5 Advocacy Examples to Inspire Action and Motivate Change
Advocacy has the power to make a difference. Take your campaign to the next level by studying these top five examples of successful advocacy...
Effective advocacy campaigns can drive real change. Learn how to launch a successful grassroots campaign with these tips and best practices.
Everyone can create positive change by taking action, and coordinated advocacy campaigns help like-minded individuals gather together to make a bigger difference than they could have done alone. Advocacy campaigns have evolved in recent years. New grassroots advocacy groups need to educate themselves on the core principles of advocacy work to find a voice in the public arena.
Advocacy occurs at many different levels, is conducted by many different groups, and can support change in many different ways. Advocacy campaigns can seem complicated at first, and it’s essential to know where your organization stands before launching your campaign.
For grassroots groups, nonprofits, and associations interested in starting an advocacy campaign, this guide aims to answer core questions new activists have and provide guidance for how to get started planning your campaign. In the rest of this article, we’ll explore:
Knowing how to take your cause online can determine your campaign’s overall reach and impact. Many foundational tenets of effective advocacy have remained the same, and passionate organizations can empower their members to have a voice in public policy with the right tools and support. Let’s get started.
Advocacy campaigns are organized movements focused on influencing political change and driving awareness around issues at the local, state, or national level. Most advocacy campaigns are made up of a few leaders who organize a larger body of supporters. These leadership teams are responsible for everything from contacting elected officials and holding rallies to informing the public about the policies they seek to change.
Advocacy campaigns look different based on who is running them. For instance, there are common misconceptions over the difference between grassroots activists and lobbyists:
Influencing change is difficult, but advocacy campaigns can succeed in changing how elected officials vote by rallying large groups of their constituents to express how specific pieces of policy impact their lives. Successful advocacy campaigns have the potential to positively impact the lives of real people and encourage politicians to listen to the people they represent.
Grassroots advocacy campaigns require dedicated organizational practices to stay focused and find success. This means advocacy groups that intend to run multiple advocacy campaigns will need to keep careful track of their fundraising and resource allocation throughout the entirety of their campaign.
Remember that even the most tightly run advocacy campaigns may not always accomplish all of their goals. However, these advocacy groups do set themselves up for the best chance at future success if they invest in their supporters, their technology, and tracking their campaigns’ data.
Advocacy campaigns have several stages and moving parts. This section will explore a few fundamentals of how to plan an effective advocacy campaign, providing advice on how your advocacy group can get your campaign started off on the right foot.
Your message needs to be communicated to two audiences: your supporters and the elected officials you plan to reach out to. Before joining up with your campaign, supporters will want to know what your advocacy campaign represents. The mission statement you present to them will also serve as a launching-off point for the message you send to elected officials.
While you already have a cause in mind, putting your exact mission into words that will attract and engage supporters throughout your campaign can be a challenge. Before writing your message, ask yourself the following questions:
Your answer to this question will determine who your advocates are. Your messages will need to be specific to allow your audience to understand your goal and what success will look like for your advocacy campaign.
However, hyper-specific messages can alienate supporters or cause confusion. Further messages for advocates who have already signed on can elaborate on the details of your cause, but your initial messages should aim for a broader audience.
People rarely make decisions solely based on facts and statistics. Effective storytelling has the potential to intrigue supporters and keep them emotionally invested in your advocacy campaign, even through slow periods.
You can share stories with supporters through your website or in outreach materials. Additionally, getting your advocates used to telling stories about their relationship with your cause will benefit your campaign in the long run when they reach out to elected officials.
Many advocacy campaigns are conducted by organizations and associations that intend to continue operating after their campaign’s end. Crafting goals that encourage long-term support have the potential to engage supporters for longer and help with re-recruitment for your next advocacy campaign.
Centering your overall business goals will also help you reach a needed level of specificity for smaller goals. Your mission will likely be a broader statement about the positive change your organization seeks to create, while your business goals may relate to organizational objectives such as increasing supporter engagement and retention.
Before you can start advocating, you’ll need to assemble a leadership team and attract supporters to your cause. Advocacy campaigns require expansive outreach and can last for months or even years, making forming a core support base essential for the survival and success of any advocacy group.
Your leadership team will consist of a few key individuals who will help coordinate your larger base of activists. How many people you have in each position will depend on the size of your organization and your campaign’s overall scale. Most advocacy organizations will assemble a team with the following roles:
Finding experienced individuals to fill each of these roles can be a challenge. For new organizations, consider reaching out to activists who have participated in leadership roles in other campaigns to join your team or gain advice on how to overcome common challenges.
No matter the level your campaign operates on, the larger your supporter base, the better. Constituents contacting their representatives in massive numbers can’t be ignored, increasing your campaign’s likelihood of seeing the change you want.
Of course, forming, training, and retaining a large supporter base is easier said than done. Fortunately, advocacy software can help your campaign team stay organized as you funnel supporters into action both on and offline:
It’s exciting to see your supporter base grow, but it can also become overwhelming without proper organizational measures. Your team can maintain consistent communication with supporters by using your advocacy software to create segmented lists and specific messages for each campaign.
