It seems like every email I ever get from a Democratic candidate, elected official or organization asks for money. Even now, after the election, I get emails asking for money. What a waste. I stopped opening them months ago because I already knew what they were going to say. I even went back and looked this morning and they haven’t changed. “Please chip in.” What a bad use of this channel. No doubt, there are example of effective use of email. Unfortunately, I don’t get any of those.
Email isn’t dead, either. There are lots of other channels that are just as important, but don’t tell me email is waste of time – except of course if all you do is ask for money.
I live in Florida. The GOP here have adopted a message that Democrats are socialists and communists and will destroy the economy and everyone’s livelihood if they take control of government. Trump just reiterated this talking point last night in Georgia. The Dems response was lacking, to put it mildly. Where is the messaging that builds awareness for what the Democratic Party stands for? Knowledge is power. Educating people about the issues and the solutions would change the dynamic. It would lead to discussion and debate. In a real discussion about what Democrats stand for, a blanket label of “socialism” and “communism” would quickly fall apart. Democrats stand for protecting Social Security, Medicare, public education, livable wages and more – and so do the majority of Americans.
Email is one of the channels that can explain this, keep subscribers informed and model how conversions about these topics can be handled around the dinner table and in other places and situations.
There is a time and a place to ask for money. Spend a month sending emails that focus on what the Democratic Party stands for and then ask for money. See what happens!
Before someone will give you money, they have to want to do it. Sure, there are a small percentage of people on any email list that have already made it to that point and are receptive. However, the vast majority of your email list has probably deleted the email seconds after opening it, if they even did.
Technology allows you to send different emails to different people. So, think about how that would change the outcome. To not use this technology is being lazy.
Think about all the steps someone would need to go through before they open their wallet: they become aware of the party, they learn about the party, they become familiar with the issues, they decided to the get involve, THEN they decide to give. An email strategy should be based on this evolution of a prospective donor.
Finally, this isn’t just about email. This is about all communication channels. Email is just the worst of them. And what about radio? Why does the GOP get to own radio? That is another conversation. These “old” channels are still truly relevant. They are alive and well and have kept up with the technology that drives all of the “newer” channels in their own way. Time to play ball.