Title: Call In: 605 7723322
1Welcome!
- Call In (605) 772-3322
- Code 171-359-695
2E-mails and Faxes and Phone Calls, Oh My! Tips
for Effective Communication with Elected Officials
3Whos Speaking?
4Topics
- About the Webinar
- About the Advocacy Roundtable
- Overall Communication Rules
- Different Techniques
- Form Communications
- E-mails
- Faxes
- Letters
- Phone Calls
- Meetings
5About the Webinar
- Muting
- Questions
- Toolbar
- Follow-up Materials
- Recording
6About the Advocacy Roundtable
- What is it? What have you gotten yourself into?
- What are the main benefits?
- Webinar subscription
- Online social network
- Discounts on services
7Where are we starting from?
8Overall Rules
- Personal, personal, personal
- Congressional Management Foundation report
- Pieces of paper have a hard time on Capitol Hill
- Layer communications the one-two punch
- ALA Virtual Leg Day Example
- Ask your audience what they prefer!
- Consider some newer approaches IMing, online
meetings, etc.
9Connect the Communication Tool to the Situation
- What works when? Lets see
10Form Communications
- Who uses form communications? Lets go to the
poll! - When to Use
- Considering the personal, personal, personal
rule, are they ever appropriate? - There are benefits, just not what you think
- Options
- Free services (Care2 Citizenspeak.org
Petitions) - Individual e-mails (https//forms.house.gov/wyr/we
lcome.shtml) - Paid services (CapWiz Knowlegis)
11Personalized E-Mail
- When to Use
- When you have a direct e-mail for a staff person
and/or representative - When theyve indicated that e-mail is the way to
go - What not to do
- No attachments (unless they ask)
- Services
- www.congress.org
- State legislative websites (who should we check?)
12Faxes
- When to Use
- Often good for meeting requests (although some
now want them by e-mail) - If youre doing a blast fax of press releases
(but if you really want to be sure they got the
message, follow-up with a personal communication) - What Not to Do
- Attach dozens of pages
- Fax overnight (many people do that and it clogs
up the machine) - Resources
- Congress.org for fax numbers
13Letters
- When to Use
- District or State Level Communications
- Thank You notes
- What not to do
- Have seriously illegible hand writing
- Resources
- See NAPTA sample
14Phone Calls
- When to Use
- Immediate messages (vote for or against a bill)
- Phone appointment / conference calls with staff
- What To Do
- Script / talking points
- Include address information
- Ask for a response
- What not to do
- Let people loose on the phones with inadequate
information
15Meetings
- When to Use
- Capitol / DC Fly-Ins
- District Meetings (site visits)
- Townhall Meetings
- What to Do
- Provide talking points (NPR example)
- Provide a visit packet (PMA example)
- Layer with other communications
- What Not to Do
- Have a meeting just to meet
16What Else?
- Cool tools for collaborating
- http//123.writeboard.com/8aa114a69c3b2e27a
- Template one-pagers
- Legislator Profile forms
- See sample
- Political Environment forms
- See sample
17What will you do next?