Barton's sister attended Georgetown University in the 1990s, Barton visited her in Washington. "I loved it, and I came back the next year and I did an internship at C-SPAN," she says. She returned to Washington the following year and eventually became a legislative assistant to then-Rep. Benjamin Gilman, R-N.Y. Fast-forward to 2010: Barton is still in D.C., now as Director of Marketing for DDC Advocacy, an issue-advocacy and public-affairs firm. In the interim, she handled government affairs for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, where her involvement in the appropriations process, she says, involved "a lot of asking for money for a good cause."

Barton spent the past decade at Capitol Advantage, most …

While Financial Regulatory Reform consumes the headlines, many people inside the Beltway still don’t have a solid grasp on the true impact of the pending legislation on our markets. DDC Advocacy’s Tara Galvin joined Women in Government Relations on Monday to present a Hot Topic event: Breaking Down Financial Services Regulatory Reform: Comparing S. 3217 and H.R. 4173.

WGR President LeeAnn Petersen, Judy Schneider and Tara Galvin.

The roundtable discussion, including the upcoming conference and the potential implications of the bill, was led by a panel of financial experts including: moderator Erin Dwyer, Managing Director of CapStone; Michael Borden, Minority Senior Counsel, House Financial Services Committee; Tucker Foote, Vice President of Government Affairs for Mastercard; and Martha Scott Poindexter, Minority Staff Director, Senate Agriculture Committee. (Panelist Jeanne Roslanowick, Majority Staff Director/Chief Counsel for the House Financial Services Committee was unable to attend at …

DDC Advocacy was among the lucky few to recently attend Sweets and Tweets at the Hamiltonian Gallery to support the important and often little-known work women are doing in the tech world today.

For this 5th session of Sweets and Tweets, corporate social media maven Debbie Weil brought together DC members of Fast Company's 2010 list of Most Influential Women in Technology. Guests enjoyed cupcakes courtesy of Baked and Wired while listening to a discussion about the ways women are using social media to add value and be successful in their careers in media, politics, and government.

Host Debbie Weil with Jenn Barton, Kathy Northcutt and Tara Galvin.

The notable group of panelists included: Teresa Carlson, vice president of Microsoft; Ellen Miller, co-founder of the Sunlight Foundation; Allyson Kapin, founder of Women Who Tech; Shireen Mitchell, founder of …