Winning Edge

• Fundraising is a learnable skill, not a mystical talent
• The first challenge is having the right mindset: think of yourself as a partner with donors
• The second challenge is creating a fundraising plan by figuring out two numbers:
  • 1. How much you need to raise
  • 2. The minimum number of donors needed to win
• Determine the amount by asking people who have won similar seats and using a rough average
• Calculate the fewest number of donors to maximize time spent talking to voters
• Example: To raise $100,000, you would need only 30 donors giving $3,300 each (federal campaign contribution limit)
• Focus on potential donors who can give large donations and ask for a range
• Don't overcomplicate your fundraising plan; find out the average campaign cost and divide by $3,300 to determine the minimum number of donors

For more tips on effective fundraising strategies, 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.

• Persuading swing voters to support your cause involves convincing them to keep or reject the status quo
• To convince voters to reject the status quo, you need a two-part message:
  • 1. Discuss the problems with the status quo
  • 2. Show you have a plan and why they should trust your solution
  • When discussing the status quo's problems, help voters update their opinion without feeling wrong:
• Pick a failed promise from the last campaign
  • Show the failure in a vivid way that matches the voter's experience
  • Explain why the voter wasn't wrong for giving the status quo a chance
• To show why rejecting the status quo is worth the risk:
  • Focus on the safety, certainty, and confidence of your plan
  • Provide three focus areas to demonstrate you have a plan
• Create a two-part message that allows swing voters to feel frustration with the status quo and have facts to back up their feelings

For more insights on crafting persuasive messages for swing voters, 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 last three questions to answer for a persuasive one-pager:
• 4. What's the Data? - Present clear data to arm decision-makers with facts
  • Decide on the emotion you want to create and how to present the data
• 5. What's the Story? - Add a memorable story that reinforces the appropriate emotional response
  • Choose a story type (case study, testimonial, etc.) that evokes emotion
• 6. What's the Visual? - Use a picture or illustration to create curiosity or highlight the problem
  • Pair the visual with the story to draw readers in
• Write the first draft (150-200 words) and a clear 6-8 word headline
• Perform the Pick-Up Test: Does the one-pager pique curiosity and make you want to read it?
• Answering all six questions will give you a persuasive one-pager

For more tips on crafting effective one-pagers, refer to the accompanying PDF.

Read the full article: Persuade with One Page

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.

• Here’s the secret to meetings no one ever tells you: "The person with a piece of paper usually wins" in meetings
• Six questions to create a persuasive one-pager:
  • 1. What's the Bottom Line? - Clearly state the action you want decision-makers to take
  • 2. What's the Problem? - Define the problem from the decision-makers' perspective
  • 3. What's the Solution? - Communicate the solution you've found
    • Frame the solution using the "most advanced yet acceptable" (MAYA) principle
    • Make new ideas seem safe, and familiar solutions seem new or unique
    • Present the solution in a series of three steps or phases
  • 4. What's the Data?
  • 5. What's the Story?
  • 6. What's the Visual?

Stay tuned for part two, which will cover the remaining questions for crafting a persuasive one-pager. For more insights, check out the accompanying PDF.

Read the full article: Persuade with One Page

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.

• Sherwood Schwartz, the creator of Gilligan's Island, used the show's opening theme song to provide context and clarity for the audience
• Framing matters in persuasive speaking because "the confused are not persuaded"
• Three persuasive frames for a speech, according to copywriter Will Green:
  • 1. The Expert: Persuades with an appeal to logic, facts, and expertise
    • Tone and pacing are more factual and less passionate
  • 2. The Convert: Focuses on a personal story or journey of change
    • More dramatic, intimate, and appeals to emotions
    • Tone and pacing are more passionate with vocal variety
  • 3. The Friend: Builds on established trust and a casual, relaxed discussion
    • Shares persuasive stories and facts, but the foundation is personal trust
• Choose the appropriate frame for your speech or presentation to effectively persuade your audience

Sources:

• As told by Sherwood Schwartz when interviewed by Del Reisman https://youtu.be/dmCDJN0p3BM?t=793
• Hanlon, Patrick. Primal Branding: Create Belief Systems that Attract Communities (p. 11). Free Press. Kindle Edition. 

