Campaigns generate huge amounts of data, but most of it sits in spreadsheets (or paper!) and never becomes something organisers can actually use. This session explores how digital mapping can turn scattered information into a shared strategic picture that helps campaigns focus their energy where it matters most.

Drawing on our work developing Mapped, a range of other tools and campaigns around the globe, we will look at how to combine voter files, demographic data, local knowledge, and volunteer input into a single, dynamic view of the field. We will talk through the practicalities of building usable maps: how to avoid overwhelming people with data, how to surface the signals that actually guide decisions, and how mapping can support everything from volunteer deployment to route planning to identifying natural leaders in a community.

At its core, this is about making campaigns more grounded in reality, faster at responding to change, and better at coordinating people who might never be in the same room. This session is for anyone who wants to move beyond dashboards and build tools that genuinely shape strategy.