Killer Campaigning » Political Campaign Volunteers

Triple Your Political Campaign Volunteer Base With Facebook

killercampaigning — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 22:22:47 +0000

Volunteers are the lifeblood of your campaign. Unfortunately, there’s no magic formula for tripling the number of supporters willing to knock on doors or make calls. I wish there were.

But there is an easy way to triple the number of people willing to spread the word about your campaign, using Facebook. And that’s what Clayton Lopez discovered in 2009 while running for reelection for City Commissioner, District 6 in Key West, Florida.

Lopez, as popular as he was (and he still is), with a constituency of only 2,616 registered voters, had to get out the vote with a small volunteer team that you could count with one hand. Lopez faced the same challenge that every candidate faces: people are too busy to volunteer. So he tried something new.

At his kick-off event, between singing a few songs (it seems that everyone’s an artist or performer in Key West!), Lopez captured 18 video endorsements from roughly 30 attendees, and posted these on his Facebook page.

Within two and a half weeks, his fanbase grew by 25%. Week over week, media views on his page skyrocketed by 1,613%. And in the five weeks leading up to the election, these 18 video endorsements were shared and viewed a total of 784 times, for an average of 43.55 views per video. So rather than delivering his campaign message to only 30 attendees that day, the 18 people that volunteered their video endorsements helped Clayton get the word out to over 20 times that many people.

So here’s the bottom line. It’s easy to triple the number of supporters willing to volunteer some time to support your campaign in a powerful way. All you have to do is provide them with this simple volunteering activity, which takes less than ten seconds.

And if “tripling” sounds too conservative for you, and you want to capture video endorsements at every event, and in every way possible, look into the new Endorser Facebook application which was developed to handle an unlimited number of video endorsements, as well as videos submitted via smart phones. Endorser also provides supporters with the opportunity to share your official campaign videos and positive news articles as well… which are two additional ways for your supporters to volunteer a few more seconds of their time.

Oh, I almost forgot. Lopez was handily reelected, with 73% of the vote.

Polling Places & Minimum Distance for Political Campaign Signs, Candidates

killercampaigning — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 19:09:17 +0000

If you’ve never run as a candidate in a local election before, you might not know that many states have a law that doesn’t let you do any political campaigning whatsoever within a certain distance of polling places on election days.

If I remember correctly, that minimum distance is 50 feet here in Ohio. This means that a local election candidate cannot put up political campaign signs, hand out campaign literature, greet voters, or have any volunteers wearing political campaign shirts within 50 feet of the polling place.

The county boards of election are usually very strict about this rule, too. Even if you want to come inside the building where voting is being done to use the bathroom at some point during election day, you need to cover up all political campaign shirts, buttons and stickers that you might be wearing.

Luckily, in my county (Lorain County, Ohio), the Board of Elections does a good job of marking exactly where that 50 feet is by putting up small flags at the maximum distance the night before the election. Since many local election candidates put up political campaign signs around the polling places on the night before election day, this helps them stay outside of the “no-campaigning zone.”

So, is this a good rule or a bad one? Frankly, I don’t even think it’s worth discussing one way or another. It is what it is, and if you’re a political campaign candidate then you need to make sure that you and your volunteers are following it by staying the minimum distance from the polling places.

Besides, to tell you the truth, there are plenty of other things you should be doing on election day that don’t involve hanging out at the polls. The vast majority of people who are showing up to vote have already made up their minds, and seeing some guy standing there with your t-shirt on isn’t going to sway them one way or the other.

If you want my advice, be sure to put up some of your campaign signs around the polling places the night before election day, and don’t be afraid to spend a couple hours in the evening greeting voters as they come to the polls. But the majority of your time on election day should be spent contacting your likely voters and making sure they get out to the polls in the first place.

Anyway, make sure you check on your state’s laws regarding how close you are allowed to put up campaign signs and greet voters at the polling places. Getting too close to the polls with a campaign shirt on might not get you thrown in jail or anything, but it is pretty unprofessional and tacky.

Political Science Degree for Careers in Campaigns & Elections?

killercampaigning — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 22:08:45 +0000

Andreana writes an interesting post over on the Killer Campaigning Facebook Page today:

“This site continues to be AWESOME! I should have been a Political Science major instead of Journalism. I’ve always been fascinated by politics!”

Thanks for the compliments, Andreana; we’re glad you like Killer Campaigning. But don’t fault yourself for not getting a political science degree and instead choosing something a little more practical. To tell you the truth, I’d actually advise anyone thinking about getting into politics to steer clear of a political science major.

There are a couple of reasons for this, and the first has strictly to do with employment prospects. A political science degree doesn’t really give you a leg up on the competition in any specific field when you get out of college and hit the job market. In the private sector, political science degrees are usually looked at as generic “I got a diploma” fields of study (much like an English degree, which I have).

