Auto-Calls can work: If they’re informative, believable, and concise, you can get a message delivered effectively with an Automated Call.
People get turned off by auto calls that are too long and don’t have a clear message. The average person will listen for 21 seconds so you need to make sure you front-load the important information.
Here are some ways Auto-Calls have worked for our clients:
Event Attendance
Auto-Calls help to maintain contact with constituents, supporters, and donors. They are especially useful when trying to reach previously identified supporters to quickly get people to a rally, to donate, or to help canvass.
In our experience, Auto-Calls have drastically increased attendance at events. When planning an event at the last minute, or even with ample notice, Auto-Calls serve as a quick way to target a large number of people and invite them to attend. From rallies to fundraisers, this works for every kind of event.
Listen to the Auto-Call recordings from United States Senator Chris Murphy and Compassion & Choices. Both calls were successful in increasing attendance to their events.
Messaging
If you’re trying to target a specific group of voters, you’ve found your answer with Auto-Calls. Auto-Calls are great for driving home or reinforcing a message.
Complementing A Mail Piece or Ad
It’s always more effective when people hear things in more than one way. Auto-Calls can stand alone, but they’re a smart way to complement direct mail pieces and campaign ads.
Check out how Build Cincinnati’s Future used an Auto-Call to complement a campaign digital ad: The ad was supporting three local ballot measures. One to support a woman’s right to choose, one to legalize marijuana, and one to sell the local railroad to invest a billion dollars in infrastructure.
Rapid Response
Have you seen a candidate hit with a negative campaign ad, news story, or mail piece that seems like it might be a public relations disaster?
Rapid response Auto-Calls are a quick way to respond to the negatives and help to reflect your candidate or organization in a positive light. This can be done easily by pointing out the fallacies and reminding voters of the facts.
Endorsements & Updates
Auto-Calls are also great for keeping voters and supporters updated. Need to target a certain group of voters and let them know of an endorsement that would guarantee their support? Auto-Calls are the way to do it!
Telephone Town Hall Pre-Call
Telephone Town Hall Pre-Calls are a great way to reach your audience if you’re planning a Telephone Town Hall.
Telephone Town Hall Pre-Calls are Automated Calls that go out the day before a Telephone Town Hall. By doing a call before the event, you can increase participation on your Telephone Town Hall, and let voters know a candidate cares and wants to engage with them on a more personal level.
Check out our blog ‘Why Do a Telephone Town Hall Pre-Call’ which lists all of the benefits of doing a pre-call.
GOTV
When Bob Brink, a member of the Virginia House of Delegates announced his retirement to join Governor Terry McAuliffe’s Administration, he left his seat vacant ahead of a competitive race.
Brink announced on June 27th and the Democratic primary was scheduled for July 6th. This left only a few days for Democratic candidates to campaign. With such a short amount of time, and Independence Day in the mix, this would be a tough race to get voters out to the polls.
Candidate Richard ‘Rip’ Sullivan came to Stones’ Phones because he knew that Auto-Calls would be the difference he needed to win. Sullivan was right.
We planned several auto calls, including one GOTV call on the day of the election as a final push to get voters out.
Sullivan had a landslide win earning him the Democratic nomination. Auto-Calls, being quick and effective, were just what Richard Sullivan needed to win.
“Live” Auto Calls
Previously, Auto-Calls could only be made to voters with landlines. But we recently pioneered a new technique to quickly reach universes that don’t have landline numbers on file.
The process is similar to traditional Auto-Calls, but instead of receiving a pre-recorded message, the audience is on the line listening to a persuasive message from a live operator. This allows cell phone users to be included in the dial and allows you to target an audience that couldn’t previously be reached with automated dialing.
We partnered with the Coalition to Regulate Alcohol like Marijuana to target students at The Ohio State University on Election Day to urge them to vote for Issue 2 which would legalize recreational marijuana. Since the students were less likely to have landline phones, we knew we had to reach them on their cell phones.
We drew on their local football rivalry with the University of Michigan, where Michigan’s team was accused of stealing signs from Ohio, to target them with a “Live” Auto-Call. We compared the sign stealing to Michigan stealing Ohio’s tax dollars, as Ohioans often crossed the state line to purchase marijuana.
This creative approach was integral to helping pass Issue 2, marking one of the most successful ballot initiative victories of 2023.
These are some of the big ways Auto-Calls have worked for our clients. Don’t be fooled by the myth that auto calls don’t work. You might be missing out on what you actually need to win. Reach out to Stones' Phones today to see how Auto Calls can work for you!