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What Does it Take to Get Legislative Staff to Remember Your Information? How to Prevent “Senior Moments” Among Legislative Staff
Those of you who have hired us for our grassroots advocacy workshops know about the prevalence and power of heuristic persuasion techniques, as well as how to combat heuristic decision making on the part of legislators and their staff. Kristina Miler (not Miller) of the University of Illinois is one of the first researchers to examine how "political and legislative elites" use heuristics to recall information presented by constituents. All grassroots professionals and lobbyists should be aware of Miler’s findings.
Heuristics are mental shortcuts, and their use is rooted firmly in the psychological literature. Heuristics are an efficient way for anyone to make decisions (although there are of course disadvantages to this approach), and legislators and their staff are no different than the rest of us humans when it comes to using mental shortcuts. This research sought to find out what factors encourage legislative staff to use heuristics in recalling information from constituents.
Miler conducted research with 41 congressional offices. Her team interviewed legislative staff who were responsible for environmental issues, as the issue in question was a legislative proposal affecting wetlands policy. The study sample of congressional offices was selected to represent current political party, seniority, region and committee membership structures.
Their findings are below. Please remember as you review this list that it relates to information recall only - it is only one part of the persuasion puzzle. (Of which my colleague Dr. Kelton Rhoads has determined there are not "6 easy principles" or "10 tips", but rather about 100 tactics you can use depending on the situation and influence prospect. Successful influence is customized!)
How do "legislative elites" recall your information?
- Frequently presented information is more easily recalled.
- Familiarity of the issue as it relates to major constituent groups is more easily recalled.
- Issue salience. The more vivid the issue, the more it is, in the researcher's words, "overvalued" by staff, which is why it’s more easily remembered.
- Pre-existing attitudes - Is the information being presented consistent with the staffer’s belief system? If so, staffers judge the information as more important and also "overvalue" it.
- Numbers matter - the numbers of constituents affected in each district makes staff more likely to recall information about an issue.
The human mind operates the same whether you are a lawmaker, legislative staffer, or grassroots influencer. People use heuristics to recall information, because it makes life easier. And busy, harried "legislative elites" probably resort to heuristics more than other professionals, simply because of the volume of information they filter.
The bottom line? Remember that your audience uses heuristics to recall information, which can impact decision making. If they can’t easily remember your information, you’ll have to spend more time and effort to be heard.
If you suspect your information isn’t being taken into consideration with "legislative elites," engage in vivid communications (translation: proximity). Demonstrate that your organization is indeed a "major constituent group." Communicate frequently. And, if possible, find a value match with your information and the person you are trying to persuade.
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11 Strategy Questions You Have to Answer Before You Build Your Grassroots and PAC Capacity
I am seeing a lot of turn-key tools for grassroots professionals who need to give their grassroots volunteers something to do. I agree that volunteers need to have clear direction on the best activities to build awareness of your issue and your organization before elected officials and opinion leaders. However, doing that in absence of a strategy simply takes us farther along the "activity without results" road.
People tend to make strategy harder than it needs to be. Nevertheless, the reality is that strategy is about future-oriented vision and it’s also about actionable, tactical things. There are several questions that move logically from the first to the last that can help you develop strategy which leads to appropriate grassroots advocacy plans and tactics which lead to results, not just activity for activity’s sake.
Have you asked your team (key volunteers and staff) and yourself:
1. What are our "big picture" aspirations for our grassroots organization or PAC?
2. What are the goals against which we can measure those aspirations?
3. Across our many audiences, stakeholders, and customers, who might engage in our issue?
4. Where will we choose to play and not play?
5. In our chosen playground, who is our competition? How will we win against them? (Too many government relations professionals take knives into gunfights.)
6. Based on our playgrounds and our opponents, what capabilities do we need to build to win?
7. What management systems and reinforcements are necessary to operate in this new reality, to maintain these new capabilities?
8. How do we get buy-in at all levels? Remember - it’s about exemplars, not banners in the halls.
9. How do we communicate the new vision to all internal stakeholders?
10. How will we measure communication effectiveness?
11. What is success, and how will we measure it?
Many organizations start at the top with some kind of mission or vision exercise that drives people crazy because it’s extremely difficult to create a meaningful vision in the absence of an idea of where you want to play and how you’re going to win. This is why those conversations tend to be very circuitous and people can’t agree on much.
Probably any mission or vision will do if you don’t give thought to where you’ll play or how you’ll win...so think of where you will engage and how you will achieve success.
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From Concern to Cooperation: How to Use Grassroots and Lobbying to Build Your PAC
While some look for a "silver bullet" to raise PAC funds, we sometimes forget that it’s many things, rather than one thing, that changes a PAC’s bank account. A constant dilemma among PAC professionals is how to advance the PAC when the organizational culture has been averse to it at worst, and at best, ambivalent.
