OTTAWA — An Ottawa digital expert has been quietly giving Canada’s MPs what he sees as much-needed makeovers.
Be connected, be current, and show your personality — these are just some of the tips digital public affairs strategist Mark Blevis writes in his analytical, no-holds-barred critiques of MP websites, Twitter accounts, blogs and Facebook fan pages, where everyone gets graded and no one does all that well.
In fact, of the 13 MPs he’s profiled, no one has earned an overall “A.”
“Gone are the days when the goal is simply to be online,” Blevis said.
“As important as it is for MPs to be in various places such as Twitter and YouTube, it’s far more important that they use the places they’ve selected, and use them well.”
Blevis has been posting his “digital makeover” series online for more than a year. Since then, he’s analyzed the online presence of MPs of all different stripes – everyone from NDP leader Tom Mulcair (digital grade: C), Labour Minister Lisa Raitt (digital grade: D minus) to Liberal leadership contender Justin Trudeau (digital grade: B plus).
Invariably, after Blevis posts his analysis online, either the MP or his or her staff will contact him, he said. Sometimes they’re not so happy, he said, but more often they’re calling to say thanks.
Conservative MP Dan Albas met with Blevis in person after finding his own digital makeover online.
Blevis had given Albas a B minus overall. He got points for having a personable blog and for being one of the most active MPs on Twitter, but lost marks for never making it clear that he’s a Tory other than “the tell-tale blue,” and for his stagnant Flickr account.
“It’s not uncommon to hear a variety of different viewpoints from citizens and groups on what you should do, or what you should not do, as a member of parliament. However, Mark’s points were very unique,” Albas said.
The British Columbia MP said he is “absolutely” taking Blevis’s advice.
The strategist’s analyses focus on the platforms an MP is using and how they’re all connected, the content an MP transmits, and how they engage people online.
He also includes a bonus category. Here, he gives MPs a mark based on particular circumstances that play into their online presence. For instance, 22-year-old NDP MP Laurin Liu got bonus points on her otherwise “disappointing” use of digital media because she might still be learning the political ropes.
He also rewards the unique and interesting. That’s where Trudeau got kudos for posting a photo of him being arrested by stormtroopers at a Montreal comic book convention.
The most common mistake MPs make is simply using their various digital channels to pump out the same official messages and press releases over and over, Blevis said.
“They need to be themselves online,” Blevis said. “There’s a lot that MPs can do to remind people that they, too, are people.”
In his analysis of Liberal MP Carolyn Bennett’s online presence, Blevis lauded Bennett’s online voice and personality, and her weekly chats on her Facebook fan page, but noted that she was mostly silent on YouTube.
That’s a note Bennett took to her next staff meeting, she said.
“I thought it was fantastic. People pay a great deal of money to have that kind of analysis,” Bennett said.
The reality is that people go almost exclusively online to find the political information they’re looking for, so an MP’s online presence can be an incredibly effective tool to engage with their voters and interest groups, Blevis said.
“It’s a matter of taking those skills they might use the next time they go to a parade or to a pancake breakfast – the kind of skills that make people feel good about being around an MP – and translate them into the digital space,” Blevis said.
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Factbox: A snapshot of Blevis’s MP digital report cards
Labour Minister Lisa Raitt stands during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, November 21, 2012.
Who: Labour Minister Lisa Raitt
Digital grade: D-minus
Comment: “Besides going through a period during which her Twitter account was made private then re-opened to the public, and now being largely absent from that channel, Ms. Raitt has taken to deleting critical commentary from her Facebook Wall.”
Justin Trudeau
Who: Liberal MP Justin Trudeau
Digital grade: B-plus
Comment: “Coupled with his active and energetic Twitter and Facebook updates including images of him being arrested by Star Wars Stormtroopers and photos of an outing at Centreville, Trudeau allows the public to post to his Facebook Page. Both are reasonably rare among MPs.”
New Democratic Party MP Laurin Liu.
Who: NDP MP Laurin Liu
Digital grade: C-plus
Comment: “I must admit I was disappointed when preparing this digital makeover. I had high hopes that a young MP might be injecting youthful energy into the mix.”
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