Successful advocacy begins and ends with data.
Once you have framed a goal and message, the next step is to identify the “who.”
“Who is most vital for your organization to communicate with at this time?”
Once the question of “who” is answered, the next question is, “How and where do I find my audience?”
Data and analytics allow you to focus on individuals who matter most to your organization, the ones who should care about your issue when properly messaged.
There are multiple options for identifying an audience for communication, including:
- Your existing data;
- Voter file data;
- Geo-targeting based on location; and
- A vast amount of commercial consumer data.
These are all examples of sources for your custom audience of real people who share a common interest in your issue and are eager to hear from you.
As Marcie Kinzel shared, one of the keys to successful advocacy is an omnichannel approach that recognizes where your audience is today.
Through digital advertising, you can build specific audiences that fit the concerns of those people and speak to the issue in ways they are engaging.
“How do I activate these champions of my issue?”
The first step is awareness and building trust with your audience. An awareness campaign builds community followers around the ideas, attributes, and amenities that make your community attractive.
Next is sharing persuasive ideas and facts that lead to a two-way dialogue and meaningful conversations, creating community engagers who will advocate on your behalf.
Nothing moves a policymaker more than the constituents who can keep them in office – or send them home.
An effective advocacy campaign will identify those individuals who support your issue and engage them.
Audience building is at the core of the Community Architect program, and data is at the core of audience building.
Remember, successful advocacy begins and ends with data.
Have questions? Ready to get started? Reach out to our team of Community Architects today.
Ashley is the Director of Analytics and Audience Insights at Majority Strategies, where she advises private companies, nonprofit organizations, and numerous state and federal campaigns on how to leverage data to maximize and measure the impact of their targeting initiatives.
Ashley began her career as the Data Director for the Republican Party of Wisconsin and most recently served in a senior data role with the Republican National Committee during the 2016 cycle. Ashley has been at the forefront of the data renaissance in the Republican Party – working to ensure that the RNC’s $100+ million investment in data and technology was effectively deployed up and down the ticket during the 2016 election cycle. Her efforts – from her time at the Republican Party of Wisconsin, Causeway Solutions, the Data Trust and the Republican National Committee – have contributed to Republicans across the country putting data at the center of their campaign strategy
