Washington, D.C. — September 15th, 2009

When you think of the issues currently under debate, which one most resonates with you?

It is the day after Obama’s big speech on healthcare, so I’m guessing that’s at the forefront of your mind. So, what did you think of his speech? Ah, ah, ah, don’t tell me—let me guess.

A little less than half of you weren’t crazy about the speech, but still believe Obama’s administration should try to get the bill passed this year.  And 52 percent of you are completely done with Obama’s attempts to overhaul healthcare as we know it.  Pretty good, huh?

Polling has become part of the everyday bustle of life in D.C. When politicians run for office, any office, there is always a skilled pollster working behind the scenes. Some well known Democratic pollsters include: Mark Penn, Geoff Garin, and Peter D. Hart. A few well known Republican pollsters include: Frank Luntz, William “Bill” McInturff, and Chris Wilson. You should know Peter D. Hart from his work on both Clinton presidential campaigns and that of Prime Minister Tony Blair. Bill McInturff is pretty well known for his work with the Wall Street Journal and McCain’s presidential campaign.

In most cases, pollsters specialize in pinpointing the precise language that will help clients sell their product or turn public opinion. But there are many levels of polling involved in accomplishing the perfect ad or campaign strategy. Just some services the industry provides are:

1. Presentation Testing: Some companies will utilize dial technology to make sure that your presentation is resonating with your target audience. Dial technology can tell a client how well their audience understands the material covered in the presentation and measure their emotional connection to the content. You can imagine that this is a very useful tool to have when broadcasting a public service announcement.

2. Measuring Public Opinion: We are all well acquainted with public opinion polls. They are on the news, blogs,  commercials, and billboards – everywhere. But without pollster drawing public opinion polls up and then investing the grueling hours interpreting the results, no one would know America’s stance on anything – and pollsters wouldn’t be able to charge six figures.

3. Entrance and Exit Polling: Pollsters – usually working for newspapers or broadcasters – will ask you or me entering the polls who we are voting for to get an early indication of the election’s outcome. They conduct a very similar poll after we have voted to get a more accurate representation of the election’s outcome. Considering votes take days to count, this is a very useful service pollsters offer during election time.

These are just are just a snapshot of opportunities available in the industry. Pollsters influence much more of voter choice then most constituents realize. As a pollster it requires a lot of dedication to be willing to put forth the hours required to get polls circulated and then interpret their results. But having the opportunity to work closely with a candidate a pollster believes in is a reward in itself for the demanding nature of the job. And the pay is pretty good to boot, especially if you develop a reliable reputation and wide range of contacts.

(Image credits: Aaron Webb, jukebox909, and fraley tera)