Voter Outreach: How much is too much?
Tuesday, Nov. 6 is Election Day. Sadly, for a large majority of Americans, the day passes with little notice. For many voters, a city council seat or local bond referendum is not worth the effort to cast a vote.
If there was an election in your town, did you hear from the candidates or from those supporting or opposing the referendum? How many times did you hear from the campaign? Did you vote?
Chances are you got a flyer in the mail, a phone call, listened to an ad on the radio, or saw one in the newspaper. Local campaigns are on small budget, and the candidates or organizations have difficulty breaking through the "clutter" to motivate voters to action. An old rule of advertising says you have to reach the prospective buyer seven times before they remember your product; but is 7 times enough to earn a vote? What about 10 or 25 contacts? The right answer is yes, if you can afford it.
As a local Association, member, or interested citizen you can start now to influence voters by next election. You can work with or independently of a campaign to contact voters and get them to the polls. Educating and encouraging voters over and over can seem like you are annoying voters instead, but that contact is the reason 10 term incumbents lose and cities pass bonds to buy farmland.
Below are five ways to contact voters. After you have read these over, please take a moment to send us your favorite means of contacting voters, both directly and indirectly. We will compile a top ten list to be published in the next issue of NAHB State & Local Reporter, and begin to lay out a voter strategy for implementation in the 2008 issues.
• Literature Drop: you and your friends leaflet each house without a dog.
• Paid phone calls: telemarketing firm calls a lot of voters with your message.
• Lawn signs: do the most signs win?
• House parties: free coffee and cake always helps get a vote.
• Walking door to door: every candidate’s weight loss plan.
Remember, all those pre-election TV ads and phone calls may drive you crazy, but they also lead to higher voter turnout. Make sure you contact voters to ensure that your candidate will be elected to bring about economic growth, safe streets, and a city council majority.
Please send your favorite means of voter contact to Karl Eckhart at keckhart@nahb.com, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8126.
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