After our recent article The 2 Most Asked Questions about Grassroots Politics, we recieved a flood of new e-mails with new questions about winning elections. In response to your requests, here are two new frequently asked questions answered:
1. Where should I place my yard signs?
Like everything else in your campaign, yard sign placement depends on targeting. While it would be nice to be able to afford an infinite amount of signs and place them everywhere in your district, most candidates have a limited amount of money with which to purchase yard signs.
Choose which areas of the district you need to get your name out it. Where do you need to raise your name ID? Look at your campaign plan and your targeting to determine what areas you should concentrate on placing your yard signs in – get the most bang for your buck by placing them where you need to get your name out the most.
2. How do I get an endorsement?
Ask! While there is some strategy and lots of hard work involved in getting an endorsement, most candidates don’t get endorsements because they forget to actually ask for them. Few endorsements will come your way without your campaign asking for them.
If you are seeking the endorsement of a political or business leader, schedule a face to face meeting (or at least a phone call) between the candidate and him or her. Be prepared to discuss how the campaign’s message and the candidate’s views mesh with the leader’s own pet issues and projects.
If you are seeking a newspaper endorsement, have you press secretary or other volunteer call the paper to ask about their endorsement procedure – some papers require the candidate to meet with the editorial board or an endorsement screening panel, while others simply go with the publisher’s preference. Have a staff member check before you make the call.
