We recently raised $500,000 for our second series of Startup Caucus , which as you know from listening is an incubator and investment fund for Republican campaign technology companies. In addition to our usual Wednesday episodes, I’m recording this short audio diary for you to share some of the lessons I’ve learned as part of this fundraising journey. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign...
Mar 18, 2022•5 min
Our guest today is Thomas Peters Founder & CEO of RumbleUp , one of the leading peer to peer text messaging platforms on the Right. He’s a serial entrepreneur having founded uCampaign and Switchboard as well. In today’s conversation we dig into the growth of P2P and how Thomas was a part of that, we learn his tips for scaling political businesses, and what the outlook is for regulation of campaign texting. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Cauc...
Mar 11, 2022•28 min•Season 1Ep. 29
We’re joined today by Chris Faulkner who is a Senior National Strategist at Majority Strategies , one of the biggest consulting firms in the political space. Chris spent almost a decade as a Marine before getting into politics and he has worked on a LOT of campaigns. In this episode you’re going to get an inside look at the nuts and bolts of direct mail in politics. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Repu...
Mar 09, 2022•35 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Our guest today is Patrick Ruffini , co-founder of Echelon Insights , a firm specializing in next generation research, analytics, and digital intelligence. Patrick was my boss at Engage, back in 2009-2013, and he has always been at the forefront of innovation in politics and public affairs. In our show today, we discuss the challenges of being at the cutting edge, how to spot lasting trends from momentary fads, and more. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of S...
Mar 02, 2022•24 min•Season 1Ep. 27
Max Cowan is the co-founder of Ryvall and a Startup Caucus Entrepreneur in Residence. Max’s professional background is in graphic design. Ryvall helps political candidates build their own professional website in just minutes. FreeCampaignGuide.com The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.com to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube: Visit the Campaign Trend Website...
Feb 23, 2022•21 min•Season 1Ep. 25
Our guest today is Ryan Gravatt , founder and CEO of Raconteur Media Company. He’s been involved in numerous campaigns like Rick Perry for President and Romney for President. Recently he launched Digital Hero Academy an online learning platform for political candidates and operatives to build new digital campaigning skills. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCa...
Feb 16, 2022•20 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Our guest today is Brett O’Donnell . He is the go-to person on the Republican side of the aisle for all things debate preparation and he’s also a sought after advisor for strategic communications of all stripes. Brett advised President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain in their presidential debates and just about every senator you could name. In our conversation we dig into the hidden world of campaign debates and what their future looks like. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric W...
Feb 09, 2022•27 min•Season 1Ep. 24
We're joined by Adam Kincaid for this episode. He’s the Executive Director of the National Republican Redistricting Trust , which is responsible for coordinating the GOP’s national redistricting strategy. Adam has held a number of senior roles at the RNC, the NRCC, and RGA. In today’s episode we dig into the actual nuts and bolts of redistricting and how it works. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republ...
Feb 02, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 23
We’re joined today by Joe Pounder , the founder and CEO of Bullpen Strategy Group , which is an insights-focused public affairs firm. Before he started Bullpen, Joe started America Rising, the Right’s leading opposition research firm and worked on a number of campaigns. In this conversation we dig into the interplay between political campaigns and public affairs and how entrepreneurs can address these two separate yet similar market segments. Political Risk: How Businesses and Organizations Can ...
Jan 26, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 22
Scott Tranter joins us today for the show. He’s the CEO & Founder of Optimus Analytics , a data science and technology company using AI and machine learning to transform data insights into actionable deliverables. Scott began his career in political campaigns and was the Director of Data Science for Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign. Learn more about the Dynata acquisition here. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fun...
Jan 19, 2022•25 min
Our guest today is Allen Fuller , the founder of Datrmin , a CRM purpose-built for political campaigns and organizations. Allen is one of Startup Caucus' Entrepreneurs in Residence. He has extensive experience building digital programs in the campaign and advocacy space. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson, is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.com to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube: Visit the...
Jan 12, 2022•30 min
This audio is from a recent Startup Caucus Showcase. As we prepare for a competitive mid-term election year, it's harder than ever to find, hire, and keep experienced staff for campaigns up and down the ballot. We're joined in conversation with two of our Startup Caucus Entrepreneurs in Residence who are building companies to help Republicans recruit and retain top campaign talent. You'll hear their insights studying the larger trends in hiring and employment for Gen Z and Millennials, what thei...
Jan 05, 2022•36 min
This is a special Business of Politics Show. We're sharing an excerpt of the POLITICO Playbook Deep Dive podcast interview with Eric Wilson. Thanks to the POLITICO team for allowing us to share this excerpt with you. You can listen to the full episode here. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.com to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube: Visit the Campaign Tre...
Dec 29, 2021•17 min
We're talking today with Lisa Schneegans , who founded Buzz360 , a political software company that gives campaigns and political organizations the power to better engage their supporters. We discuss Lisa's journey into politics as a second career, the science of relational organizing, and insights into software sales. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson, is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.co...
Dec 22, 2021•16 min
In this episode we speak with David Winston , one of the most trusted names in political polling. He's the president of The Winston Group, a Washington, D.C., a strategic planning and survey research firm. David has served as a strategic advisor to Senate and House Republican leadership for the past 10 years. Read David's latest insights at RollCall.com. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campa...
Dec 15, 2021•28 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Dante Vitagliano is the founder of Trailmapper , whose product Prospector helps campaigns raise more money from major donors with less effort. Before that Dante worked on campaigns throughout New Hampshire. Trailmapper is a Startup Caucus portfolio company. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.com to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube: Visit the Campaign Tre...
