We Will Vote: Speaking To A New Generation

Online, September 28, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Creative agency Apartment One has teamed up with Rock the Vote to develop the brand and creative for the "We Will" campaign, one of the largest non-partisan youth voter campaigns in history. With Rock the Vote's goal of registering 1.5 million voters and engaging millions to turn out this November - Apartment One created a compelling and engaging campaign that empowers youth to make their voice heard in the coming election.

As voting rights are under attack in states across the country, the We Will campaign is aggressively optimistic, highlighting the war on voting, while reminding young people of their collective power. The campaign combines messages such as "they want us to keep silent, we will be heard," and "they want us to back down, we will be brave" with raw, youthful photography and hand-drawn graphical elements, to illustrate the voice of the people and create a visual dialogue between "they" and "we".

"Rock the Vote has an incredible 20 year history of fighting for and motivating youth to participate in our democracy," said Liza Lowinger, Partner and CEO of Apartment One. "We're thrilled to be a part of revitalizing this effort with a campaign that is intentionally raw, real, and unabashed -- joining young people in a forum that they own -- a conversation that is dynamic, unapologetic, and very much alive."

The visuals of the campaign were kept minimal in color and graphics to hero the They/We messaging. When Apartment One explored adding more color or graphics to the campaign, it began to feel too branded and contrived. "Today's youth are far more savvy and sensitive to being marketed to by big campaigns. With this understanding, we set out to create a brand that truly felt authentic, honest, and "from the people", said Spencer Bagley, Partner and Creative Director of Apartment One.

Apartment One worked in close partnership with Simon Isaacs and the team at TaskForce, a pro-social marketing and cultural organizing agency. In developing the campaign creative, Apartment One took inspiration from recent trends in both youth activism and youth branding and built the visual identity, brand, and creative assets that reflected the vision behind We Will, stayed true to Rock the Vote's mission, and could be shared virally. The campaign messages and creative will also be re-imagined and reinterpreted by a wide variety of street artists and cultural influencers.

An engaging campaign is particularly important to counter the voter suppression efforts taking place this election year. Across the country, lawmakers have been trying to block the vote of young people and minorities with new voter ID and residency laws as well as roll back the very thing that makes it easier for people to participate in the election, such as same day registration and early voting. It is the most aggressive effort to restrict the vote since the Jim Crow laws and the Poll Taxes.

"Exciting and inspiring young people in today's political environment is no easy task. Apartment One nailed it," said Chrissy Faessen, Vice President, Marketing & Communications for Rock the Vote. "They've crafted an incredibly powerful campaign and through their creativity, vision and
commitment are enabling us to continue motivating a new generation of citizens. From their overall brand development to their creative applications of the core concept, they have been an invaluable partner in bringing this year's election campaign to life."

In addition to the brand and campaign development, Apartment One developed the creative for one of the largest ever digital outdoor campaigns with over 1 billion impressions targeting young people in key states such as Florida, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York and California. They created a series of campaign assets including an iPad photo app where young people will have the opportunity to make the campaign their own by choosing their own "We Will" statement posting it alongside a picture of themselves, "We Will Vote" pledge cards, as well as t-shirts, pins and stickers being distributed as part of Rock the Vote's 2012 Road Trip bus tour visiting college campuses on the East and West Coast.

With a compelling brand in place, Rock the Vote and TaskForce brought together a dynamic set of best-in-class youth marketing agencies to get involved in the campaign including The Pvblic Foundation and The Judge Group (outdoor), BMF Media (events), Team Epiphany (social media), Cobra Snake (photography), and many others.

Apartment One's We Will brand development and creative work builds upon the agency's mission to work with people who are giving back. They have brought this intention to life in their work for other non-profit organizations such as the international global nutrition campaign, Future Fortified and Jon Bon Jovi's Soul Kitchen as well responsible and reputable brands and individuals that give back in others ways including Artspace, Brooks Brothers, The Greenwich Hotel, Match.com, and Moomah.

About Apartment One
Apartment One is an award-winning creative agency based in Brooklyn, NY that works intimately with today's leading companies, organizations and individuals to give voice to the truth, presence and power of their brands. Founded in 2005 by Liza Lowinger and Spencer Bagley, Apartment One offers a customized approach to every client and project, digging deep to discover, identify and reveal the core truths that make each brand authentic, distinct and ownable. Their innovative and creative work has generated numerous industry accolades and awards including the prestigious AIGA 365:31 Annual Design Award, HOW International Design Awards, Print Creativity & Commerce Awards, Print Regional Annual Design Awards and inclusion in numerous books and international publications.

About Rock the Vote
Rock the Vote's mission is to engage and build political power for young people in our country. Using music, popular culture, new technologies and grassroots organizing for more than 20 years, Rock the Vote has registered more than 5 million young people. As the tidal wave of Millennial generation voters continues to establish its power at the polls, Rock the Vote will register millions more young people and make their voices heard.