Advocacy campaigns are often marathons rather than sprints, which means your organization will need to make careful choices about when and how you put your activists to work. Creating an action plan doesn’t happen overnight, and the specifics will depend on your organization’s resources and goals, as well as any deadlines you might have to contend with.
While your organization will have to iron out the details based on your current needs and operating capacity, here are a few best practices that will apply to most advocacy groups outlining their campaign:
As you plan your campaign, keep in mind the preparation that will need to take place before major activities and outreach efforts. For example, if you decide to hold a rally, make sure to schedule in the time to contact supporters about when and where your rally will take place so they can pencil it into their calendars ahead of time.
Bonus: Before powering your campaign with advocacy software, make sure you're investing in the right solution. Explore Muster's eBook, 10 Factors to Consider Before Purchasing Advocacy Software, to learn more.
Advocacy software plays a key role both off and online in advocacy campaigns. An advocacy group’s digital strategy can encompass everything from social media to email marketing, web design, writing, and more. Advancements in advocacy technology have fundamentally transformed how advocacy groups engage their supporters and participate in the legislative process. To demonstrate how effective use of advocacy software can transform a campaign, here are three organizations that found success after investing in the right advocacy software platform for them:
As a growing statewide advocacy organization, The James River Association (JRA) needed widespread support before approaching state legislators about the importance of keeping the James River clean.
Starting with an advocacy network of just 100 supporters, the JRA would rapidly expand by leveraging advocacy software’s power to create customized calls to action and engaging social media outreach campaigns. The JRA would ultimately increase its support base to over 1,700 members, empowering them to launch targeted advocacy campaigns at the local, state, and federal levels.
The association representing opticians in the state of Florida had to get moving fast. A surprise bill had been introduced that posed a risk to their profession and its members. Professional Opticians of Florida started with no organized online advocacy software and, within 90 days, sent over 10,000 messages to elected officials in Florida.
With the investment in advocacy software, Professional Opticians of Florida saw member engagement go through the roof—with highly coordinated outreach and advocacy campaigns. The timely adoption of advocacy software led to the bill they were opposing failing.
Before investing in advocacy software, the Virginia College of Emergency Physicians (VACEP) had little time to devote to the policy changes they believed in and had spent years trying to overturn harmful legislation.
VACEP saw its engagement rate skyrocket to almost 90% of its membership base by implementing advocacy software’s landing pages and calls to action. This outpouring of support led to the legislation VACEP had opposed for so long finally being overturned. Today, VACEP’s advocacy software has empowered them to run multiple advocacy campaigns at once to support policies that protect patients and physicians.
Advocacy campaigns of 2024 look quite different from those of 2014. Today, advocacy campaigns are expected to use a comprehensive digital strategy to support their cause, making advocacy software necessary for campaigns to reach their true online potential.
As mentioned, advocacy software helps your team coordinate supporters across multiple campaigns, reach a wider audience than is possible through traditional means, and maintain a detailed overview of your campaign from start to finish.
Nonprofit advocacy groups stand to gain even more by incorporating advocacy software into their tech stack. Advocacy software that integrates with your nonprofit’s fundraising platform can help maximize contributions from donors and allow nonprofits to grow their networks through their advocacy support base.
Purchasing and teaching your team how to use your advocacy software is an investment of time and money. While the benefits are well worth the upfront costs, your organization should research all of your options to make sure you make the right choice the first time. To help your organization start its advocacy software search, here are a few must-have features and a review of the top provider, Muster.
Different advocacy software providers focus on various aspects of advocacy software. This means that while you can trust most options will come with basic features, each solution will focus on those features to varying degrees.
As you evaluate software candidates, here is a checklist of features to look out for:
As you review advocacy software, note these features and other key considerations such as cost and scalability. Some software solutions may fit your organization’s current needs but fail to adapt as your movement grows in size.
Muster’s suite of advocacy software tools enables grassroots organizations to grow their supporter networks, keep their campaigns organized, and implement their outreach campaigns. In addition to offering scalable advocacy tools that apply to organizations operating at every level, Muster prioritizes ease of use, allowing even new advocacy groups to attract and mobilize their supporter base quickly.
Here are just a few of Muster’s extensive advocacy features that can help your organization launch your next advocacy campaign:
These features, combined with Muster’s reporting capabilities, allow grassroots organizations to monitor every part of their campaign’s outreach. Use Muster to contact your supporters, track their engagement, and see your campaign succeed.
Advocacy campaigns have the potential to make a positive impact at every level, whether your organization operates across the country or is a local, growing grassroots movement. Cultivate supporters, invest in necessary resources, and build an action plan to set your grassroots organization up for success with each campaign you launch.
Advocacy is a constantly evolving field, so stay on top of recent developments by continually reading and researching best practices for campaigns like yours. Here are a few resources that provide insight into how to improve your next campaign:
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