Winning Edge

• Five tactics to handle challenging questions:
  •  Bridging: Acknowledge the question, then pivot to your key message
  •  Reframing: Clarify your stance and move the conversation to favorable ground
  •  Three R's (Regret, Reason, Remedy): Show humility, provide context, and offer a solution
  •  Flagging: Verbally highlight your most important points
  •  Personalizing: Use short stories to relate and resonate with the audience
• Practice these techniques, especially bridging, reframing, and personalizing
• For mistakes, use the Three R's response
• Answering tough questions isn't about dodging but staying true to your message and connecting with voters

For more information, check out the one-page PDF available for this episode.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

Link to Flowchart and onepager

Link to Episode 18 with the 4 Steps to Start Your Fundraising (this has a sample pitch to use)

• Introduction
  • Frank and Lillian Gilbreth's pioneering work in efficiency and flow charts
  • Applying their principles to create a fundraising flow chart for political campaigns
    • Estimating the minimum number of donors needed to win
      Formula: Campaign's estimated cost divided by max contribution amount (or $2,000)
    • Building a list of 35 potential donors - Include past donors, friends and family, and known political donors
      
      
      
• Splitting the list based on preferred contact method
  • In-person meeting, scheduled phone call, or unscheduled call
• Customizing your fundraising pitch
  • Create a simple, 1.5 to 2-minute pitch and practice it regularly
• Scheduling meetings or calls
  • Send a text or email to schedule, follow up every two days
• Making the fundraising call
  • Small talk, transitional phrase, deliver your pitch, make ask, pause for response
  • If the donor says YES
    • Process donation immediately, send multiple thank you notes
  • If the donor is UNDECIDED
    • Ask for follow-up time, and persist until an answer is given
  • If the donor says NO
    • Thank them, and consider following up in 90 days if "no, not right now"
• Conclusion - Use this guide to find the best fundraising approach for your unique campaign

For more information, check out the one-page PDF available for this episode.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

For the handout that accompanies this episode click here

• Richard Oglesby crafted a powerful character story for Abraham Lincoln in 1860 that resonated with voters and helped launch Lincoln to the presidency.
• Oglesby portrayed Lincoln as a "railsplitter" - a self-made man who had done hard manual labor and could relate to working-class voters, despite now being an accomplished speaker and candidate.
• A well-crafted character story allows a candidate to showcase their values, passion, professional qualifications, and personal growth in a way voters can connect with. It humanizes the candidate.
• Three effective types of character stories for candidates to consider are:
• Passion stories about their drive to serve
• Professional stories highlighting the ability to get things done
• Personal stories about overcoming challenges that shaped them
• Effective character stories focus on a transformative experience and follow a clear beginning, middle, end structure in 1-2 minutes. Jump into the action and conclude with the insight gained.
• Candidates should reflect on proud moments, challenges overcome, and lessons learned to find potential stories. Keep stories concise, practice delivery, and ensure they feel authentic and genuine. Test with others and refine as needed.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

• Knickerbocker Ice Company was once the largest ice vendor, but was disrupted by technology and innovation from companies like York Manufacturing Company
• To survive, businesses need to identify fundamentals that don't change while adapting to changing technologies
• For campaigns, the fundamental is that the most effective way to win votes is talking with individual voters, but time is limited
• ChatGPT, an AI-driven chatbot, can help speed up tasks and give more time for voter interactions
• ChatGPT excels at creating first drafts of speeches, emails, press releases, or social media posts
• This short video demonstrates how to use ChatGPT to learn your writing style, create first drafts, analyze reports, and generate social media posts
• ChatGPT is a tool to speed up tasks, but it's important to check for errors and not use it for unfamiliar topics
• By using ChatGPT, candidates can gain more time for one-on-one voter conversations and give themselves the winning edge

Watch the accompanying video and refer to the one-page PDF for more tips on effectively using ChatGPT in your campaign.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

