What’s your message? Are you raising public awareness, maintaining public funding, or protecting or fighting for social issues important to your organization? All of these involve advocacy. And while the message itself is critical, sometimes how the message is delivered is equally important. In this issue, we'll cover the best ways to get your message delivered, plus give you 10 quick steps to launching your own 21st Century grassroots campaign. Already started your own advocacy campaign? Email us your story at fundraisingwell@blackbaud.com. P.S. If you're really interested in tracking the success of your advocacy program, check out the session "NetAdvocacy — Measuring the Success of your Online Grassroots Advocacy Program" at this year's Conference on Philanthropy in Charleston, SC. You have received this email because you are subscribed to Fundraising Well, a monthly newsletter about fundraising effectively in today's world. Subscription information is located at the bottom of this newsletter. |
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Editor's Note|
Email When and Why to Use Email: Email is a good choice if you are expecting to send a steady daily stream of messages. If you're sending ten messages on the same issue to the same office on the same day, your issue will generally hit the radar. However, make sure you personalize every message so that each one, while making the same point, does so in a slightly different way. In fact, it’s usually better to send one message that’s extremely personalized and meaningful, rather than sending the exact same message multiple times. Faxes When and Why to Use Faxes: Use faxes as part of a combined campaign that includes email or other methods. You can follow up with phone calls to express urgency as it gets close to a vote. Keep in mind that most offices have a limited number of fax machines, so a huge volume of incoming faxes may cause them some anxiety. On one hand, you will certainly get their attention; on the other, that attention may not be positive. Because faxes must be keyed by hand into the office's correspondence management system, the response to your supporters may take up to six or eight weeks. Postal Mail When and Why to Use Postal Mail: Well-written letters that tell a personal story, on personal letterhead, with an original signature and postmark can attract extra attention. Some members of Congress ask their staff for the most original or persuasive letters of the week to read on the floor. However, a campaign based on such personal letters is dependent on your supporters to follow through by printing the letter, addressing an envelope, and putting it in the mail. And delivery of the letters may be delayed by the new security procedures for postal mail in effect since the anthrax attacks. Hand Delivery When and Why to Use Hand Delivery: If your key issue is about to come before a congressional committee, or is slated for debate on the floor, consider having your messages hand delivered to Congress. Most activists or supporters wouldn’t ordinarily consider this option — or even know it exists. You might also investigate services to help your organization with this. About the AuthorsCapitol Advantage is the nation’s premier provider of grassroots solutions for corporations, nonprofit groups, associations, educational institutions, and other organizations. Founded in 1986, Capitol Advantage provides grassroots advocacy products and services to more than 1,500 organizations, including some of the nation’s largest and most respected portals and media companies as well as trade associations, nonprofit organizations and corporations. Capitol Advantage recently partnered with Blackbaud to bring an integrated online advocacy solution to Blackbaud® NetCommunity™ through Capwiz•XC. Visit them on the Web at http://www.capitoladvantage.com. You can also meet Capitol Advantage CEO Barkley Kern at the 2005 Conference on Philanthropy, where he'll be co-presenting at two advocacy-related sessions.
According to e-advocates, you're only 10 steps away from creating your own 21st Century grassroots campaign. So sync up your PDA, fire up your computer, and get your field workers ready to jump-start your grassroots efforts with these simple steps!
To read details about each of these steps, download the printer-friendly (PDF) version here. About the Authors
Communicating with Congress: How Capitol Hill is Coping with the Surge in Citizen Advocacy Blackbaud launches latest Web site management solution Prospecting on Capitol Hill — The Chronicle of Philanthropy® special report
Online Relationship Building and Web Site Management
NetAdvocacy™ for Blackbaud® NetCommunity™ Learn more about advocacy and integrated advocacy. Need email addresses to help launch your online advocacy program?
Interested in learning more about online advocacy? You received this email because you are subscribed to Fundraising Well. If you would like to unsubscribe, please visit subscribe.blackbaud.com to manage your subscriptions. If this email was forwarded to you, and you would like to receive a free subscription, please visit http://www.blackbaud.com/profile/adduser.aspx and create an account. You'll be able to opt-in to receive Fundraising Well and other Blackbaud publications at the bottom of the form. Once you create an account, you can manage your subscriptions at http://subscribe.blackbaud.com. The information contained herein should not be construed as legal or professional advice. If you have questions about how this newsletter's content applies to your organization, you should seek advice from appropriate professional counsel. © 2005 Blackbaud, Inc. All rights reserved.
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The Internet has become such an integral part of the political process that we can no longer afford to think of online campaigns and offline campaigns as distinct efforts. Today, some of the most successful grassroots advocacy campaigns combine online and offline strategies and tactics to more efficiently mobilize constituencies and effectively deliver campaign messages from the State House to the White House. 
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