Robo Calls

Robo Calls for political campaigns can work if done properly. Robo calling is a very powerful and inexpensive medium candidates use to target specific voters. However, it is also the part of the campaign that receives the least attention and is generally thrown together at the last minute with little attention to strategy or detail.

That's why robo calls are a two edged sword. They can easily backfire on candidates who fail to plan, or use the technology in ways potential voters find offensive or intrusive. Some studies indicate that robo calls have little effect on the final vote, however, many candidates swear by robo calls for helping them get elected, especially when responding to last minute attacks. Robo calls used in conjunction with direct mail can increase a candidate's name recognition substantially in a very short period of time. One survey for a candidate indicated his name recognition rose from 20% to 50% in two weeks using a robo call to alert voters that a mailing was forthcoming, sending a mailer, and then following up with a second robo call reminding voters to read the mailing.

Your success all depends on how you use robo call technology. For example, it's no wonder that voters would be annoyed receiving campaign calls at dinner time. No one likes to have their private time interrupted. So why do ill-advised political candidates place their campaign calls at the worst hour, no doubt losing votes in the process? Who knows? The preferred time to send your recorded message out is during the day between 10am and 3pm. That way, your robo calls are delivered to answering machines (70% of the American population is NOT home during the day) and voters can listen to the message at their convenience, and without having their dinner interrupted.

All of this sounds like common sense, but again, little attention or thought is given this portion of the campaign. If used properly, robo calling can be the most efficient and cost effective way to get your message to the voters.

The keys to a successful political robo call campaign are the following:

1) List preparation. Preparing your phone list is critically important. Where are you going to get your list? Usually the Elections Board will give or sell you a list of names and phone numbers of the registered voters. If not, there are private companies that will provide your list. Then, what voters do you want to call? Just voters in your own party, or everyone? What about just calling the "prime voters" who have voted in the past two elections -- they are the ones who no doubt turn out on Election Day? Those decisions have to be made. Once you determine who you're going to be calling, then you need to properly format your list in a spreadsheet, making sure that the area codes and phone numbers are in the same column.

2) Recording your message. What are you going to say? Will you be introducing yourself to the voters, or do they already know you? Will you be talking about a specific issue or responding to an attack by your opponent? How long will your message be? The rule of thumb is that your message should be no longer than 30 seconds. More often than not, you'll be working with a professional robo call company that will be able to record your message right over the phone. Here is an example of a get out the vote robo call that would work well. "Hi, this is Mike Fletcher. I wanted to call and personally thank you and the entire community for the tremendous support you've given me during the campaign for state legislator. Together, we can make government more efficient and accountable and I look forward to working with you. Again, this is Mike Fletcher, reminding you to vote tomorrow on Election Day. I appreciate the opportunity to serve you."

3) Timing. Do not send your robo calls out during dinner time or football games. The best time to deliver robo calls is during the day for the purpose of leaving as many calls on answering machines as possible. Most professional robo call delivery services will have the technology that can intuitively identify the difference between a live person answering the call, and an answering machine or voice mail. The system will know enough to wait for the beep to leave a message. If a live person answers, the system will play your message immediately.

4) Payment. If you are familiar with working with candidates and campaigns, you'll know that all political work is prepaid. Vendors can charge several different ways. For example, some charge by the number of phone numbers on your list, regardless of how many messages are actually delivered. Other vendors will charge you only for the delivered calls and by the time it takes to deliver them. So be careful. A vendor may charge you 2 cents per number which may sound less expensive than someone charging you 5 cents per delivered message. However, it might actually be more expensive because you are paying for calls that will never get through to busies, no answers or disconnected numbers. Paying per 30 second message delivered is probably your best bet because you are paying for what gets through, no more or less.

There are a number of other "tricks of the trade" a professional can help with. To be sure, working with an experienced vendor can make it not only easy to send robo calls, but will provide you ever possible opportunity to maximize the effectiveness of your robo call campaign. The more you do to make it a part of your campaign, and less of a last minute and rushed job, the better your chances will be to see victory on election night.