• Exposure-based therapy relies on repeated, controlled exposure to a fear to diminish its impact
• Fundraising can be intimidating, but the ladder technique can help overcome fears and raise money
• The Fundraising Ladder Technique:
  • 1. Set a consistent time dedicated to fundraising activities (e.g., 20 minutes daily)
  • 2. Set a process-based goal that's easily attainable (e.g., make one donor phone call)
  • 3. Imagine a ladder with tasks on each rung, starting with modest objectives
    • Read your fundraising script out loud
    • Print your call sheet
    • Open the Excel document with the list of people to call
  • 4. Progress to more challenging tasks, like making the first call
  • 5. Gradually increase your goal as tasks become more manageable
    • Push yourself with gradual, comfortable progress, and pause if proceeding feels overwhelming
• This step-by-step method helps overcome initial resistance and makes fundraising more comfortable in just a week or two

For more tips on effective fundraising strategies, check out the accompanying one-page PDF.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

• The Four Insights Assessment is a quick, efficient way to evaluate your fundraising operation
• The four questions to ask:
  • 1. What Works? - Identify successful strategies, effective tools, and good team dynamics
  • 2. What's Broken? - List everything that's not working in your fundraising
  • 3. What's Confused? - Identify areas causing confusion, such as muddled strategies or unclear communication
  • 4. What's Missing? - Consider gaps in your strategy, skills that need development, or tools that could make a difference
• Apply the 80/20 principle (Pareto Principle) to identify the 20% of factors that, if improved, could resolve 80% of your issues
• Based on your insights, jot down three actionable steps to improve your fundraising
• This exercise takes 5-10 minutes individually or 20 minutes in a group setting
• Assess what works, what's broken, what's confused, and what's missing to pinpoint areas for improvement and take decisive action

For more tips on effective fundraising strategies, check out the accompanying one-page PDF.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

• Fundraising can be daunting, but remember you're finding donor partners who want to see change happen
• Four steps to jump-start your campaign fundraising:
  • 1. Calculate the minimum number of donors needed to win
    • Estimate total funds needed and divide by max donation amount (e.g., $2,000-$3,000)
  • 2. Make a list of 35 potential donors
    • Include previous donors, friends and family, and known political donors
  • 3. Create your fundraising pitch
    • Keep it under 300 words and answer who you are, why you're running, how you're different, and your fundraising ask amount
    • Use a range for the ask amount (e.g., $2,000-$10,000)
  • 4. Get your first dozen major donors (those giving over $1,000)
    • Ask all 35 prospects; expect 10-12 to say "yes"

Follow these steps to raise the money you need to win. For more details and sample pitches, check out the show notes and accompanying PDF.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

• Imagine being a Republican elected to Congress in 1978 during Jimmy Carter's presidency
• The Republican caucus was full of well-intentioned but beaten-down members who had been in the minority too long
• Newt Gingrich faced repeated setbacks in trying to gain a majority in Congress
• Despite election losses in 1980, 1982, and 1984, Gingrich and his allies chose a path of cheerful persistence
• Gingrich wrote in "The Making of a Majority" that cheerful persistence was a survival skill
• They worked cheerfully every day to accomplish what they could and adjusted when faced with failures
• In today's shifting political landscape, the lesson remains: succeed by cheerfully persisting, shaking off losses, and focusing on what we can control
• Our strength lies in our ability to adapt, fight, and cheerfully persist – this is our Winning Edge

For more insights on navigating political challenges, refer to the accompanying one-page PDF.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.

• Failing to thank donors is one of the worst things that can happen in fundraising
• Create a redundant system, where if one thing goes wrong, there is a backup
• Example: The A-10 Warthog aircraft's design is built on redundant systems, ensuring functionality even when taking enemy fire
• Apply the lesson of redundancy to ensure donors get thanked for their campaign donations
• Use a 3-part thank you system:
  • 1. Email: Send an automated thank you within one day of receiving the donation
  • 2. Letter: Mail a thank you letter within a week, batch processing for efficiency
  • 3. Call/Text: Within a week, call or send a personalized text message to convey gratitude
• Alternative variation: Email within 1 day, personalized text within 2 days, letter within a week
• Create a simple, redundant system to make your campaign stand out and ensure donors feel appreciated

For more insights on effective donor appreciation strategies, check out the accompanying one-page PDF.

Winning Edge gives you the tools you need to lead and influence in the political and policy arenas. Every other week, Winning Edge releases short (approximately 5-minute) spots—or “snacks”—focused on one of four areas: fundraising, media, policy, or persuasion.

For more, visit our website: www.thecommonwealthpartners.com.