Online campaign manager
In order to take full advantage of your campaign website, you need to
designate one staff member or volunteer to check and respond to your email
on a regular basis, and provide timely updates to your site. This person
will need access to a computer equipped with at least a 14.4 baud modem,
Trumpet TCPman (or other TCP/IP stack) and Internet Browser, such as
Microsoft Explorer or Netscape Navigator.
Website content
Perhaps the most important steps in producing a campaign website is choosing
what material to highlight. This requires a well-defined platform that
communicates your message clearly to voters. Make sure that you approve the
content of your website before it goes "live." If you want your website to
be more than a simple online brochure, you might consider adding interactive
features such as an online survey or volunteer registration form. These
decisions can be made all at once, or over a period of time.
Getting the word out
Once you have committed to building a campaign website, the next step is
making sure that you have visitors. Your website should be highlighted on
all of your printed campaign materials, and included as part of each press
release. In fact, since websites are still somewhat of a new campaign tool,
you might consider a press release that announces how you intend to use the
Internet as part of your campaign.
Another means of letting people know you have a website is registering with
the major web search engines. If you do not register with Yahoo, Lycos,
Excite, etc, then it is very difficult for visitors to find you. Some
search engines take time (up to a number of weeks, sometimes months) to
finally register your site, so make sure that you begin this process early
on.
Usenet postings
Usenet groups are made up of literally thousands of special interest
discussion groups. It's an easy way to target people who are interested your
key issues. If your campaign manager takes the time to post to appropriate
newsgroups, it can bring good results to a campaign.
Online newsletter
Once people have visited your website, you want to find a way to keep them
coming back. One easy tool is to have interested visitors sign up for a
free campaign newsletter. Once you have the visitors name and email
address, you can send them an electronic update with the click of your
mouse.
Update content during campaign
Make sure to keep your content fresh and up-to-date on your site. You don't
want to be broadcasting a message that is months old. There is a potential
readership on the Web that is as high or higher than any other medium, don't
forget about it. Re-registration with search engines and re-posting to
Usenet can be useful to notify users of new content.
Other resources:
Politics Online
Center for Governmental Studies
