Campaign Tips

Deepak Puri previously worked at Oracle, Netscape and VMware, and is now the co-founder of the San Francisco, non-profit Democracy Labs. By deploying technology and creative innovation, Democracy Labs offers affordable business solutions for progressive groups and candidates across the country. We asked Deepak 7 questions focused on the intersection of campaigning and technology. Read his insights here!

Running an effective advocacy campaign takes skill and planning here are five tips to run a winning advocacy campaign:

Campaign best practices can make a real difference on your political campaign. Over the course of my career, I have pretty much seen it all happen on political campaigns. From the candidate’s brother dying mere weeks before Election Day to losing power at a staging location and everything in between. Murphy’s Law states “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” Part of being a good organizer is always hoping for the best on political campaigns, but planning for the worst.

Over the years, we have seen folks develop some bad political campaign habits.  But the good news is that many of these bad campaign habits can be prevented by good organization and a focus on fundamentals. Read the list below so you can spot the warning signs and keep your political campaign on track.

Whether it is your first or last advocacy or political campaign, one thing never changes—numbers matter. Learn what campaign metrics you need to track.

Starting a campaign is a huge challenge and will prove to be much different than any other job you've ever had. It is hard work and you don’t get to clock out like you would a regular 9 – 5. Starting a campaign means being fully committed and putting the rest of your life on hold. Below are a few other things that every staffer should know before starting a campaign.

Below, you’ll find a complete list of campaign job descriptions that you might find in a race of moderate size.