Norwich — Maria Miranda, the brand-management maven whose agency, Miranda Creative, is nearing 30 years old, has had her hand in a half-dozen political campaigns since 2011, all of which produced similar results.

They were winners.

Armed with that enviable track record, Miranda has increased her presence in the political “space,” launching Miranda Campaigns, a new division intent on “managing the rhetoric” of those running for office in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and New York.

Miranda, in an interview this week, said she’s been talking to candidates in two Connecticut congressional races (both outside eastern Connecticut’s 2nd District) as well as one eyeing the U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Richard Blumenthal, who is expected to seek re-election.

She’s not identifying her potential clients or saying who she might have signed up. She figures her new division can handle as many as a dozen 2016 campaigns, depending on how much help they want.

Drawing a pie chart, she labeled the pieces Miranda Campaigns can serve up: direct mail, palm cards, social media … everything.

“Some campaigns want entire brands, some want just a slice,” she said.

Rob Simmons, the former Republican U.S. congressman who was elected first selectman in Stonington last fall, knew he pretty much wanted the works.

Back in 2007, when he was the state’s business advocate, Simmons had tapped Miranda Creative to help him prepare an annual report — one, he said, that someone might read.

“We collaborated on a 25- to 30-page report that met all the legal requirements but also presented a lot of my work in an anecdotal fashion, with photography," he said. "It was more like a businessman’s calendar book. ... People not only read it, they read it cover to cover.”

Simmons heard that Miranda had run Republican state Sen. Paul Formica’s campaign in 2014. Formica, of East Lyme, beat Waterford Democrat Betsy Ritter, an experienced politician, in the race for an open 20th District seat.

Simmons took particular note of the Formica campaign's use of social media.

“I knew we needed some packaging,” Simmons said, referring to himself and his running mate, Michael Spellman, an unaffiliated voter.

The Simmons-Spellman campaign settled on “Stonington First” as a slogan, a choice Spellman said emerged from a collaboration between the candidates and Miranda’s team, which included consultant Ali Formica, the state senator’s daughter.

Miranda also worked on the 2014 campaigns of Republican state Reps. Mike France of Ledyard and John Scott of Groton and Alderman H. Tucker Braddock, the sole Democrat elected to the Norwich City Council.

Republican John Rodolico, elected Ledyard mayor in 2011, was an early Miranda client.

Any candidate she works with must embrace social media, Miranda said, pointing to 2014 research that found that the share of registered voters who follow candidates for office, political parties or elected officials on sites like Facebook or Twitter had doubled since 2010.

And her clients must believe in positive messaging.

“You don’t sling mud,” she said. “At one point, overtly negative campaigns were proven effective but that’s changed. It’s like a ringing in your ears that you don’t hear anymore. I don’t believe the negative is heard so much any more.”

Pointing out differences with one’s opponent is another thing.

“I do support comparison pieces. That’s information voters need to see,” she said.

Can she account for Donald Trump’s rise?

“You have to remember he’s not a true politician,” Miranda said. “He stepped in the race with a whole different mindset. He approaches messaging from a place of total fearlessness, which rarely happens. Usually, politicians don’t speak about something until the polling comes out. His experience is TV."

“But be mindful of the experience you’re voting for,” she added.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com

Twitter: @bjhallenbeck