Advocacy starts with passion and a desire to create change, but success requires strategy. One of the most important steps is identifying a team of individuals and organizations that can speak with one voice.
If you’re just starting out, or if your current advocacy efforts aren’t gaining traction, it’s a great time to pause and think about your allies.
Throughout my career, I’ve seen examples of partners representing industry, government and the nonprofit sector working together to accomplish goals. How do you assemble the most effective network?
Here are five strategies for finding and mobilizing champions for your cause:
Research and Evaluate
Partners are essential in advocacy, but they must be a good fit:
- Who has spoken in support of the issue or similar issues in the past? Are there opportunities for alignment?
- Who is currently engaged in conversations about the issue on social media? What is their message? What tactics are they using? How effective is their reach?
- Are there existing coalitions? Is it more strategic to join them or to create a new one?
- What resources do potential collaborators have? How do your resources align?
- Are there any pitfalls in joining other coalitions regarding funding, policies, relationships or past activities that might negatively impact your reputation or brand?
Answering these questions will help you evaluate potential allies.
Consider Nontraditional Partners
Increasingly, I’m seeing public-private partnerships between diverse stakeholders who might have proprietary issues but see an overarching goal that can be accomplished.
In Florida, for example, the Alliance for Access to Cancer Care, composed of patients, physicians, caregivers, health care organizations, businesses and elected officials, improved patient access to orally administered treatments.
Although there are issues on which pharmaceutical industry and healthcare advocacy groups may never align, there are some natural fits. Step out of your comfort zone and think about where you might collaborate with a nontraditional partner.
Look Within
Successful advocacy means enlisting the power of internal and external champions whose unified voice adds credibility to your cause. Employee advocacy can be one of your most powerful tools. Employees know your story better than anyone and wield strong credibility.
Equipping employees to tell your story in their own circles of influence will have a ripple effect. More people today look toward their family and friends for advice on the products they purchase and the causes they support. These conversations often take place on social media.
Make social media sharing easy by supplying messages and graphics for communications campaigns and adding “share” buttons to web sites. Embrace, don’t fear, the use of social media. Empowering your employees as the “face” of your cause will supercharge your campaign.
Identify ‘Real People’
If your advocacy is to be successful, you must demonstrate impact through personal stories.
Talk to activists, business colleagues and advocacy organizations to identify people willing to share their experiences. Create a database of these potential supporters.
The story of one person can be more powerful than anything else. I share an example of this in my book:
An advocacy group I was working with scheduled a meeting with the chairman of the last committee assigned to a bill before it would move to the floor. Due to unfortunate timing, the chairman only had three minutes to speak while en route to the committee meeting.
Instead of sharing facts and figures, we shared the story of “Gary” and the impact the legislation would have on him. Minutes later, as we took our seats in the committee room, the chairman began, “Now committee members, let me tell you a story about my friend, Gary.”
The legislation passed unanimously.
Focus on Grassroots and Grasstops
A well-organized campaign uses grassroots and grasstops strategies.
A grassroots approach mobilizes a large number of supporters who share your message in an effort to demonstrate widespread support. A grasstops effort identifies key leaders and influencers and makes the case directly to them.
Communication through letters, emails, phone calls and social media (grassroots) reinforces conversations with elected officials and opinion leaders (grasstops). Integrating these two approaches will give you a powerful edge.
Identifying elected officials and other leaders to engage requires research. Start by familiarizing yourself with policymakers’ backgrounds and voting records to determine their interest.
Now, Make the Call
Once you have done your research and have a clear vision of what you want to accomplish, start conversations that could lead to collaboration.
Be ready to communicate your vision and explain how joining the effort will lead to success. Using these tips, you can engage others so you don’t have to go it alone.