N Santa Clara County DEMOCRATIC PARTY toto CALL to ACTION N Santa Clara County DEMOCRATIC PARTY Call...

NSanta Clara CountyDEMOCRATIC PARTY

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Santa Clara CountyDEMOCRATIC PARTY

Call to ActionSanta Clara County Democratic Party

California Democratic Party ConventionJanuary 17, 2004

Saturday, January 17, 2004

Call to Action Workshop sccdp.org


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ACTION Introduction

What is Call to Action?

History

Purpose




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ACTION Introduction

Structure of Call to Action

Volunteer

Media

Speakers Bureau

Message




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Hope Cahan

Jim Brady

Volunteer Committee




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Organizing Party activities at the grass-roots level

Recruits volunteers

Matches volunteers with activities

Manages the Precinct Captain program

Volunteer Committee




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• Identify new, or returning, activists and potential activists

• Introduce them to Democratic Party activities Invite them to activities that interest them

• Encourage them to become more involvedClubsEventsCampaigns

Volunteer Recruitment




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On-line Volunteer Recruitment




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Database is criticalContact information Interests/ambitionsOrganizational affiliations (Clubs, Unions, etc.)

Match events and activities with people who are interested

Volunteer Coordination




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SCCDCC Volunteer Database

VolunteersContact Info

Topics/Issues Organizations

CalendarEvent info

Volunteer needs

Volunteers

InterestsMemberships

Subjects

Sponsor/Coordinator

(Host)




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Where do Volunteers fit in?

Taking the message directly to the people: Tabling: Voter Registration, Events Precinct walking: persuasive words to gain support for a

petition or propositionTalking points provide the ammunition

Taking the message to the people via the media: Calls to Talk Radio Writing Letters to the Editor Press Conferences/Demonstrations

Talking points and speeches provide the basis




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ACTION Precinct Captain• Study supports what we activists already know:

"We report the results of a randomized field experiment involving approximately 30,000 registered voters in new Haven, Connecticut.

"Nonpartisan get-out-the-vote messages were conveyed through personal canvassing, direct mail, and telephone calls shortly before the November 1998 election.

"A variety of substantive messages were used. Voter turnout was increased substantially by personal canvassing, slightly by direct mail, and not at all by telephone calls.

"These findings support our hypothesis that the long-term retrenchment in voter turnout is partly attributable to the decline in face-to-face political mobilization."

• Alan S. Gerber and Donald P. Green. 2000. "The Effects of Personal Canvassing, Phone Calls, and Direct Mail on Voter Turnout: A Field Experiment." American Political Science Review 94 (September): 653 63

• You can access the entire article at http://www.yale.edu/isps/publications/GerberGreen.pdf




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Precinct Captain: Organization

• Personal contact with the voter– Ideally, at least one coordinator per precinct

• >1800 in Santa Clara County– Bring the message to the people– Start with your own precinct or area

• Area Organizers facilitate and coordinate activities– Sensible geographic boundaries

• North County, South County, San Jose City Council Districts

– Provide a resource conduit to Precinct Captains




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Precinct Captain: Actions

• Get to know the voters– Introductory canvassing– Provide a communications path to AD Committee,

Central Committee, local elected officials– Carry the message door-to-door, local gatherings– Update voter registration– Encourage Permanent Absentee

• Encourage participation– Area events – invitations, carpooling, volunteer

recruitment– Local events – house/block parties, forums– Organizations – clubs, committees, boards and

commissions– Campaigns – all levels

• Get out the vote!




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ACTION Media Committee

Emy Thurber

Jennifer Myronuk




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ACTION Media: Overview

PRINT: Letters to the Editor

RADIO: Calling in to talk shows

WEB: Monitor web sites, blogs & online bulletins

TELEVISION: Working with corporate & community television

PUBLICITY: Media plan




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ACTION Media: Print

Letters to the Editor Strategy:

Create a “letter writing network”

Designate a media liaison with each AD, club & organization

Liaison will monitor stories and keep track of published letters

Liaison will keep in touch with local press & create relationships with reporters.




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ACTION Media: PrintTwo ways to get letters written:

Use weekly message alert

Alert volunteers to monitor the media and respond immediately with letters

Newspapers to monitor:

Major newspapers

Weekly and local community newspapers

Major language newspapers




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ACTION Media: Print

Online web tools:

Guidelines for writing effective letters

Newspaper contact information

Ability to generate letter and email from web site




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ACTION Media: Print

Tips for effective letter writing from MoveOn.Org:

Brevity is the soul of wit

Your own words – written from the heart

Pounce on something specific in the newspaper




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ACTION Media: Radio

• Take the “talking points” to the airwaves.

• Monitor your favorite shows

• Call in from home or from your car

• Check radio station web site for show times and topics – read the host bio and check show logs.

