"dynamic success at the polls" presentation at ila 2013 #ilaignite

From Initial Spark to Dynamite Success at the Polls

#ILAIgnite @EveryLibrary @broadviewbooks

About EveryLibrary Role as Consultant

Role with Committees

Building voter support for libraries

John Chrastka Executive Director EveryLibrary [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

About EveryLibrary

Set up as a 501c4 Social Welfare Organization chartered to support local library ballot measures like bonds, referendum, levies and mills.

Includes our support for legislation that impacts the ability of libraries to function as districts.


About EveryLibrary

Founded on the fact that libraries, as public entities, cannot expend their own funds to do electioneering.

Associations, as 501c3 organizations, cannot engage in GOTV speech. The IRS "caps" 501c3 spending for lobbying.


Western suburb 5 miles from Chicago

8,000 residents

75% African American

10+ Libraries within 5 miles of us

Member of SWAN (shared ILS consortium with 80 members)

Collection 60,000

Circulation 90,000

Staff FTE 12

16,000 Sq Ft Building

Mission

The Broadview Public Library District reaches out to the community and enriches people’s lives by meeting and exceeding their expectations for library service.

Vision

The Broadview Public Library District: Is a center of community pride. Brings people together. Inspires and empowers their lives. Provides welcoming, dependable state of the art services.

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Circulation

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Adult (19.1)

Circulation-

Youth

(19.2)0

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700

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Childre

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10,000

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Computer Use

WIFI Use

Computer Use Program Attendance

Circulation

Need of cosmetic changes.

Difficult to upgrade technology.

Systems have surpassed age limit.

Underutilized basement space.

No quiet areas or study rooms

Inadequate staff space.

Overcrowded tall shelves.

Small youth and teen spaces.

Outdated and falling apart furniture.

Needed ADA improvements.

Six to Twelve Month Planning

Campaigning to win at the ballot box

Planning Survey

Mission/Vision Strategic Plan

State Grant Citizens Input Committee

Library Construction Grant

Allies and Endorsers

Early contact is the difference

Inventory Your Allies 1. Educational Partners

1. Social Welfare and Religious Partners

2. Governmental Partners

3. Civic Partners

4. Business Partners

5. Politicians

6. Media


Ask for Endorsements

• Your allies… • Are your endorsers

• Are your funders

• Are your volunteers

• The person who asks is the individual “closest to” the potential endorser.

• Ask early. Ask often.

• Plan to Publicize


Citizen’s Input Committee

Employees/Volunteers

Elected Officials

Civic Organization Leaders

Business Leaders

Top Tier Property Tax Payers

Religious Sector

Benefactors

News Media

Citizen Activists

Neighborhood Groups

Others Tied to Government

Donors to state/local Campaigns

Other

The Spark

New administration

Financially viable

Aging facilities Increased use Community

input

Door to Door Organizing The Team Etiquette

Script Publicity

Flyers

Door to Door

My name is ________________________, I am a (Trustee/Executive Director) of the Broadview Public Library. I/We are out today leaving information for the residents regarding our plans to modernize our library. Take a look at the information I/we have left for you, if you have any additional questions you can visit our website or call the library and speak to the Executive Director; the contact information is found on the flyer.” If the ask what our plans are you can say: “The plan includes: Upgrade to major equipment that has exceed their useful life. Bringing the library up to current fire codes and the Latest ADA (American Disability Act) building requirements Expanding the current building so that we can house a o New teen area o New quiet study rooms o Larger children’s area o State of the art public meeting rooms” If ask how we plan to accomplish modernizing the library: “In order to accomplish the plan, we will be asking residents to approve a referendum in November 2012. The referendum will be asking property owners to invest in the expansion by incurring and increase in their property tax bill of $5 per month or $60 a year for the next 20 years. The library is contributing $2.5 million and is applying for grants to help offset some of the cost.”

What Activates Voters for the Library?

#1 - Nothing Impacts Voter Behavior More than their Perception of the Librarian and the Library as Institution.

#2 - Awareness that there is a Measure on the ballot.