I heard some good news from a client, Micah Intermill, Director of Advocacy for the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA). Micah, along with his colleagues Maribeth Bersani, Senior Vice President of Public Policy, and Paul Williams, Director of Public Policy & State Affiliate Relations, have facilitated an attitude change in ALFA member’s attitudes toward the PAC.
The result? A 400% increase in members who sign prior authorization forms, an 800% increase in the number of lobby day participants, an almost 600% increase in PAC receipts, and members who understand the value of the Public Policy department.
I interviewed Micah to find out how they did it.
Q: Describe the PAC challenges you and the team were facing:
The assisted living industry is regulated by the states, there's not a lot of federal legislation, so our members hadn't requested us to have a huge federal presence. We also have a competing trade association and they were ahead of us relative to PAC engagement. Our members didn’t see why they needed to contribute to two PACs.
And of course, some of our members felt that "PACs were evil."
Q: What were you doing that wasn’t working?
We did have a bit of an obsession over trying to get prior approval forms signed. We got so used to hearing "no" that we just stopped asking.
Using some of your materials you created for us, we found that an incremental approach to their involvement was what led to greater acceptance. We started to focus on getting more money from where we already had strong support.
Q: You mentioned that emphasizing other aspects of political involvement helped grow the PAC. How?
We started to concentrate on creating and promoting a D.C. lobby day that would emphasize the importance of grassroots and their federal lobbying work - not the PAC.
One particularly vocal member was firmly in the other camp - he didn’t see the value of taking a day to go to D.C. and meet with legislators. He said that he'd been to those events before and he didn't think they were valuable and that he "was not optimistic" about the upcoming event. But he did attend.
Through the cooperation of key members and staff we were able to execute a good event that made people see the value of the grassroots and the lobbying function which in turn helped them see the importance of the PAC. It was an example of the cliché that "a rising tide lifts all boats."
In fact, we had an 800% increase in lobby day attendance.
Q: How did your members respond to the event?
We saw a 400% increase in the number of member companies who signed their prior approval forms. One converted member said, "It's clear to me that ALFA has turned the corner," meaning that we had finally proven the need for more PAC involvement.
I really believe that demonstrating the value and effectiveness of your lobbying and grassroots will help build your PAC.
The bottom line: Strive for excellence in all three disciplines in the political involvement function, rather than emphasizing your favorite functions. Each one can advance the others.
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In addition to our client workshops and keynote speeches, Dr. Rhoads and I deliver several pro bono workshops and panel presentations each year. Here are updates from a couple I delivered recently.
I had a ball with the American League of Lobbyists on July 21st. I delivered a workshop entitled "It’s What You Say AND How You Say It: Creating Persuasive Messages for Legislative Victory."
The live and uncut bottom line: We’ve had our share of learning moments where messages that we thought were sure to resonate did not, which is why you have to test, test, and test again your messages if you want to win. It’s never about us, it’s about our audience. Don’t let your personal bias result in messages that neglect where your audience is, rather than where you think they are.
"Thank you for your expertise, and the clear and cogent way you present the issues. It was a fabulous seminar!"
Segundo Mercado-Llorens
"I have heard nothing but glowing comments, thank you!"
Patti Jo Baber
American League of Lobbyists
On July 16th, I was one of three presenters on a panel about grassroots transparency. David Gordon of WeGov.com shared with the audience his impressive new tools for grassroots engagement, and shared the "ugly truth" about the grassroots technology business.
Chris McCrosky of Rockfish Interactive and Tweet Congress told the audience who the best and worst Congressional tweeters are and why.
As for me, I reminded the pro’s that:
- Lack of transparency by your opponents is a gift. When it happens, do the victory dance.
- To prevent your volunteers from going off your reservation, be transparent with them - give them both sides of the issue. This is rule #1 in the corporate grassroots world.
- Treat your volunteers right. Many just want you to listen.
And, remember that it’s not the end of western civilization if and when they go off message. It’s grassroots.
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Mark your calendars for February 9-11, 2011, in San Antonio at the Hotel Contessa on the San Antonio Riverwalk!
We will start Tuesday evening, February 9th, with a new salon format which you don't want to miss. Also stay tuned for our first ever "Political Science Fair." We'll also continue to give back. Our 2011 community service option is an opportunity for conference attendees to volunteer at the USO in downtown San Antonio the morning of Friday, February 12th.
Thanks to our 2011 Co-Chairs, Meredith Hartstern of Harrah's Entertainment, Kari Lantos of NAFSA, and Carrie Schneider of CMS Energy, as well as our hard working Advisory Committee, who have already created the themes and direction for the 2011 curriculum. Stay tuned for more updates! |
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Research Reviews
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Amy Live and Uncut
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