crafting a digital strategy for practical political …...crafting a digital strategy for practical...

Crafting a Digital Strategy for Practical Political Advocacy

Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat - Sun Tzu

Colin Delany

● Former political staffer (Texas)

● Founder/editor Epolitics.com

● Online communications consultant

● Political advocate

What I Do

Communications strategy planning, including social media, email campaigns, online fundraising, influencer outreach & more

Audits of organization websites, social media properties, email campaigns & online fundraising

Technology planning & project management

Planning and implementation for specific online comms projects & advocacy campaigns

Training on digital advocacy & politics topics, including email campaigns, Facebook, Twitter, communicating with Congress, fundraising & more

The Essentials

What IS online advocacy?

The Essentials

What does effective online advocacy look like?

● Examples

● Rules of thumb:

-- relationships -- content

The Essentials

Where online advocacy fits in a communications strategy

● Amplifier ● Force-multiplier ● Key aspect: integration

Key resource involved: time

The Essentials

The Essentials

The Essentials

The Essentials

Typical structure of an online advocacy campaign:

● Online hub (website, Fb page)

● Ongoing communications with supporters (email, social media, SMS)

● Outreach (recruiting, influencing the conversation)

The Essentials

Rule #1: Know your goals

The Essentials

Typical Goals:

● Long-term agenda-setting

● Short-term policy opportunity/threat

● Recruiting

● Supporter mobilization (ex: voter turnout)

The Tools

The Tools

Choosing the right tools:

Rule #2: Base the tools you choose on your goals and capabilities

The Tools

The Tools

The Tools

The secret tool: databases

The Tools● Website (persuasion/recruiting hub)

● Petitions (outreach, recruiting, engagement)

● Email (sustained contact/mobilization)

● CRM (enables email, sometimes social media)

● Social media (persuasion/recruiting outreach + sustained contact/mobilization)

● Advertising (persuasion/recruiting outreach)

● Direct contact (blogger/influencer outreach)

Strategy

Strategy

Strategy

Creating an online strategy in a fast-moving political/policy environment

● Identify pressure points

● Identify channels

● Identify resources

Strategy

Strategy

More rules of thumb:

● Leverage existing narrative/conversations (media outreach, hashtags, memes, infographics)

● Integrate your communications – be relentless in your messaging

● Keep up the pressure – keep your advocates busy

StrategyGood content matters!

StrategyGood content matters!

Strategy

Relationships matter!

Strategy

Relationships matter!

● Direct outreach

● CRM/email

● Social media

Strategy

Managing supporters

● Regular contact (but don't overdo it)

● Ladder of engagement

● Tiered actions

● Super-volunteers

Strategy

What's next in digital advocacy?

What's next for your organization?

Thank You

Colin Delany

Epolitics.com

cpd@epolitics.com

@epolitics

+1 202 422 4682