Dec 08, 2021•19 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Edith Jorge-Tuñón is the Deputy Executive Director of the Republican State Leadership Committee . The RSLC helps state legislative candidates across the country win their elections. They've just come off of a very successful 2021 election season in Virginia and New Jersey. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.com to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube: Visit ...
Dec 01, 2021•28 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Today we're joined by Barrett Davie , co-founder of Surus , a campaign tech, data, and managed services company based in Illinois. Barrett was also a Republican nominee for Illinois State Senate in 2018. Barrett is the first candidate we've had on the podcast so you'll see things from both sides of the table in this episode. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson , is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupC...
Nov 24, 2021•21 min•Season 1Ep. 13
On this episode we speak with Will Ritter who is the Co-Founder and CEO of POOLHOUSE, which creates bold campaigns that win elections, empower brands, and move people to action. We discuss the genesis of POOHOUSE and how their approach to ad-making made the difference on election day for Glenn Youngkin in Virginia. The Business of Politics Show, hosted by Eric Wilson, is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign technology. Visit StartupCaucus.com t...
Nov 17, 2021•21 min•Season 1Ep. 12
On this episode we speak with Brent Buchanan who is the CEO & Founder of Cygnal , which provide spolling, market research, and predictive analytics services to campaigns, corporations, and trade association. He's also an investor in campaign tech startups. We discuss the innovations Brent is leading in polling and insights he has as an investor. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric Wilson, is a production of Startup Caucus, an investment fund and incubator for Republican campaign t...
Nov 10, 2021•21 min
On this episode, we're joined by Shane Greer, the co-owner of Campaigns & Elections . The C&E website should be bookmarked for every listener of this podcast. It's a must-read for the political industry. Shane and his team also host the best conferences in the industry, bringing together professionals, operatives, and vendors several times a year. Shane and I discuss the professionalization of politics and how entrepreneurs can reach their target customers. The Business of Politics Show ...
Nov 03, 2021•30 min
Our guest today is Kevin McLaughlin who was most recently the Executive Director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for the 2020 election cycle. He was deputy executive director for the 2016 cycle and a senior advisor in the 2014 cycle when the GOP took the majority. In this episode, we get in depth about the role and function of the NRSC and party committees in general. Visit CSLF.us to learn more about Kevin's latest project. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric W...
Oct 27, 2021•19 min
In this conversation, we speak with Eliot Nelson , a political journalist — formerly with HuffPost who has launched a new project on Kickstarter called Political Arena . It's a comprehensive video game about politics. We talk about the challenges of turning political campaigns into a video game, his decision to pursue crowdfunding, and what he hopes players take away from Political Arena. You can back the project on Kickstarter here. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric Wilson, is a pr...
Oct 20, 2021•21 min
Our guest today is Michael Cohen, the author of the book " Modern Political Campaigns: How professionalism, technology, and speed have revolutionized elections. " Michael has one foot in academia and another in business. He's a PhD political scientist who lectures at Johns Hopkins University and through Cohen Research Group he provides research services like polling to a number of corporate and public affairs clients. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric Wilson, is a production of Star...
Oct 13, 2021•23 min
Our guest today is Will Long , who is the co-founder and CEO of Numinar , the world's first artificially intelligent political campaign data platform that shows users how to win. Will and his friends started Numinar in 2018 while still at Harvard and now it's used by campaigns across the country. Numinar was the first investment we ever made with Startup Caucus and I've had the privilege of working with Will and his team for a few years now. In our conversation, we talk about Will's journey as a...
Oct 06, 2021•22 min
We're joined by Peter Loge, the Director of the Project on Ethics in Political Communication at George Washington University. Before moving to academia, Peter spent more than 25 years working as a Capitol Hill and White House staffer, lobbyist, and consultant. Now, he encourages students, academics, and practitioners to consider what, if any, ethical obligation political communication professionals have and to whom or what they have it. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric Wilson, is a...
Sep 29, 2021•27 min
On this episode, we're speaking with Glenn Parham, the co-founder of Pundit Analytics , a digital content monitoring tool for politics and advocacy. Glenn is originally from California and he studied at UC Berkley. Before starting Pundit, Glenn was a software engineer at Microsoft and a Data Intelligence Engineer at Crowdpulse. Pundit Analytics aggregates and analyzes the digital output – emails, websites, social media, and ads – from elected officials, candidates, and political organizations to...
Sep 22, 2021•19 min
Micaela is the executive director of the National Association of Business Political Action Committees more commonly known as "NABPAC." It's a non-profit trade association for PACs with a membership of more than 700 government affairs professionals with over 300 PAC. In this episode, we talk about the role employee-funded and business trade association PACs play in the political process and how that's changed significantly in recent cycles. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric Wilson, i...
Sep 15, 2021•21 min
On this episode, we're speaking with Nicole Schlinger, President and Founder of Campaign Headquarters which is a call center for Republican campaigns and conservative organizations. More than anyone I know in politics, Nicole believes in building a scalable business and she's an avid reader about business, leadership, and management. Visit https://www.campaign-headquarters.com/ to learn more about Nicole and Campaign HQ. The Business of Politics Show , hosted by Eric Wilson, is a production of S...
Sep 08, 2021•22 min
On this episode, we're joined by Gerrit Lansing who is the President of WinRed, the Republican Party's official, networked grassroots donation platform. Before making the leap to entrepreneur, he built transformative digital programs at the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican National Committee. WinRed represents one of the GOP's most significant investments in technology and helps thousands of Republican candidates across the country up and down the ballot raise billi...
Sep 01, 2021•24 min
