The Best Tactics To Build a Political Email List
Building a political email list can be a daunting task, but with a few key tactics, you can increase your supporter base towards your path to victory. If you’re new to running for office, your email list will consist of your friends, family, and contacts you’ve kept through the years. This may be a relatively small list, but over your campaign, you’ll continue to add people to your list. Here’s how.
First and foremost, you should make sure your website includes an easy and clear spot for people to sign up for your email list. This should be front and center on the homepage (along with a donate button!) and on subsequent pages. Your social media accounts should also encourage people to sign up for your list. When you are hosting events, be sure to include a sign-up sheet so people can join your list. This offline action can help convert people to online supporters and donors.
Petition campaigns are a great way to grow your list. You can send out a petition to your email list and ask them to sign and then pass it along to their family and friends. In addition, you can ask other like-minded organizations or candidates to share your petition with their list.
Which brings us to another tactic: list swaps. Be mindful when sharing lists, and always, always use best practices. That said, partnering with others who have a larger list could help grow your list. It can benefit their list as well, so it’s a win-win.
Campaigns have had great success with bumper sticker and magnet campaigns. Offering free schwag seems to really draw people in, and this has consistently worked to grow email lists in an organic way. You’re probably making those magnets and bumper stickers anyway, right? Use them to your advantage!
Another tactic that seemed to work well in the past few years is a contest. This worked for a lot of bigger campaigns and committees, who were able to draw big names and big prizes. If this is your case, try it out!
The best part about email is that you can test different ideas, so try a few different tactics and see which brings in the most new names. Remember, building your list is only one piece of the puzzle. Once you bring new supporters in, it’s important to cultivate that relationship and ensure they remain your supporters for the long haul.