From Risk to Winning Strategy: How Testing Helped A Better Wisconsin Together Political Fund Win Big
Why the Smartest Campaigns Don’t Guess—They Test
When the stakes are high, bold decisions demand confidence. A Better Wisconsin Together is Wisconsin’s state-based progressive research and communications hub. Their affiliate organization, A Better Wisconsin Together Political Fund, ABWTPF, used Grow Progress’ rapid message testing, which provided the data and agility needed to make big calls they knew would work throughout the Wisconsin Supreme Court election—and win big.
We spoke with Chris Walloch, Executive Director of ABWTPF, and Josh Henderson, Senior Director of Paid Media at ABWTPF, about their efforts to ensure Susan Crawford beat Brad Schimel, so that Wisconsin’s Supreme Court maintained a liberal 4-3 majority.
Picking the Right Message During Changing Times
Crucially, testing was woven into the campaign’s core strategy from the start. ABWTPF used testing as an ongoing engine for targeted learning about what messages worked with different segments, message optimization, and unlocking additional investment from donors.
“Agility meant we could see results rapidly and put them into practice in a couple of days,” said Henderson. “We tested throughout the campaign, not just before launch, but during flight and after to keep improving.”
This ability to test early and often empowered ABWTPF’s campaign to keep pace with voters’ changing minds throughout the campaign, including their pivotal decision in the final weeks before the election, as voters reacted to the ongoing news cycle.
Initially, testing showed that attacks on Elon Musk and his outside spending in the race weren’t moving people toward Judge Crawford. However, as Musk became a more plausible villain in the eyes of voters due to the ongoing disruptions of his DOGE work, the ABWTPF team saw an opportunity to try again with key audiences: moderates, independents, and Black voters.
With Grow Progress, ABWTPF was able to target the middle with their revamped ads. The results showed that the Musk-focused messaging significantly outperformed other options.
“Testing validated that not only was it safe to talk to independents about Musk, it was actually good. It worked,” said Walloch.
So instead of sticking to their public safety-focused messaging, they made the data-backed decision to pivot to an aggressive ad that targeted Elon Musk as he poured millions of dollars into the competitor. And it worked; voters responded to it.
“We tried a few different messages around Elon before we found the one that clicked,” said Josh Henderson. “It took a few rounds, and that was only possible because we started testing early.”
This evolution highlights the importance of adapting to a shifting narrative. Grow Progress gave ABWTPF the speed, affordability, and adaptability to keep up and to generate evidence instead of relying on instinct.
“The biggest decision we made after testing was pulling the trigger in the Milwaukee Media Market to go with an ad featuring Musk. Hindsight says it wasn’t a risk, but at the time, it felt like one,” said Henderson.
More Effective Ads, Stronger Donor Confidence
By backing their refreshed strategy with hard data, ABWTPF’s campaign was able to justify additional spending and make confident asks to donors. The ability to iterate and prove impact repeatedly created a feedback loop that unlocked more resources and more wins.
“Without that testing, we wouldn’t have had the ammo to ask donors for more money or to double down early,” Walloch said. “Our testing proved this was an effective strategy and one in need of more resources.”
It worked. Donors responded not just to the results, but to the strategic rigor behind them.
“Donors now expect to hear about testing. Six years ago, they didn’t. We’ve done the work to educate them, and now testing and research is foundational to our programmatic budget,” continued Walloch.
Why Grow Progress?
From intuitive tools to hands-on support, Grow Progress was a trusted partner in every phase of decision-making. The campaign team relied on testing not as a single tactic, but as a core part of how they built, funded, and executed their program.
“You guys make it easy to run a test, and they’re very informative and useful. The tools are intuitive and easy to work with. We had every opportunity to pick up the phone and get answers — whether it was setting up a test, interpreting results, or just finding them,” shared Henderson.
Takeaway
Testing isn’t an add-on that’s nice to have. It’s a strategic imperative. With Grow Progress, campaigns can act quickly, justify their strategy with real data, and turn risky decisions into winning ones.
Ready to find your winning strategy? Learn more about Grow Progress’ Rapid Message Tests, and be sure to sign up for our newsletter and never miss a beat.
