Resource Type: Research & Articles

From June 2018-May 2019, PennEnvironment conducted a test on how personal phone contact (when layered on top of email and SMS contact) affects volunteer recruitment rates with the goal of maximizing staff time efficiency. In particular, they were interested in finding their organization’s break-even point in which their traditional model of personal phone contacts (which is effective, though time-consuming) is matched by digital-only contact (which yields participation, though at lower rates). With a subject pool of 37794 individuals drawn from inactive past supporters and newly recruited volunteers, which were then randomly selected into one of the two experimental groups, PennEnvironment found that the base rate for volunteer sign-ups from electronic contact was 0.002 shifts per contact sent. Layering in phone contact increased this rate to 0.3 additional shifts per call.

79% of voters are more likely to support a lawmaker who supports policies that encourage renewabl energy options (such as wind, solar, and waste to energy technologies), compared to 51% of voters who are more likely to support a lawmaker who supports policies that encourage the development of more fossil fuel energy, such as coal and oil. 
Voters are most likely (85%) to support a lawmaker who supports legislation that would provide additional ways for home or business owners to finance energy upgrades, such as improved insulation, lighting, or windows. 
77% of voters are more likely to support a lawmaker who wants to change North Carolina’s regulatory policy to allow for more competition and consumer choice. 
A pluarility of voters (38%) see climate change as a “serious problem” and think “immediate action” is necessary. An addiitonal 22% support “some action.” 
60% of voters recognize that the effects of climate change “have already begun to happen” and 59% understand climate change is “mainly the result of manmade pollution.”

Negative framing consistently outperformed positive framing in email and on Facebook in motivating supporters to take action as part of a campaign around San Diego’s utility agreement.

The Movement Cooperative and Deliver Strategies tested a variety of different mailer types – varying the presence of official-sounding language, emotional appears, and issue linkages – to evaluate impact on vote-by-mail (VBM) recruitment. Using an online panel matched to national demographics, they found that mailers increased intent to vote by 2.5 percentage points and intent to vote by mail by 7.5pp compared to their control condition of a placebo. More specifically, mailers with official-sounding language performed the best on intent to vote while emotional appeals decreased voter enthusiasm while increasing social trust. Takeaways from this study are that VBM mailers, regardless of frame, are effective in increasing intent to vote and intent to vote by mail and that official-sounding language works best, which is line with other non-VBM GOTV research that shows that straightforward approaches are best when it comes to GOTV.