Barack Obama is the greatest!  That is...The greatest motivation for conservatives to get out of their comfort zone and get involved politically!  Is your local Republican club or party grabbing your fair share of these new grassroots activists?
 
This  issue of Red State New Media's newsletter is a personal story.  While my duties as Vice President of Red State New Media keep me busy, I do make time to help the local Republican cause in Silicon Valley.  As you might imagine, living in this very liberal area of California inhibits many conservatives from revealing their political identity for fear of alienation in the workplace.   Yet, the "Obama Factor" has pushed these conservatives out of the closet.
 
Which local organizations are benefiting?
 
Not surprisingly, these newly energized conservatives are using the web to look for organizations that are involved in activities that further the conservative cause.   The Silicon Valley Association of Republican Women (SVARW), of which I serve on the board as Immediate Past President, Newsletter Editor and Webmaster, has seen a significant surge in membership since January.   Anyone involved with a Republican women's organization will appreciate the fact that many of these new members are young professional women who have rearranged their work schedule to attend meetings during the work day.

• We have a basic, but professional website that explains what we do. And, importantly, we keep it updated so that visitors know that we are active and can see that the information is current

• Integrated into the website is our Constant Contact email marketing account which enables  us to send  email updates with legislative alerts as well as invitations to our events.  It's easy for any website visitor to join our mailing list and stay up to date with our activities.

• After incorporating SVARW last year and obtaining a Tax ID number, we set up a Click and Pledge online credit card processing account which has enabled us to sell tickets online to our annual Stars and Stripes Gala, as well as, making it easy for women to pay dues with their credit card and join online.  Amazingly, we now have members who have joined the organization and paid their dues before ever coming to their first meeting.
  

Only one of the other five local Republican women's groups has any kind of a website and none have made use of an application like Constant Contact that enables website visitors to easily subscribe to the email list and forward emails to like-minded friends.  Their lack of a consistent communications plan has clearly put them at a disadvantage in attracting support.
 
The Tea Party held earlier this month (July 5th) provided another great opportunity to get the word out about our organization.  Several of our members participated and passed out business cards with our web address to people in the crowd.  As a result, we received new signups on our email list and, so far, one new member. 
 
If a basic website, Constant Contact email account, and a Click and Pledge online credit card processing account can help build a 200 member conservative women's group in a very blue county in a very blue state, just think what can happen in a red state!
 
Regards,
Jan Soule
Vice President, Red State New Media
Immediate Past President,  Silicon Valley Association of Republican Women

Give me a call at  our toll free number 1-888-486-8156 or call my direct line at 408-705-2156 and let's discuss how your campaign or organization can attract more supporters.