When we think of political townhalls, it may conjure Rockwellian images of public officeholders standing before their constituents, listening earnestly, and responding thoughtfully…
While the times have certainly changed and technology has helped us evolve, the sentiment remains the same. How can elected officials, candidates or even interest groups have meaningful and effective communication that can be positive for constituents?
Telephone Townhalls, of course.
A scientific study conducted in 2019, affirms these facts about telephone townhalls:
They also acknowledge that it’s not simply the act of having a telephone townhall that does the trick. Telephone townhalls are a popular tool but when you let CHQ enhance your telephone townhalls, they become “an effective platform to reach many constituents at once and cultivate trust, approval, and positive impressions among participants.”
CHQ will help you make the most of your telephone townhall by:
Putting in the work before the event – Reach out to people and invite them to join well ahead of your event through peer-to-peer text messages, an email blast to your list, a social media post, and an automated call.
Prepare you and your team – Plan the flow and structure of questions and lay out the rules for discussion, produce quality line-by-lines and include notes to help guide the conversation, and act as a moderator to open the call and keep the conversation going.
Have an interesting, worthwhile conversation – Keep the conversation fast and lively, give the audience several ways to participate including poll questions, gather email addresses, and share valuable information with your audience.
Keep it going after the event – Use the recording of your event, share on social channels, and send peer-to-peer text messages to those who may have missed your event. Email supporters a synopsis and the link to listen to the recording.
CampaignHQ helps you take your telephone townhalls to the next level in a few key ways:
- By gathering actionable data – whether it’s a list of people who have committed to vote, contact their legislator, share their opinion on an issue, or provide an opt-in to communicate during the blackout period – we start by learning your goals and work backwards to craft a program that will result in your audience taking action.
- By helping you maximize your reach to younger, mobile-phone-only audiences with live audio and video streaming to your website and Facebook live. We can also invite your cell phone audience to join you by text message and a free pinless (EASY) toll free number to dial in.
Now is the time to connect in a positive way. Let CHQ help you win with telephone townhalls.