Tag: Nicole Schlinger

Newsflash: phones are having a moment

The #1 challenge campaigns are facing is how to have meaningful conversations with voters when they cannot campaign in person.

People are isolated. They’re craving the back and forth, the personal connection. The only medium that allows for two-way, meaningful interactions are phones.

Katie working hard on her calls for our clients

Of course, this isn’t an either/or decision, but phones are stealing the spotlight back from the always popular digital, TV, and direct mail. Campaigns are seeing mixed results by using these typically productive outlets as ways to reach voters. Why? Well, for one, people are experiencing the crisis in many different ways and it’s difficult to craft a message with one-way forms of communications in a way that resonates with all voters.

With phones, your message is nuanced and particularized in a way the other tools just are not capable of. 

If you’re looking at an early June primary, your election will take place on schedule, and it’s coming up quick. Some voters may be casting their mail-in ballots right now!

Candidates who figure out how to have real, two-way conversations with voters are going to have a major advantage over those who just blast their information in your face.

Now is the time for a more in-depth phones strategy. We can help.

Tele-Townhall
Voters get an opportunity to ask you questions, share their opinion, sign your petition, and hear your answers in a forum that’s no longer possible in person. (WATCH VIDEO)

Peer-to-Peer Texting
Candidates make a 20 second video and send it out to their voters. Campaigns can target EXACTLY AND ONLY the voters you want to see your video and ask them to share their opinion with you. More targeted than digital, more affordable than TV. Even county and local candidates can make their own TV commercial. (WATCH VIDEO)

Automated Messages and Surveys
A particularly cost-effective way to reach seniors, and most effective when the message is delivered from a trusted, respected member of the community.

People are at home and they’re either scared or they’re mad. Successful campaigns can answer that basic need for human interaction, but they can’t do it with a digital ad, a tv commercial or direct mail.

Phones will help you meet voters directly where they are. Let us help you get back to basics…and plan your WINNING strategy today.

Nicole Schlinger

Telephone Townhalls Replacing Candidate Forums

The past 60 days have certainly changed the way lawmakers are interacting with constituents, how first-time candidates are reaching voters and how advocacy groups are able to fortify their issue messaging.

CampaignHQ recently had the privilege of working with an advocacy group, Iowans for Tax Relief (ITR), to replace their traditional “in person” candidate forums with a telephone townhall Iowa’s HD60, a competitive open seat race in the June 2nd primary.

This telephone townhall gave two first-time candidates the opportunity to express their views and for Iowans for Tax Relief to make sure voters know where these candidates stand on state taxpayer issues.

For this event, the organization dialed out to landline phones and reached those with cellphones who opt-ed in. They also promoted the event through email and their social media, offering voters a toll-free number to dial in and listen. The most active and involved participants in any Telephone Townhall are those who proactively dial in to your event getting the word to people who will be interested is well worth your time and effort. Here are a few ideas that you might find helpful:

  • Send peer-to-peer text messages, including your toll-free phone number that participants can click to join. Consider an MMS, using an image or GIF to draw focus and attention.
  • Email your list 48 hours in advance, and again the morning of your event.
  • Post on social media several times in advance and 10 minutes before the event begins. Ask your followers to post and share.
  • Send an automated call to the people who will be receiving your outbound dial to join your event. Let them know all they need to do is simply wait by the phone and answer when you call.

Nicole Schlinger promotions

ITR’s event was successful because they approached their telephone townhall with the same level of preparation as they would any in-person event. They planned the flow and structure of questions, laid out the rules for the discussion and notified the participants ahead of time. CampaignHQ can help you hold your audience with a conversation WORTH having. We’ll work with your team to develop tools such as:

  • A line-by-line, including notes for your opening remarks, will help guide the conversation and cover important topics.  It helps to have a moderator open the call, who can instruct people on how to participate, and call on members of the audience for you.
  • Keep the conversation fast and lively. Have responses ready for questions you think are likely to come up. Your responses to each question or comment should be no longer than 2-3 minutes.
  • Give your audience several ways to participate. You can ask your audience their opinion with a poll question and gather email addresses.

At CampaignHQ, we specialize in turning communication into action through training, scripting, and real-time feedback. Once the event is over, we’ll help you make the best use of your valuable data. For example, CampaignHQ provided ITR with valuable data about their Telephone Townahll, including breakdowns on who was reached and how long they stayed on the call.

We are used to helping campaigns and organizations take it to the next level after a Telephone Townhall. Now is the time to take the most valuable segments of your interactive conversation and share them with an even larger audience.  Here’s how:

  • Use the recording of your event and a static image to create 60 second MP4 videos that you can post to your YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter pages. Encourage your followers to post, share, and ReTweet.
  • Send peer-to-peer text messages of your video, along with a link to listen to the entire event. Ask people to reply to your text to let you know what they think.
  • Email your supporters a synopsis along with a link to listen to the entire event or pertinent clips.

 

Telephone Townhalls are a powerful, effective way to communicate your message to an audience of thousands, over the phone and online. They allow for a meaningful connection regardless of who you are: a candidate, an incumbent, an advocacy group – or what goal you have in mind: reaching voters, raising money, hosting a forum.

Let us help you put your goals in motion with a Telephone Townhall.

Nicole Schlinger, President of Campaign Headquarters

Nicole Schlinger

A Whole New World – Part 2

Here’s another installment of a recent webinar we hosted on how to campaign during COVID.

