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Political SMS Campaigns for Elections and Fundraising

Curious about the basics of political texting? Here are some frequently asked questions about SMS marketing for political campaigns: 
Emma Brown

1. What is text (SMS and MMS) marketing for political campaigns?
A broadcast text message is sent to a large list of contacts/constituents at once by an organization. Broadcast text messaging lets you send a single, personalized text message to entire groups of people, big or small.
Scheduling a quick mass text can save you the time and effort of having to go through your entire list of contacts and shooting them messages individually. 

Depending on your objectives, there are a ton of ways you can use texting.

For example, sending event invitations to collect RSVPs and event reminders, GOTV texts, fundraising asks, vote tripling, and persuasion. Those are just some of the ways organizations are using mass texts to communicate with your audiences.

2. What is the difference between SMS and MMS
An SMS is a Short Message Service, meaning it is text only. An MMS is a Multimedia Messaging Service, meaning a picture included in the message.



2. Are broadcast text messages legal?

Yes, broadcast text marketing for political campaigns is legal. However, mobile carriers have established new rules (10DLC compliance).  To ensure optimal deliverability, you must be registered with the mobile carriers.  Buzz360 can do it for you.
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3. Why should we use text messages

Texting is one of the best ways to reach supporters and potential supporters. Most text messages are read within three minutes of being sent, and they have an open rate of nearly 100%. In other words, sending texts is a highly reliable and effective way of getting information, fundraising appeals, and other important updates to supporters.

Plus using the Buzz360 texting, the recipient can respond to these messages and have a direct line of communication for questions, concerns, and other insights that can be valuable for your organization.


4. What’s the best way to write a political campaign text?

Political campaign texts contain a range of content. Campaigns can use SMS marketing to inform supporters about a candidate’s policy, request donations, and inform voters about things to know before Election day. Regardless of content direction, however, here are a few tips for the most effective SMS marketing for political campaigns:
• Personalize the message either with details like supporter’s name, district, or state
• Include a clear call-to-action with each message
• Test various messaging styles, like including emojis, to see what works best for the campaign

5. How can I start sending text messages for my organization?

Simply put, a campaign only needs three things to begin a texting campaign: a list of supporters to contact, a message to send, and a texting platform to send out messages from, like Buzz360. In fact, Buzz360 has powered campaigns of all sizes and party units of all sizes.

SMS marketing is a great way for political organizing teams to communicate quickly with voters. The time leading up to an election goes by quickly — campaigns looking to be the most efficient with their time should leverage political text messaging!

Expert opinion

SEGMENTATION AND AUDIENCE-SPECIFIC MESSAGING IS CRITICAL, ESPECIALLY FOR SWING VOTERS

As texting becomes more popular, it’s critical for even the smallest campaigns to send relevant messages to specific voting audiences. For example, there was an increased swing voter turnout when those voters were sent texts containing helpful voting information and prompts.