4. Direct Voter Contact
• TV, Radio, & Newspaper Advertising
• Field
– Literature
– Direct Mail
– GOTV Telephone
– GOTV Mail
– Canvas Expense
• Field Staff
13. How Much to Raise
• Look at the total expenditures of similar
campaigns from your area in the past.
• Add 10% if they were winning campaigns
• Add at least 50% if they were losing
campaigns
14. How to find out how much other
campaigns spent
• Supervisor of Elections
– Volusia County - http://volusia.org/elections/
• Florida Division of Elections
– http://election.dos.state.fl.us/
• Federal Elections Commission (FEC)
– http://www.fec.gov/
• OpenSecrets.org
16. Donor Types
• Candidate
– You need your own surplus to run.
– If you are broke, don’t run.
– The higher the office the more you will need to
raise and the more surplus you will need.
– Consider starting at a lower office if you have
never won before.
– If you lose, you may end up owing money.
17. Relational Donors
• Family
• Friends
• Trusted Colleagues
• They give because they have a relationship to
you.
• They fund your startup costs.
18. Ideological Donors
• Passionate people give to passionate
candidates
• People who belong to the same issues group
as you.
• People who are committed to causes you
believe in.
19. Aversion Donors
• They give because the opponent has adversely
affected the donor’s interests.
• They want to get rid of the other candidate.
• This donor wants to know that the candidate
understands the risks of losing and that you
provide an alternative hope.
20. Access Donors
• Donors who participate to advance
institutional or economic interests.
– Business Associations
– Labor Unions
– Special Interest Groups
• They usually give later in the cycle
• Challengers are unlikely to receive support
from this circle.
21. Fundraising Tactics
• Start Early – as soon as you decide to run and
have filed, you need to allocate 75% of your
campaign time to fundraising.
• It is always easier to ask high and work down.
The best indicator of giving potential is past
performance.
23. Face to Face
• Good for high dollar donors.
• Must be done by the candidate.
• Gives candidate a chance to solicit highest
possible amount.
24. Candidate Call Time
• Prepare the list carefully. Use of campaign
software may be helpful here.
• Staff the candidate – this will make sure the
candidate gets through the calls and does not
get distracted.
• Role-play
• Set goals and benchmarks
• Call Time Sheet
25. Events and House Parties
• Form a host committee. Let them do all the
work and put up all the money.
• The candidate should not put up a dime.
• Hosts will set donation commitment as they
know what the guests can afford.
26. Direct Mail
• This also helps with name recognition.
• Contributions mailing lists are highly targeted
• Re-solicit when the target pays off.
27. Solicitation Phone Bank
• Again the list is highly targeted.
• Volunteers or staff are given list, call scripts,
and phones.
• Do not do phone banks or call time on
Sundays – People hate to be interrupted while
watching football!
28. Internet and Email Fundraising
• Before you hit the send button make sure the
email has been proofed by at least two other
people – you don’t want to apologize to
potentially thousands of people or have your
mistake show up on a blog or in the newspaper.
• Use an email program – Salsa, Constant Contact,
Mail Chimp
• Only send to people who have said you can send
to them. Otherwise you may get marked as a
spammer.
• You must have an unsubscribe button.
29. The Ask
• The Five C’s – A Step by Step of the Ask
– Connect – research the donor before you call
– Context – Motivate the donor with the specifics of the
race.
– Commit – Get a specific pledge from the donor,
preferably today.
– Catapult – Thank the donor at every step
– Confirm – Follow up
• Treat the donor like a shareholder in the
campaign.
30. Fundraising Resources
• Supervisor of Elections
– Volusia County - http://volusia.org/elections/
• Florida Division of Elections
– http://election.dos.state.fl.us/
• Federal Elections Commission (FEC)
– http://www.fec.gov/
• OpenSecrets.org
• News Meat
– http://www.newsmeat.com/