E-Advocacy: Click for ChangeThe basics of online advocacy
Eric Squair | [email protected] | http://eric.squair.ca
2Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
• Eric Squair
– Online campaign coordinator, Make Poverty History
– Web Manager, Greenpeace Canada
3Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Please take a moment to write down the top three questions you want answered in this session.
Please don’t tell me what they are (yet)!
4Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Key learnings:
1. Advocacy campaigns are a communications challenge, not a technical challenge.
5Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Key learnings:
1. Advocacy campaigns are a communications challenge, not a technical challenge.
2. Successful campaigns allow people to become part of the change they want to see.
6Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Key learnings:
1. Advocacy campaigns are a communications challenge, not a technical challenge.
2. Successful campaigns allow people to become part of the change they want to see.
3. The basic questions you need to answer in order to run an effective advocacy campaign.
7Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
How many people are:
1. Already running an advocacy campaign online?
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The basics of online advocacy
How many people are:
1. Already running an advocacy campaign online?
2. In the planning stages for a campaign?
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The basics of online advocacy
How many people are:
1. Already running an advocacy campaign online?
2. In the planning stages for a campaign?
3. Curious to see if this is something that might be right for them in the future?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Advocacynoun: the action of advocating, pleading for, or supporting a cause or proposal.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Advocacynoun: the action of advocating, pleading for, or supporting a cause or proposal.
Campaignnoun: An operation or series of operations energetically pursued to accomplish a purpose.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Why run an advocacy campaign?
Why are you interested in running an advocacy campaign?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Why run an advocacy campaign?
Advocacy campaigns are about change.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Good news:
Online campaigning is a communications challenge,
not a technological challenge.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Bad news:
Online campaigning is a communications challenge,
not a technological challenge.
All advocacy campaigns - whether online or offline - have a few basic communications challenges.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
You are striving for a simple story, well told.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
You are striving for a simple story, well told.
It’s a story about a serious problem that exists.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
You are striving for a simple story, well told.
It’s a story about a serious problem that exists.
It’s also about a set of solutions that the listener can bring about.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
You are striving for a simple story, well told.
It’s a story about a serious problem that exists.
It’s also about a set of solutions that the listener can bring about.
If they join you in the campaign.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
You are striving for a simple story, well told.
It’s a story about a serious problem that exists.
It’s also about a set of solutions that the listener can bring about.
If they join you in the campaign.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Key to all effective advocacy campaigns:
You must tell a story about how taking the action you are requesting of your audience will bring about the change they want to see.
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The basics of online advocacy
Advocacy campaigns work best in the presence of a high information/enthusiasm ratio.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Advocacy campaigns work best in the presence of a high information/enthusiasm ratio.
Crisistunity: a bad situation that people can get involved in solving.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Advocacy campaigns work best in the presence of a high information/enthusiasm ratio.
Crisistunity: a bad situation that people can get involved in solving.
Clear, compelling explanation of the problem (crisis) and an offer of an opportunity to get involved in solving it.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Have you ever heard the term
‘Preaching to the choir’?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
It means you are aiming your message at the people who show up every time and already agree with everything you say.
You need to move beyond that dynamic and start to ARM the choir!
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Arm the choir:
Give your supporters a simple message, and the tools to spread it. Let them evangelize for you.
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The basics of online advocacy
Arming the choir is much easier with simple, powerful graphics.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Arm the choir:
Give your supporters a simple message, and the tools to spread it. Let them evangelize for you.
- Downloadable banners and buttons
- ‘Email this page’ links
- Things to share on social networking sites
- Simple graphics to share
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Arm the choir:
Give your supporters a simple message, and the tools to spread it. Let them evangelize for you.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
A crisistunity is a bad situation where supporters can help bring about a change they want to see by getting involved.
Your role is to supply the opportunity to get involved.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Online advocacy is only the first step in moving people who care about an issue up a ‘ladder of engagement’.
This leads to supporters taking more (and more meaningful) actions to bring about the change they want to see.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Online advocacy is only the first step in moving people who care about an issue up a ‘ladder of engagement’.
