How Phones Work
Like most technology, phones are not inherently good or bad. It all depends on who is talking and who is listening. Political science professors from Yale, Princeton, and other research institutions agree that professional phone programs, when employed with strategic vision, smart targeting of voters, clear and engaging scripts, and well-trained callers, can be the difference between victory and defeat. Phones can break through the increasing clutter of other campaign media (like television ads or mass mailings) and reinforce your message. In addition, phone programs give a campaign a rapid-response capability and are by far the most cost-effective way to facilitate an interactive conversation with a voter.
Getting Through to Lawmakers
Winning Connections was a co-sponsor of the most comprehensive survey ever done on constituent communications with the US Congress. Conducted by the Congressional Management Foundation (CMF), a non-partisan organization, the report was based on extensive focus group research and surveys of key House and Senate staff. Says CMF Deputy Director Brad Fitch, “Compared to identical form communications like e-mail, fax and postal mail, phone campaigns come out way ahead.” Doubts among congressional staff about identical communications are at the core of the CMF’s most important finding: individualized communications have the most impact on the legislative process.
Connecting with Voters
In January of 2001, Winning Connections hired Lake Snell Perry and Associates to conduct four focus groups. The goal was to find out how voters responded to political phone calls and specifically what factors enable phone calls to move voters. The research confirmed that phones, used properly, can be highly effective in persuasion and mobilization efforts.