The Campaign Workshop Blog

With advocacy campaign season in full swing, it's time to clear the air on some common advocacy myths about what will and won't hurt your advocacy group.

Online advocacy and digital engagement can grow your movement and hiring an advocacy campaign consultant can help, but achieving real online advocacy results can be tough in both execution and budget.

Advocacy message development can be challenging, so we are here to help! You and your team will want to develop a consistent message that aligns with your values, but at the same time, you will want to craft one that will be applicable to any number of audiences you are reaching out to. How do we begin to boil all that down for messaging?

Advocacy, defined in the simplest terms, is about fighting for something you believe in. When we talk about advocacy, the issues and tactics may change, but the core is about supporting a cause or policy and working to create the change we want to see in the world.

Advocacy tactics and advocacy campaign strategies will continuously change with the times and so must we. Public affairs campaigns are now common on smaller federal issues as well as state and municipal issues.

Developing an advocacy plan with clear goals strategy and tactics is often overlooked - especially in the busy world of non-profits. Organizations that put energy into writing a clear and comprehensive advocacy plan will tell you a thoughtful strategy and a strong plan are critical to campaign success, as well as short-term and long-term organizational growth.

Here at The Campaign Workshop, we have written a lot about independent expenditure strategy in the past, but the key takeaways never change:

1. Know your goals.
2. Do no harm.
3. Don’t duplicate efforts.

What are campaign slogans, and do you really need one? Read more to find everything you need to know about a campaign slogan and how to write one that will motivate people to vote for you.

While it’s true that the world of online advertising is fast-paced- banking on instantaneous programs is a good way to fall short of your goals. Planning for a digital program will give you time to really define your goals and make sure your campaign has the right components, creative, and timeline to achieve them.

Campaigns for local candidates are different than those for bigger races. While you will still have to work to raise money, local candidates will depend in large part on the community for the resources and volunteers that they need. Local candidates also tend to go without the aid of consultants or those with expensive experience working on a lot of campaigns.

Can you spot mistakes in your campaign? As a trainer and consultant for over 20 years - Here are some warning signs to help you spot and course-correct a losing political campaign.

YouTube is the core platform for many folks when it comes to nonprofit video content. There is a whole culture around YouTube, leading many people to just assume that it is the only platform to use to host your videos.

Good email is life-changing, while a bad email is soul-sucking. All of you write emails and let’s face it, most of them are bad. Writing a good email takes more time but you will get better results and fell better in the process. So here are some tips on what to avoid - Because life is too short to write a bad email.

Have a favorite book? 2022 was filled with many great reads by The Campaign Workshop Staff. Check out our staff’s selection of their favorite books of 2022!

An informational interview is a must if you are trying to get internships, land your first job, find your next job or make a career change. Not everyone is a natural interviewer –  here are our tips for getting it right when it comes to having a good informational interview.

It is time to look at program evaluation for 2022 and planning for 2023. Whether you are a non-profit, labor union, independent expenditure organization, issue group, or political campaign, taking the time to evaluate the success of your program is a necessary step to future success.

Runoff election season is here. After a hard-fought election, your campaign made it into the runoff election. Depending on election law, these runoff elections could be held weeks or months after the original election. The type of voter who turns out for a runoff is different from other types of voters.

Lame duck session is about to begin, and it should not come as a surprise that this will be a particularly busy lame duck on the federal level. Government funding, the national defense authorization act, stock training, OPEC, January 6th, judicial confirmations, and same sex marriage just to name a few things on the big list of issues for lame duck.