For more tips on crafting persuasive speeches, be sure to 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.

• In May 1940, Winston Churchill became Prime Minister after a silent pause changed the course of a meeting
• Churchill knew that sometimes the best persuasion is to pause and let the silence do the work
• Three types of pauses to use when speaking:
  • 1. Long Pause (4-5 seconds): Focuses or refocuses the audience's attention
  • 2. Medium Pause (2-3 seconds): Gives words room to work, allowing the audience to enjoy a story or process information
  • 3. Short Pause (1-1.5 seconds): Acts as a "period" to signal the end of a thought
• Churchill was a master at using all three types of pauses in his speeches
• Remember to use pauses strategically to increase your persuasion and give yourself the winning edge

Sources:

• Silence Wins the Day
• Churchill, Winston S.. The Gathering Storm (Winston S. Churchill The Second World War) (p. 597-8). RosettaBooks. Kindle Edition.
• Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat Speech - https://youtu.be/80_HXIHa724?t=250

For more insights, 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.

• George Creel faced the challenge of boosting public support for World War I in 1917
• Donald Ryerson proposed the 4 Minute Men program:
  • Grassroots network of local speakers delivering speeches during film reel changes
  • Focused on a single issue and action for the audience
  • Recruited and trained over 75,000 speakers, delivering nearly a million speeches
• The program's success relied on a persuasive formula:
  • Be short (less than 4 minutes)
  • Grab the audience's attention
  • Have a single point
  • Always include an action for the audience
• Use this 4-part formula to create a short, persuasive speech:
  • 1. One Question: Pique curiosity around your main point
  • 2. One Story: Answer the question memorably
  • 3. One Point: Explicitly state the main takeaway 
  • 4. One Call-to-Action: Provide a small action or thought for the audience

Check out the accompanying one-page PDF for more tips on crafting your persuasive speech.

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.

• This episode focuses on showing rather than just talking about a graph
• First, ask if the chosen graph type (line, bar, stacked bar, etc.) is the best fit
• Decide on the emotion you want to evoke in your target audience (surprise, outrage, curiosity, etc.)
• For this example, the goal is to create curiosity and encourage the decision-maker to ask questions
• To simplify and clean up a graph, remember LLC: Lines, Labels, and Colors
  • Lines: Remove unnecessary lines, including grid lines, to reduce visual clutter
  • Labels: Simplify labels on the X and Y axes, remove data labels, and label data directly when possible
  • Colors: Use consistent coloring on the graph and labels
• These steps make the graph more persuasive and easier to understand quickly

Check out the one-page PDF for a visual representation of these tips.

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.

• Data can be boring, but turning it into a mystery can make it interesting and memorable
• To persuade effectively, remember: One Person and One Point
  • One Person: Imagine a single listener and their context
  • One Point: Decide the main point you want them to remember a week later
• To create mystery numbers:
  • 1. Start with intrigue about a number
  • 2. Reveal part of the answer
  • 3. Reveal a little more
  • 4. Summarize the mystery number and the one point
• Example: PA education spending interview
  • Use 8 (PA's rank) and 4 ($4,000 more per student) as mystery numbers
  • Engage listeners by having them hold up fingers
• Mystery numbers make data memorable and persuasive

For more tips, refer to the one-page PDF accompanying 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.

• Data is subjective and a snapshot of the past
• Use intuitive tools from phone photography to judge if you're being persuaded by bad data
• Five tests to evaluate data:
  • 1. Selfie Test: Is the data self-reported or from an objective 3rd party?
  • 2. Zoom Test: Would zooming in or out change the interpretation?
  • 3. Crop Test: What context is missing or excluded?
  • 4. Video Test: Would a data series provide better context than a single data point?
  • 5. Like Test: Are you less skeptical because you want the data to be true?
• Be cautious when you have a strong positive reaction to data
• Apply these tests to prevent being persuaded by numbers and gain the winning edge

For more insights, 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.