Mobilising your supporters

Who are your supporters and what will they do for you?

Generating and maintaining support for your campaign is a key element that will need to be factored into your campaign planning. There are many methods that you can use to recruit supporters and your organisations may already have members / service users / stakeholders that you can seek support from. Social Media is also a powerful way to recruit support and publicity for your campaign and we will be developing an information sheet specifically about this in due course. Once you have some supporters you need to consider what you will ask them to do for you.

Some people who support you will be very committed to working with you on your campaign and will be willing to dedicate their time to undertaking campaigning activities. Others will be just as supportive but have less time. There will also be those who are happy to add their name to a petition or write to a Politician but would not be willing to attend meetings or demonstrations. It is important to be able to make the most of whatever is on offer from your supporters and many Campaigning experts suggest that a good way to do this is to categorise them.

NCVO’s ‘The Good Campaigns Guide' suggests that you segment your supporters into:

Advocates – this might only be a small proportion of your supporter base, but as they are highly committed they can act as ambassadors and have a significant impact.

Supporters – this will be a larger group, and while not having the same level of commitment as the advocates, they will be willing to take action periodically.

Joiners – this is likely to be an even larger group. While they will be sympathetic to your cause, they might not have the time, or simply do not want to actually get involved in something they see as too ‘political’. But they are still useful supporters to engage, as they may sign petitions, donate to your campaign, or even write to decision makers in support of your campaign.

While segmenting might sound like a complex process, it can be done simply. In sign-up leaflets, through your website mailing list or other resources and materials you use, you can simply give people different options about how they can get or stay involved.

Some activities that you could ask your supporters to undertake on your behalf are:

  • Telephone campaigning

  • Door to door canvassing

  • Writing letters / emails

  • Lobbying their elected representatives

  • Signing and generating support for a petition

  • Holding local meetings and events

  • Recruiting other supporters

If you have a large enough number of supporters or think that you have the potential to attract more via good media coverage or effective networks / partnerships you could consider an event or protest. Some of these include:

    • Public Meetings / Demonstration

    • Vigils

    • Stunts

    • Street Theatre

    • Sit Ins

    • Marches

Whatever activity you ask your supporters to undertake it is essential that they are given information, support and feedback. Developing and cultivating your relationship with your supporters can be as essential to your success as developing your relationship with your campaign target. It is also worth remembering that your campaign may well be one which is aimed at raising public awareness or changing public behaviour in which case generating support amongst "real people" is an essential component for your campaign. Never underestimate how far a good supporter base can carry you – it worked for Barack Obama!