Technology and Alternative Politics

One of the most powerful tools in the arsenal of any political campaign is e-mail. E-mail serves a number of useful functions at a fraction of the cost of traditional mail and a fraction of the time that phone calls require. Every campaign should be prepared to set up and maintain several different lists that serve different purposes.

The first is a volunteer/staff list that will be used by the campaign manager and volunteer coordinator to communicate with the troops, coordinate activities, and get feedback. The second is the media contact list mentioned above. The third is a list of current and former donors. The quality of that list will vary from organization to organization, but the ability to respond to changing needs by quickly raising strategically targeted funds can be the difference between winning and losing, particularly late in the campaign season. An effective fund-raising e-mail will include a link directly to the campaign website's donation page, will highlight how previous funds were used, and will demonstrate to the potential donor what their donation will be funding. In other words, keep it simple and specific.