Want to Start a Grassroots Campaign?
October 30, 2009 by Crystal
Filed under Good Causes, Recent Posts
Here are a few pointers of how to start a grassroots campaign. If you’re passionate about it, just like anything else, it
will be a success.
1. If you have an issue that you want to gain attention to, you must first know what it is that you want to change or accomplish before you start your campaign.
2. What’s the mission? Just like a business or non-profit, you need to have a mission for the campaign and a pitch that goes along with it. Within the mission, you must be able to articulate the goal(s). If you cannot do this, you either need to do some researching and brainstorming, or it might not be time to start your campaign. You must have a clear and focused plan.
3. Promote it – once you’re clear on what you want to accomplish and what you stand for, create promo items like flyers, signs, brochures, a website, social media accounts, etc., to help spread the word about your campaign. Make sure all the info you need people to know is on every piece of materials, you want it to be as easy as possible for them to join you and support the cause.
4. Who’s the spokesperson? This might be you, but make sure whoever it is, they are articulate, believe in your cause, and can handle the media. They are going to be the face for this cause and need to be able to represent it appropriately.
5. Contact your local, state and federal representatives and don’t give up, because you most likely won’t reach them the first time. Keep calling, emailing, and maybe even Tweeting them till you contact someone that will listen and might be able to help.
6. Money, money, money, money…MONEY! You’ll need to do some fundraising for your campaign. Most grassroots campaigns can be fairly inexpensive, but unless you are wealthy, you might run into a time where you need outside capital. You can do this by asking, accepting donations online, selling personal items, or you might find people just want to help monetarily because they believe in the cause. However it gets to you, make sure you….
7. Hire a CPA. You need someone on your side that knows your books which may end up saving you money down the road. Unless you know the ins and outs about taxes, tax codes, etc., then I would get a professional to help you out.
GrassrootsCampaigns.com is a great resource to help you gain support, find a team of organizers, and learn how to get funding.
