Ep 155 features Vincent Harris, the CEO of Harris Media and Chief Digital Strategist for Senator Rand Paul. Listen as Nathan and Vincent discuss the Harris Media’s online services and how it relates to political strategy.
3 Key Points:

As media choices become more and more fragmented, it’s become important to observe which online platforms can maximize a politician’s voice. (Reddit, Snapchat, Facebook)
Most online funding for political campaigns come through online email solicitations.
It pays to have more patience in one’s professional and personal life – and also to stress less about the little things.

BioVincent Harris is CEO of Harris Media and Chief Digital Strategist for Senator Rand Paul. Previously he has worked on the digital side of three Presidential races, having run all online operations for Texas Governor Rick Perry and Speaker Newt Gingrich’s 2012 campaigns. In 2014 Vincent was hired by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to oversee the digital operations for his Likud party’s successful campaign.
Vincent spent over three years working with Ted Cruz, whom many have credited his successful use of the web as part of his incredible underdog win. Under Vincent’s watch, the nationally acclaimed firm, Harris Media, has grown into a successful company with over 20 employees proudly headquartered in Austin, Texas.
Vincent is a strong believer in the power of the internet as a tool to influence the public arena, and his firm’s successes have been noted in numerous publications and news outlets. His expertise stretches from practical application into academia where he is working towards a PhD at the University of Texas and is blessed to be guest faculty at Baylor University.
He was named the youngest “Rising Star” in Politics by Campaigns & Elections Magazine and was recently profiled in Bloomberg, where he was dubbed “The Man Who Invented the Republican Internet.”
Time Stamped Show Notes:

01:00 – Nathan’s introduction to today’s show
01:38 – Vincent joins the show
01:48 – Vincent’s been working in politics since the age of 14, volunteering locally and building websites.
02:50 – At Harris Media, Vincent’s team manages digital communication for his clients by building websites, maintaining social media, and creating videos.
03:45 – As media platforms increase every day, reaching an audience is now dependent on new online trends and websites such as Snapchat and Reddit. Vincent watches these trends to most effectively reach audience members for his clients.
05:19 – Vincent’s firm has found that applications like Heyo are useful for getting emails.
06:13 – Roughly ten percent of Rand Paul’s online fundraising came from his online store which Harris Media maintains.
06:32 – In order to increase sales, Vincent’s firm allowed customers of Rand Paul’s online store to vote on which products they wanted on sale.
07:43 – According to Vincent, most political campaigns raise their money through online email solicitations.
08:30 – Rand Paul’s raised a little south of 10 million dollars through online means in the past 12 months for his campaigns.
09:27 – Harris Media makes money through online services for clients who usually pay them a monthly retainer. The company was started in Vincent’s dorm room in college and currently has about 35 employees.
10:37 – Vincent’s clients pay a range from 4K to 15K a month. The firm has about 15 clients. 11:22 – Although Harris Media is a conservative/libertarian agency – their clients are not necessarily politically affiliated.
12:50 – Vincent talks about a full day live stream for Rand Paul.
15:06 – Vincent believes that Trump is too brash with his political statements.
16:58 – Famous Five

Resources Mentioned:

Growth Geeks – The way Nathan hires growth hackers on a per project basis for things like info graphics, blog posts, and other growth projects
Too Conservative – Blog Vincent started in High School
Harris Media – Vincent’s Website mobile app
Wikipedia – More information on Vincent