Thanks for your interest in our campaign training school. Our hope is that we help get you up and running…..for office! We will also help those of you providing support to local candidates. Whether it‘s a Legislative Council, Planning and Zoning office or alternate on another board, it takes work and we want to help you make the most of your time. Check out the sessions below and sign up! We are asking for a $10 donation per class or a $50 pass to all the classes. If you are not able to make the donation, please let us know and we will help you out!
You can learn a little about our presenters by clicking on their name to get to their bio.
All access pass to the 13 sessions for just $50. Save $80! What a bargain! If you want access to all the classes, choose this link. After your donation is made, you will be emailed the website and password for the page with all the registration links. You will need to register for each webinar that you care to attend. If you miss a class, they are being recorded and you will have access to those recordings!
Session 1: So you think you want to run for office? Led by Eva Bermudez Zimmerman. March 4th at 6:30 PM
This session will kick us off and is the perfect introduction to running for office. Eva will cover the basics to get you started no matter what office you are interested in winning this fall! You will get some time to chat with Eva and other participants on the broader aspects of running for local office.
Session 2: VAN 101. Led by Bill Hopf. March 5th at 6:30 PM.
Learn how to use the powerful VAN database and the voter data it contains. Explain the role of data in campaign decisions and illustrate how it is used to target voters of value. Bill will provide you with the tools you need to understand voting data and how to use the database to your benefit.
Session 3: Campaign messaging and getting those voters to YES! Led by Jonathan Perloe. March 6th at 9:30 am.
Learn how to develop a messaging strategy that distinguishes the candidate from others and presents the candidate’s platform in a compelling way, to get voters to listen and vote “yes.” You’ll leave with some practical tools for developing effective campaign communications.
Session 4: Content Operations. Led by Andrew Gausepohl. March 6th at 11:00 am.
Learn the nuts and bolts of the various different ingredients that make up your campaign and ways to keep your messaging tight across all your volunteers. Andrew will make sure you have a broader understanding of how a municipal campaign comes together for victory at the polls!
Session 5: Branding/marketing: using printed materials and other collateral in a political campaign. Led by Dave Stowe. March 11th, 6:30 pm.
Dave will help you explore the importance of branding in any campaign, teaching you how to effectively use branding in your campaign materials. You will learn about all of the options when it comes to signs, graphics, printed materials and other collateral, and all of the important considerations in using those tools.
Session 6: Design A Compelling Political Website. Led by John Girard. March 12th. 6:30 pm.
Attendees will learn to assess the quality and usability of websites. Many examples will be shown to illustrate the ways that information can be presented so that visitors will stay on your pages and benefit from your information. There will be an overview of the steps needed to design, build and maintain a website, as well as to create links to social media. Attendees will receive pre-seminar reading as well as post-seminar links to helpful information.
Session 7: Mini-VAN 101. Led by Bill Hopf. March 13th, 9:30 am.
No, its not a way to drag the kids around door knocking! Bill will walk you through the mobile use of the VAN database and how to make sure the results of you and your volunteers who are out there talking to voters gets into the database so that your campaign can follow up on leads and make sure your voters get to the polls!
Session 8: Framing Our Language to Connect With Voters: Make Your Words Matter. Led by John Girard and Janet Epstein. March 13th, 11:00 am.
In order to win hearts, minds and votes, we need to use all our skills and talents to communicate our values and our agendas for change. Learning and practicing framing templates, models of frames and metaphors, you will be able to speak and write more intentional and effective messages and narratives to connect with your various audiences. You will receive additional information and resources to expand your communications skills.
Session 9: Local Fundraising. Led by Jimmy Tickey. March 18th, 6:30 pm.
Fundraising doesn’t have to be daunting! Learn to set a campaign budget and then raise funds needed to achieve your campaign goals – including winning the race! Municipal races are a little different than state campaigns and Jimmy will help make it less scary for you and your campaign team.
Session 10: Do you know what a WIN number is? Led by Eva Bermudez-Zimmerman. March 20th, 9:30 am.
Eva will help you learn how to figure out that magic number that will guide you to victory in November and demystify what it really means to your campaign. You will learn about field basics and developing a plan to get you to that number in November.
Session 11: Social Media: A Deep Dive. Led by Andrew Gausepohl. March 20th 11:00 am.
Social media, love it or hate it, it’s a part of campaigning. Andrew will help you understand how the major apps work and how to use the algorithms to your advantage and get your message out to voters.
Session 12: Direct Mail and Integrated Marketing in Political Campaigns. Led by Dave Stowe. March 25th. 6:30 pm.
Dave will lead you into a deep dive of the considerations when using direct mail as a campaign tool, including sizes, materials, design, timing, planing, postage, vendors and more. You will learn about integrated campaigns, layering digital technologies onto direct mail campaigns for a coordinated and enhanced impact.
Session 13: Master the art of door knocking and phone calling. Led by Prerna Rao. March 27th, 11:00 am
Take the awkwardness out of the best ways to talk to voters! Prerna will show you tried and true ways to have those basic conversations with voters and get your message out there.
Session 14: VAN 102 – Led by Bill Hopf – March 19th, 6:30 PM
A continuation of VAN 101 (not a prerequisite). I will work together with the attendees to create a universe from which we will create a Virtual Phone Bank (VPB) and then cut turf for door knocking through MiniVan.
Among the topics of discussion will be:
- Logic used to choose which cohorts of voters to include in the campaign’s universe of targets
- Logical path used to include those voters within the VAN
- The attributes the VAN has that enable our targeting of the voters we want
- Factors governing turf cutting (you may have wondered when out knocking doors)
- The reporting capabilities of the VAN