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E-mail Responses: Get Them to Sign a Petition
Sign a petition: It’s been a standard part of direct mail for decades. It’s even easier online. Tell them that their "voice" can be heard quickly and effectively online. Give them an easy page to use to add their name to a petition. Ideas: - Show them the signatures of previous petition signers and ask them to add their name. When they’ve completed the process, show their name as the most recent name on the petition.
It doesn’t have to be a petition in support of a candidate or a bill before a legislative body. It can be a petition to a regulatory agency, a company, even an individual who represents a clear target for your advocacy effort. (Only advocacy aimed at specific legislation or a specific candidate or political party falls under the IRS definition of "advocacy.") - Personalize the petition based on the user. If you’re sending a petition to a corporation, use the supporter’s zip code to show them the facility or dealer closest to them, and send the "petition" to that local office as well as headquarters. Remember, "all politics are local."
- Deliver the petition signature online. When the person has completed their action, send an e-mail "from" the signer to the target right away. Even a standard "auto reply" message from the target will reinforce to your supporter the fact that they have taken measurable action.
- Send an immediate thank-you e-mail confirming their "signature" and asking for another action.
- Organize the names of previous signers by geography or other data element and encourage them to find their friends there, or else invite their friends to sign, too. Draw special attention to celebrity signers.
- Keep the supporters updated on any reaction by the target. If they respond in any way, that’s a victory. If they fail to respond, use that to generate more outrage. And if you get really lucky, the target will "serve out" e-mail coming from your website, so it bounces back to you. Then you can write back to your supporters and tell them what "cowards" the target is!
November 2002
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