Once you make the decision to place your name on the ballot,
then the real job begins. Raising money. Unless you are the rare candidate who can self-finance, the job of finding money will land on your daily to-do list.
The key to political fundraising success, as we have learned from Obama and others, is the multiplier effect. It is best to seek a large amount of small donations. The term “large” is relative to your situation. In a community race, three hundred donations might suffice, in a major city race, three thousand might just get you started. So how do you start the multiplier effect for your campaign?
You only have one chance to make a first in-kind donations for nonprofits impression. Remember this axiom. The typical first impression is your website. Over sixty percent of America accessed the Internet for political information in 2008 and the number continues to increase.
Find a good hair stylist and then a good web designer. The kid down the street or a volunteer might be cheap, but if you are investing you esteem and time into a political race, pay a few extra dollars for a proper political website.
The critical next step is how the multiplier effect starts. The addition of a thirty second television commercial on the first page of your website with a “widget” to both persuade and facilitate easy donations will put the ball in motion. Credibility is key to fundraising. If you have a credible website and a high quality, professionally produced television commercial, you will have instant trust. We only donate to people and causes we trust. In this economy dollars will be tougher than ever to raise. You need every advantage. Check the Internet for low cost, high quality political television commercials. This should cost you no more than five hundred dollars. The sooner you add a commercial to your website with the political fundraising “widget”, the sooner the multiplier effect begins.