When calling in:

• Ask a question of the host

• Stick to one topic




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ACTION Media: Web

• The web is revolutionizing media and communications – it is now the “first responder” for events & news.

• Many web sites publish articles, information & editorials as news happens -- and often include space for comments and letters.

• The web is an “instant archive” – comments, letters and articles are stored permanently.




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ACTION Media: Television

• Television continues to be the most dominant form of mass communication.

• Local media vs. national media

• Important to watch local political and community affairs show. Get to “know” political & community reporters.

• Important to call in, write or email comments to the station.




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ACTION Media: Television

Community Access Television

• Over 2500 hundred stations nationwide.

• Several award winning stations in the Bay Area – over 50 stations in CA.

• Every county should have a local Democratic show – train volunteers & host shows of local relevance.

• Santa Clara County: Straight Talk TV & D-TV




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ACTION Media: Publicity

• Create “Media Kit”

• Keep press releases “Newsworthy”

• Know audience (news editors, reporters, buzz-generators)

• Create “targeted” press release based on audience

• Event Media: Print, Radio, Television?

• Find a local angle – will get covered




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ACTION Speakers Committee

Janice Naymark

Ron Naymark




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Two Basic Elements:

Speakers

Opportunities to Speak

Speakers Bureau




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Two types of Speakers:

Active Volunteers

Expert speakers and County leadership

Speakers




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ACTION Speakers Bureau

Opportunities to Speak:

Requested

Created




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Request for Speakers Who is the audience-age, attitudes, gender?

What size is the audience?

What is the format (individual talk, panel, debate)?

Specific topic

Time allotted

Speakers Bureau




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ACTION Speakers Bureau

“Create an event” process You need an anchor

a. A famous speakerb. A famous datec. An interesting case studyd. A breaking news story




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Ana Maria Rosato

David Cohen

Message Committee




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Development of message used by other committees -- the “missing piece”

Allows creation of common themes and unified message

Ensures that talking points and messages are accurate and official

Message Committee




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Talking points

Bumper stickers sayings

“Elevator speeches”

“Message of the week” - all party activities

Provide content for speeches, letters to the editor, brochures, and walk pieces

Message Products




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Harder to get people to focus on writing issue-based talking points than perform tasks such as voter registration

People want to air their pet issues

Without focus, can become a discussion group

Message Challenges




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Find a small, dedicated group

Understand resources available for research web, newspapers, books

Drill down information to key points

Find source material to back up talking points

Vetting process necessary for quality control and to ensure our credibility is solid

Message Structure




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Creating thorough, complete set of talking points is a lot of work for small group

Since most issues will be relevant anywhere in the state, we recommend sharing the effort

Santa Clara County Democratic Party will have all our talking point documents posted on our website (sccdp.org). Feel free to use them for your local Call to Action activities.

Coordinated Efforts




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ACTION Call to Action Case Study

Only 1000 Jobs Created *

Two Million Jobs LOST!




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U.S. Companies Added Few Workers in DecemberBy KENNETH N. GILPIN

Published: January 9, 2004

Employers added only 1,000 new workers to the nation's payrolls last month, the Labor Department reported today, providing further evidence that the economic recovery is continuing to elude the labor market.




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Call to Action: Message

Message Issue

•Volunteer Database•Issue Database•Web Presence

Issue or

Event

Research – frame the issue

• Develop talking points

• Develop “canned” text

• Distribute•Message of the week•Web Archives




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•Identify potential audiences

•Develop specialized speeches

•Add topic to other speeches

•Identify or create events

Call to Action: Speakers

Message Issue

Speakers Bureau

Event


Issue or

Event




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Event idea: A Speak-a-thon •Goals: Media Exposure of Economic Failings•Image: People, Children, Drain•Message: Throwing Money Down the Drain•Mechanics:

•Participants/Attire•Location•Choreography

•Added Exposure: Similar events in multiple counties on the same day!

Creating an Event




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•Identify media markets

•Newspaper•Radio•Television

•Develop marketing strategies

•Alert the media

Message Issue

Media

Speakers Bureau

Event


Press Release/ Publicity

Issue or

Event

Call to Action: Media




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• Match volunteers to interests

• Support Actions:

•Researchers•Writers •Coordinators

• Precinct work•Inform•Invite

Actions

Message Issue

Volunteer

Media

Speakers Bureau

Event


LettersLetters

Phone banking

Precinct Work


Issue or

Event

Call to Action: Volunteer




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Actions

Press

Message Issue

Volunteer

Media

Speakers Bureau

Event


LettersLetters

Phone banking

Precinct Work


Issue or

Event

Call to Action: Results

• Media Coverage of Event

• Message in front of the public

• Inspired electorate




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Your one stop shop for theSanta Clara County Democratic Party’s

Call to Actionsccdp.org

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