Today, we talk about how to introduce yourself – how you can text videos to your supporters, brighten seniors’ day with an automated call or conduct live advocacy calls.

 

Give us a call today if we can get something started for you today.

Nicole Schlinger

Helping You Navigate a Whole New World

As we continue to see how the #COVID-19 crisis is impacting our everyday lives, we are not sitting around and waiting to see how campaigns will adjust to this new world.

The CampaignHQ team is swiftly helping our clients re-adjust their campaign plans in light of #COVID-19.

Check out a recent webinar segment discussing how to build a grassroots army. Check back at the end of the week for another installment. 

 

Thanks for following,

Nicole Schlinger

Flashback Friday

This is a fun #FlasbackFriday post from our HQ awards a couple of years ago. Working at CHQ can be a lot of fun and there is room for growth. And, what do you know, we’re hiring! 

CampaignHQ is seeking a Deputy Campaign Director. Our Deputy Campaign Director is a vital part of the team delivering text messages, live and automated calls on behalf of candidates and issue advocacy organizations nationwide. You’ll help with price quotes, project setup and execution, script writing, data handling, and many other important tasks. Your mission is to support our Campaign Directors and exceed our client’s expectations.If you are looking for an entry-level position with a nationally known firm, this is your dream job! If you’ve worked on a campaign for one or two cycles, that’s fantastic, but not required.This is a PERMANENT full time position at our HQ in Brooklyn, IA. It is the perfect fit for someone who loves campaigns and hates unemployment. Questions? Email Marlys@chq.us, Senior Campaign Director for details.

CampaignHQ is the Best Conservative Call Center in America. Whether it’s fundraising, patch through calls, Get Out the Vote, or text messaging … our team of passionate people delivers amazing results. Learn more about our election-winning work at www.chq.us.

Check us out!

Nicole Schlinger

Hiring In Oskaloosa

Nicole Schlinger NOW HIRING

Looking for a career change where the benefits are good, the office is clean, and the work is meaningful? CampaignHQ is hiring. In our Oskaloosa office, we are looking to at 10 more quality employees.

Campaign Director
As a Campaign Director, you will be the main point of contact for a group of our clients. You will help them craft their plans and manage the execution of their telephone voter contact, telephone townhall, and conTEXT message campaigns. You will play a critical role in business development, building and maintaining relationships with candidates, campaign managers, and consultants across the country. Strong preference will be given to those who have an existing network of contacts in the political and public affairs arena.


Deputy Campaign Director
As a Deputy Campaign Director, you will be a vital part of the team delivering millions of text messages, live and automated calls on behalf of candidates and issue advocacy organizations across the country. You’ll help with price quotes, project setup and execution, script writing, data handling, and many other important tasks. At the end of the day, your mission is to support our Campaign Directors and exceed our client’s expectations.
If you are looking for an entry-level position with a nationally known firm, this could be your dream job! If you’ve worked on a campaign for one or two cycles, that’s fantastic, but not required.


Data Management Specialist
As a Data Management Specialist, you will be involved in the daily preparation of campaign reports and other data needs. This includes maintaining existing reports and databases, creating new reports and databases, accuracy and functionality of CRM data, collaborating with sales and operations to identify problems and solve them. You must be proficient in Microsoft Excel, including pivot tables and advanced formulas. Proficient in Microsoft Access table and query creation. Familiar with Visual Basic for Applications. Familiar with SQL and Python preferred. Recent graduates or those finishing remote study are welcome to apply.


These are all PERMANENT full time positions. If you love campaigns and hate unemployment, I encourage you to learn more and apply.


Interested? Email Marlys@chq.us, Senior Campaign Director, and we’ll send you a full job description and instructions to apply for the position in which you are interested.

How to Effectively Communicate During a Pandemic

The team at CHQ recently hosted a webinar – How to Effectively Communicate During a Pandemic. I wanted to share some of the information with you, hopefully it’s useful for you and your team.

We have posted the full Webinar on YouTube, in case you missed it or want to go back and reference a few points. But I also posted a few short clips below to check out.

I wanted to provide you with a brief recap, starting with the Four Ways to Make the Most of the Opportunity.
Nicole Schlinger Infographic
1. Build a grassroots army now that you can mobilize later. Telephone petition drives are great for this – call voters, ask them to add their name to a petition. For those who agree, we collect their email address and ask them to volunteer. Right now, you have people’s attention and you can capture their information to build your supporters. (Watch short webinar clip here).

2. Introduce yourself. The best way to do this is through is peer to peer text, where you can have a two-way conversation with a voter at their convenience. You can also push a 20 second TV commercial directly to the voter’s phone, giving them a better glimpse of who you are. (Watch short webinar clip here).

Peer-to-Peer texting can help you safely collect enough signatures to get your name on the ballot.

3. Survey your audience. Use automated surveys (which are inexpensive and fast) to gather critical data on your audience. You can weed out disconnected phones and make the most of your volunteers’ time when it’s time to start doing campaign calls.

4. Have a Conversation. Telephone Townhalls create a large audience and are always a great resource when trying to update your voters on quickly changing information.

Give me a call or drop me a line if you have any questions or we can get to work on a project for you today.  1-888-722-4704 or nicole@chq.us.

Thanks,

Nicole Schlinger