Progressive Tactics

Thinking about distributed political organising is a little like thinking about broadcast media versus the flow of information and communication through user-generated social networks.

Even so called "progressive" campaign still use the broadcast top down model to control the narrative. But we think that its really people who drive the social movements, especially when they happen online. When you create a distributed organising model, you're really giving your supporters and local community members the power to start, run and manage their own mini movements to strengthen your message. Not only does this mean that more people can get involved, but more people (especially when we're talking about the indie hacker web generation) will want to get involved, because they can make it their own jam.

Digital Doorknocking

The challenge here is . . how do we deploy people to find people online? There's a lot of evidence that friend-to-friend outreach can be nine times more effective than other types of campaign contact which isn't surprising. By utilising digital campaigner's’ existing networks for communication, issue persuasion, supporter mobilisation and volunteer recruitment — friend to friend, one conversation at a time —you're empowering your supporter network to spread the message further and deeper than your core campaign might otherwise be able to.

And sometimes the best thing you can do in terms of outreach, is to just ask people, What really matters to you? How can I help? Can I connect you to resources? Another good way to set up your digital campaigns for success is to provide them with some frameworks that make the job to be done easier and clearer.

Set some objectives

Help your digital organisers plan what the objectives might be that are achievable in social media channels.
Political campaigning is typically done to:
1. Gather information on what matters to people
2. Raise awareness about an issue
3. Persuade undecided people to consider an alternative
4. Convince people to vote for your candidate or support your campaign

Provide a script

. . that can act as a guide for their conversations. This might feature a number of questions they could ask the people they speak with. Remember, two people having a respectful conversation are more likely to find common ground.

Provide a volunteer checklist

Do they understand the objectives?
Are they clear on the messaging?
Do they understand how to answer questions about the campaign or cause?
Do they have some creative assets or information resources they can share, post or link to?
Are they clear where and where not to post or share campaign content?
Do you want them to link to a fundraising page on your site?
Are they clear on where they can direct people for more information?
Do they have somewhere they'll record their activity so that they (or the campaign) can follow up with people who might be interested in supporting the campaign or can atleast be contacted closer to the polls?

And lastly, don’t underestimate the power of your digital supporters. They might be able to reach further and wider and deeper than your core campaign alone. Moreover, those who are engaged with one issue or one side of your movement, can still communicate and connect in ways that create momentum for your overall campaign.

supporters-sitting-seats 2.png

https://unsplash.com/@nicolene_olckers

Creating a Friend Bank

When we think about digital campaigners there are different kinds of support and levels of engagement.

The early adopters

These might be the people heavily involved in your early campaign

The early supporters

These are the people who come on board early to support the campaign, represent potential campaign volunteers and will help you build the friend bank.

The later supporters.

This is your friend bank which you're aiming to build during the early stages of the campaign so you can keep them informed, and hopefully activate them closer to the election

Progressive Playbooks

Check out some of the Progressive Playbooks below - you’ll find links in each card if you’re keen to dig deeper.

Download the Progressive Playbooks collection individually here

Playbooks + Guides

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Progressive Communications Tactics

Check out some of the Progressive Communications Tactics below - you’ll find links in each card if you’re keen to dig deeper.

Download the Progressive Communications Tactics inspiration individually here

Progressive Communication Tactics

Progressive Comms Tactics

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