For future employment and career advancement, a much more pragmatic degree would be in business, communications or pre-law . . . something that I always tell any politically-minded students who ask me about pursuing a political science degree. You might like the idea of being involved in politics now, but it’s nice to have something to fall back on if you lose your enthusiasm for campaigning.

Even if you’re thinking about making a full-time career in political campaigns and elections, a political science degree won’t necessarily make you any more marketable. As a former campaign manager and consultant, I can tell you that a lot of high-level political campaigns like to hire staffers with educations in other fields, since it adds some depth of experience to the team.

In fact, a political science degree is probably going to do little when it comes to actually getting your foot in the door for a paying election job. Campaign managers are looking to hire full-time staffers who have political campaign field experience, and the only way you can get that is by volunteering and working your way up the ladder. You can do that with pretty much any kind of college degree.

If you’re intent on studying political science in college, take my advice and make it your minor, not your major. You will still be able to mention on your resume that you studied political science in school, but you’ll have a much more marketable degree that will make you attractive to potential employers.

UPDATE: One of our readers has some more good advice regarding pre-law majors:

“Pre-law at most colleges is useless unless you are going to law school. I’m a lawyer, I researched pre-law before going to college because I knew I was going to law school. Don’t get a pre-law degree. In most cases, THAT is more of a joke than poli sci.”

Political Campaign Management Work: It’s Not for Everyone

killercampaigning — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 02:22:40 +0000

Volunteering for a political campaign can be an exciting experience, especially if you are lucky enough to play a role in a large, energetic campaign that is ultimately victorious on election day. I’ve done political campaign management work for years, and have seen firsthand the enthusiasm and dedication in volunteers who work their hearts out to make sure a candidate wins the race.

After their first election experience, many volunteers and paid workers decide that they want to go into a career in political campaign management work, which is terrific. If you’re the right kind of person for the job, professional political campaign management, fundraising and organizing can be a rewarding career.

But a word of warning to young people thinking of starting a career in politics and election strategy: political campaign management work is not for everyone. While working on a high-profile campaign can be an unforgettable experience, a full-time job in campaigning is stressful, demanding, and often heartbreaking. It often involves a significant amount of travel, and political campaign consultants can frequently find themselves without a job due to the unpredictability of elections and the quirkiness of candidates.

Regardless of how hard you work as a campaign manager or how flawless your political candidate is, the possibility of defeat looms in each campaign. You might do everything right on the campaign trail and have the perfect strategy, but a single event or gaff can derail a campaign quickly. Those derailments can affect your confidence and your reputation in future campaigns, but no consultant is without them; in fact, some of the most famous and successful political consultants in the country have more defeats than victories under their belts.

When it comes to political campaign management work, you often get none of the glory in a victory and all of the blame in defeat. Politics is a business of big egos, and many candidates don’t like to admit that they need the help of a professional campaign consultant. If the campaign is successful, you might find that the candidate thinks he could have won without you; if it is a failure, you might find that he thinks he lost it because of you.

One of the reasons why I ultimately left full-time political campaign work is because of the difficulty it presents to someone who wants to settle down and raise a family. Travel requirements, job insecurity and unpredictable hours all combine to make campaign field work a decidedly difficult career to have if you want to be a dedicated family person. There’s a reason why many key players in successful political campaigns go on to take full-time government positions; it’s much more stable and reliable.

If you still want to become a professional campaign manager or consultant–even in the face of the difficulties–then you may have what it takes to be successful in the political campaigning field. I’m thankful for my experiences on the campaign trail, and I’m sure you’ll look back on yours with appreciation, too. Always be on the lookout, though, for ways to translate your talent in campaign management to a more reliable, stable and lucrative career!

Finding Political Campaign Volunteers

killercampaigning — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 04:02:05 +0000

There are lots of important elements that make up a winning political campaign: fundraising, direct mail design, message, earned media. And while candidates need to devote adequate resources to each, there’s a much more vital element that many campaigns don’t pay nearly enough attention to: volunteers.

You probably won’t find many candidates for political office who don’t know that campaign volunteers are important to winning an election. Whether you’re running for local office or in a big statewide race, the more volunteers you have, the more effective your campaign is likely to be. Door-to-door efforts, mail preparation, phone calls . . . everything is easier when volunteers are there to lend a hand.

Political candidates instinctively know the value of campaign volunteers, yet they rarely take the necessary steps to recruit them or make them feel appreciated. Finding potential volunteers and asking them to help with campaign tasks can be intimidating for many new candidates, but you’re likely to have a lot more success if you plan out your strategy ahead of time.

Short of handing out paychecks, the single best way to make people want to help you with your campaign is by showing how hard you are willing to work yourself. While you might not have many volunteers early on in your political campaign, you’ll be surprised at how many people will line up to help if they see you working hard on the campaign trail.

But don’t think that you need an army of volunteers in order to win your race on election night.

