Mandana Dayani and her family immigrated to the United States from Iran as refugees while she was there six years. The move allowed her to “live the American dream,” Dayani says Entrepreneur — and left her with a “deep sense of patriotism” for the country he “saved.” [her] life.” Dayani says her gratitude is one of the reasons she has been involved in “some version of activism” for so long as she will remember.
Photo credit: courtesy of I Am a Voter. Mandana Dayani.
Then, about six years ago, while she was home on parental leave with her second daughter, Dayani watched TV and saw families looking for refuge in the U.S. being separated at the border.
“When you think about what someone must go through to leave their home and come to our country because the Statue of Liberty told them to, and in that moment, after everything they’ve been through, to physically take someone else’s child – it was the worst thing I’ve ever done ever seen in our country,” says Dayani.
Dayani, who has a background as a lawyer and talent agent with a background in branding and marketing, met with members of the Senate and Congress and asked what she could do using her knowledge to make an impact. They told her that if she really desired to make long-term changes, the country needed higher voter turnout.
What if we simply had this identity as something that was integral to us?
“I think I had it Legally Blonde moment, What if it was hard?Dayani says.
After all, marketers and brand creators are continually inspiring people to take motion: convincing them to look at a Marvel movie or buy Justin Bieber’s latest album. Dayani believed that the same principles would apply to voter mobilization. So she quit her job and, with the help of 25 other women and the Creative Artists Agency (CAA) Foundation, founded a nonpartisan organization I am a voter (IAAV) in 2018
The organization’s first meeting focused on a latest client: voting. The IAAV needed to work out the right way to get people to attend in line in November and free themselves from “all the fighting and shame that goes on in these places.” Dayani read about the relationship between voter identity and the likelihood of simply casting a ballot and decided to build on this idea: What if we simply recognized this identity as something integral to us and something we might recognize as aspirational in others?
According to Dayani, achieving this with younger generations means meeting them where they are and tapping into the brands, celebrities and sports teams they already know and trust. IAAV has partnered with stars comparable to Hailey Bieber, Kerry Washington, Steph Curry and brands comparable to the NBA, NFL, Tory Burch, Urban Outfitters, Rhode and a whole lot of others.
“Here’s your PSA when you’re at an AMC movie theater,” Dayani says. “We’re on your Bumble app; we’re on your jumbotron when you’re watching a sports game. If you receive a package from Shopbop, there is a leaflet there. We visited many of these brands and just asked them what they had to offer.”
“We don’t play in that color spectrum. We’re just here for everyone.”
IAAV also aims to create a brand identity that is attractive and not divisive. To this end, the organization’s Instagram feed is completely black and white.
“We’re not red, we’re not blue, we’re not purple,” Dayani explains. “We don’t play around with this color palette. We are simply here for everyone. And we really rely on facts, which I think also resonates with people because we’re not trying to convince them of this or that ideology or tell them how to think.”
Additionally, the organization strives to create fun, dynamic campaigns that advance its mission. For example, research shows that communication between people in existing relationships can have a positive impact on voter turnout, so the IAAV took advantage of this issue by organizing “Friend Registration Day”, promoting the trademark “Friends Don’t Let Friends Skip the Election”, and enlisting the help of Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow from Friends.
“Applying some of the principles of marketing and branding has been really effective.”
“It just became so popular,” Dayani recalled. “It was a really fun cultural moment. And it was one of the days when we registered the most voters. So I think applying some of these marketing and branding principles through these amazing messaging apps has been really effective.”
Today, IAAV has reached over two million people on social media. The organization has also established cooperation with Number of headsa non-partisan organization working with musicians to advertise participation in democracy. “The opportunity to leverage their knowledge and experience across all areas of IAAV’s operations is incredible,” says Dayani.
In late September, IAAV announced its inaugural “Heroes of Democracy” list in partnership with MSNBC Good morning, JózekRockefeller Center and HeadCount. The list includes 25 civic leaders who are working to make sure their communities and marginalized voters are heard at the polls.
“It’s been 30 years since we passed the National Voter Registration Act, and voters in almost half of our country will face new voting restrictions in this election,” Dayani says. “So to be able to show people across the country how they are working to change this, I thought it was a hopeful and beautiful way to start the next month.”