This leads to supporters taking more (and more meaningful) actions to bring about the change the want to see.
savetheinternet.com
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Who has had one of their top questions answered so far?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Who has had one of their top questions answered so far?
What was the question, and what did you learn?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Ready to begin an online advocacy campaign?
Here’s what you need to ask:
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Ready to begin an online advocacy campaign?
Here’s what you need to ask:
1. What do I want to say? (Your message)
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Ready to begin an online advocacy campaign?
Here’s what you need to ask:
1. What do I want to say? (Your message)
2. What do I have to offer? (An effective web presence)
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Ready to begin an online advocacy campaign?
Here’s what you need to ask:
1. What do I want to say? (Your message)
2. What do I have to offer? (An effective web presence)
3. How am I going to keep the conversation going?
(Your list*)
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
1. Your message:
There is a serious problem that the audience can help solve by getting involved in specific ways.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
1. Your message:
There is a serious problem that the audience can help solve by getting involved in specific ways.
What is the problem?
What is the solution?
What's the opportunity for change, and what does it look like? How likely is it to happen?
Who are the people you want to reach?
What do they know or care about the issue?
Why is your organization the one to take this on?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
1. Your message: There is a serious problem that you can help solve by getting involved in this very specific way.
“Even if you have reams of evidence on your side, remember: numbers numb, jargon jars, and nobody ever marched on Washington because of a pie chart.
If you want to connect with your audience, tell them a story.”
- Andy Goodman
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
2. An effective web presence.
Is based on a clear understanding of what value you offer your visitors.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
2. An effective web presence.
Is based on a clear understanding of what value you offer your visitors.
Tone is conversational, not slang or too personal, but written by a person, for a person.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
2. An effective web presence.
Is based on a clear understanding of what value you offer your visitors.
Tone is conversational, not slang or too personal, but written by a person, for a person.
Make sure you ‘Arm the Choir’ with lots of ways to spread your message.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
3. A means of continuing the conversation (a ‘list’).
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
3. A means of continuing the conversation (a ‘list’).
There’s a saying in politics: ‘The best list wins’.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
3. A means of continuing the conversation (a ‘list’).
There’s a saying in politics: ‘Best list wins’.
Whoever engages most successfully with the people who support their cause will win.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
3. A means of continuing the conversation (a ‘list’).
Whether it’s e-mail, Facebook or Twitter, the basics of keeping your list engaged are the same:
- Cultivate deep respect for your audience: don’t send them junk!
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
3. A means of continuing the conversation (a ‘list’).
Whether it’s e-mail, Facebook or Twitter, the basics of keeping your list engaged are the same:
- Cultivate deep respect for your audience: don’t send them junk!
- Come up with a simple editorial process, start a ‘list’, make it easy to sign up.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
3. A means of continuing the conversation (a ‘list’).
Whether it’s e-mail, Facebook or Twitter, the basics of keeping your list engaged are the same:
- Cultivate deep respect for your audience: don’t send them junk!
- Come up with a simple editorial process, start a ‘list’, make it easy to sign up.
- Keep them engaged with meaningful ways to help bring about the change they want to see.
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Some resources:
For your messaging:
- Andy Goodman: www.agoodmanonline.com
- ‘Made to Stick’ Chip and Dan Heath, 2007
www.madetostick.com/resources
- ‘How to Win Campaigns - 100 Steps to Success’
Chris Rose, Earthscan. www.campaignstrategy.org
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Some resources:
For an effective web presence:
- “Don’t make me think” Steve Krug,
- Free Range Studios resources:
www.freerangestudios.com/resources/
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Some resources:
For list building and engagement:
- Beth Kanter’s blog: How non profits can use social media: http://beth.typepad.com/
- www.digiactive.org ‘A world of digital activists’
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Who has had one of their top questions answered so far?
What was it?
What did you learn?
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Eric Squair | [email protected]
The basics of online advocacy
Questions? Comments? Complaints? [email protected]
Notes from today? http://eric.squair.ca
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