Many new candidates make the mistake of thinking that they need dozens of volunteers in order to make a real difference in their political campaign. The truth is that even a few dedicated volunteers can cover a huge amount of ground when it comes to campaigning. You’d be amazed at just how much help a single volunteer can be, especially in a local campaign.

If you’re a political candidate, have you stopped to think about how much your volunteers help your campaign . . . whether you have dozens or only a few? Showing them how much you appreciate their efforts, and helping them realize how important they are to your campaign, is both politically savvy and the right thing to do.

How to Build a Great Political Campaign Resume

killercampaigning — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 17:53:50 +0000

We talk a lot about how to be a great candidate here on Killer Campaigning, but political consultants, campaign managers, volunteers and activists are very important elements of the political process, as well. Without hard-working campaign teams, many talented politicians would never get elected to office in the first place.

That’s why I want to shift focus away from candidates for a moment and give prospective campaign managers and volunteers some advice on how to build a great political campaign resume.

Getting intimately involved in the inner workings of important political campaigns doesn’t take as many years of toiling as you might think. In fact, a job in politics–both as a candidate or a consultant–is a career where you can rise to amazing heights relatively quickly. You only have to look at the political history of some of the most successful elected office holders and consultants to realize that many of them climbed to the top of the pack surprisingly fast.

That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t take an immense amount of dedication and hard work to succeed as a top-notch political consultant or campaign organizer. But getting started is both fun and can provide diverse professional experience that can help your career regardless of what field you are in.

Most professional campaign managers started out as volunteers in local or statewide political campaigns, where they cut their political teeth by making phone calls, going door-to-door or raising money for their candidates. Political campaigns are always looking for motivated volunteers, and you’ll be surprised at just how many tasks a campaign will let you take on if you prove that you are trustworthy, hard-working and dependable.

To start building a great political campaign resume, start out by approaching the campaign staff of a local campaign and inquiring about becoming a volunteer. Let them know what your talents and affinities are, and what kind of free time you have to work on the campaign.

But don’t just focus on doing the things you are already good at. Ask to take part in campaign tasks that you aren’t familiar with, and watch how things are done. Take note of what seems to work and what doesn’t. Pay attention, listen, help and learn.

Regardless of whether your candidate wins or loses, volunteering on a campaign of any size gives you valuable political experience. The next time you volunteer for a campaign, ask to be put in charge of a more important front, such as fundraising, volunteer recruitment or door-to-door efforts.

You’ll find that it won’t take long before you’re being looked at as a possible campaign manager–although your first experience will probably be for a smaller local campaign, and without being paid. By that time, your political resume should be pretty appealing to larger campaigns that do pay for your time.

Races for your state’s house of representatives, the state senate, county commissioners and even congressional campaigns are all great places to start distributing your campaigning resume for a paid position. While you might not get a high-level job early on, keep in mind that each new position makes your resume more impressive . . . and, perhaps even more importantly, it shows candidates and managers that you can be trusted to do a great job.

Remember to keep track of every task you perform as a volunteer or paid staff member, and always save copies of campaign literature, news clippings and pertinent materials from every election you work on. Before you know it, your political resume will be full of the kind of marketable talents and experience that campaigns love to see.

Volunteering: The Best Way to Plan Your Political Campaign

killercampaigning — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:31:57 +0000

The best way to help yourself is by helping others, and few ventures illustrate this axiom better than political campaigning.

If you’re interested in running for office, then odds are that you’re the type of person who likes to take the initiative and get things done. You like depending on your own talents. You take pride in solving problems without help.

Here’s the problem: no matter how talented or intelligent or hard-working you are, you can’t run a successful political campaign by yourself.

That doesn’t mean that you can’t get pretty doggone far on your own shoe leather. But a single volunteer can make your work immeasurably easier, and a few donors can help finance effective advertising.

Marching to victory on election day is much more difficult if you’ve never volunteered your time for other candidates before . . . and not just because working on campaigns brings valuable experience (which it does, without a doubt).

The experience line is pretty obvious. Let’s take it a step further.

The fact is that helping other candidates with their campaigns is the single best way to get future help with your campaign.

People with whom you make phone calls, knock on doors and seal envelopes just might do the same for your political campaign in the future. By proving how hard you’re willing to work, you’ll form strong friendships and meet other volunteers who will go to bat for you someday, too.

A word of warning, though: don’t volunteer for anything if you’re only trying to help yourself. Not only is it vile, but it’s also easy for others to pick up on. If you’re just there to scout the talent, people will know that you don’t genuinely want to help.

Instead, find candidates and causes that you truly believe in, and volunteer your help because you want to. Even if you don’t ever run for office, you’ll have a great time, make plenty of friends, and learn more than a few marketable skills in the process.

And if you do end up becoming a candidate yourself someday, plenty of friends will show up to help . . . not because they have to, but because they want to.