5 (More) Election Planning Tips
	Posted by Emily Goodstein at Jun 04, 2012 07:15 AM CDT Categories: Advocacy, Content Management, NPtech

Did you catch Amber Wobschall’s post about tips for the upcoming election?  Since Amber is my inspiration for most things, I thought I’d follow her lead and present five more.

So here are five (additional) tips to help get your strategy ready for election season.

6. Get Engaged.  Your constituents are beginning to think about how they can be involved in election season.  Publicize volunteer opportunities of all shapes and sizes (including some gigs that don’t require leaving one’s house, such as guest blogging or tweeting) so you can cultivate new leaders in your community.  Competition for constituents’ time will just increase as we get closer to November, so move this item to the top of your to-do list.

7. Be Subjective.  Make sure your email subject lines set your messages apart from all of the other email they’ll be getting in the coming months.  Leverage your status as an organization who will be working on important issues before, during, and after the election to help you stand out.

8. Join Up.  Many non-profit organizations choose to devote their electoral resources to participation in a coalition.  If you haven’t considered the team approach to election season organization, now’s the time!  You’ll get great exposure to like minded people and spread the work out a bit as you share the burden with additional staff.  Don’t forget to nail down branding and list sharing details before you get started!

9. Back to Basics.  If you play your cards right, you will get some new housefile members through your online activities.  Make sure your welcome series is set up so you make the most of your new found fans.  This is a good opportunity to check out your donation forms and make sure they’re in good shape, too (remove those unnecessary fields!) and ensure that your housefile opt in button is easy to find (above the fold).

10. Say No.  This is not directly related to online strategy, but remember to take care of yourself during the next few months.  Schedules will get busy and timelines will be short, but as my college advisor used to say, “When you say no to others, say yes to yourself.”  The same goes for organizing around an election—take care of yourself!