What Activates Voters

for The Library?


The Librarian is the Candidate The Library is the Incumbent Library = Librarians + Community

What Activates Voters? Seven Factors:

A Reason to Vote Mobilized Personal Contact with Candidate or Issue* Culture/Tradition/Habit of Voting* Trust in Government Decided to Vote Weather/Access to Polls


Walking*

Phoning*

Events

Social

Signs

Mailers

How Campaigns GOTV

Personal contact with the candidate

or their representative

Activates volunteers and identifies core supporters

“Tribal” identity

Least effective

Community Engagement Outside of

Campaigns Fulfill your mission and lay the groundwork for future success

Community Engagement

Get the staff out of the library ◦ Surveys

◦ Programs

◦ Service Delivery

Improve customer service within the library o Training and Role Playing

o Ramp Up the Social Media



Survey Tools:

• Community Assessment Survey

• Strategic Planning Surveys

• Key Stakeholder Surveys



Programs and Events:

• Programs that support your allies and endorsers

• Programs that expose your staff to new people

• Programs that encourage civic engagement



Service Delivery:

• New resident visits

• Embedded librarians with key allies

• Library Card Sign-up Month*


Understanding attitude and activating behavior

Voter Attitude

Nationwide, of all voters: 37% will Definitely vote yes for the library 37% will Probably vote yes for the library 26% will Probably or Definitely vote no or may vote either way.


Voter Attitudes

Voter Attitudes What do we know about voters and libraries?

Users vs. Non-Users

Progressives vs. Conservatives

Other demographics

Any Tax is a Bad Tax*

Nothing Impacts More than their Perception of the Librarian and the Library as Institution.


Publicity Q+A

Website Facebook

Flyers Mailings

Newsletter Newspaper

Billboard

General Information

Financials

Facility

Scenarios

Administration

Contact Information

http://www.broadviewlibrary.org/uploaded_bvlib/Q+A.pdf

Website + Facebok

Mailing

Newsletters

Other Publicity

Information-Only Campaigns

Staff, Trustees and Friends, and Legal Considerations

Types of Library Campaigns


Vote Yes Campaign • Citizen Lead and Filed

• Raise and Expend Funds to GOTV

• Actively Campaigns for "Vote Yes"

Information-Only Campaign • Public Employees in the Public Trust

• Active and Engaged but Neutral

• Supported by Friends and Trustees

Information-Only Team

Public Employees on Public Time or Representatives of a organization acting in an

official capacity

○ Staff

○ Trustees

○ Friends and “Super Friends”


Staff: Information-Only Are the candidate Neutral - but enthusiastic Need training and guidance

In the building and at events

Line between work and personal time

In a position to share their personal stories


Trustees: Information-Only Are able to serve multiple functions

When functioning in an official capacity

Neutral - but enthusiastic

Need training and guidance


With the media and endorsers

On personal time Share their personal stories


Friends: Information-Only

Are a candidate representative Engage from a personal perspective Need training and guidance


On personal time can do different things


Palm Card

Script

Not supported by Library

By Location

Beverly Center (10%) Precinct 81

Broadview Library (60%)

Precinct 104

Roosevelt School (15%)

Precinct 5

Precinct 44

Precinct 86

Schroeder Park (5%) Precinct 33

Precinct 77

Village Hall (75%) Precinct 33

Precinct 38

Vote YES Campaigns

Independent Citizen Committees

• Not the Library

• Not the Friends

• Not Governance

Dedicated to helping Get Out the Vote (GOTV)

for the library measure - as citizens,

neighbors, and stakeholders - with a defined

role for the campaign season

Vote Yes Committee


Vote Yes Committee

o Independent of the library

o Not coordinated with the library

Needs own communications infrastructure

o Sets own campaign calendar

o Does its own campaign events and activities

o Sets own expenditures

o Asks people to Vote YES


Vote Yes Committee o Not funded by the library

o Your FOL has spending caps

o Independent fundraising for political campaign

o Sets own expenditures

o Asks people to “Vote YES”


Results Referendum Party

Thanking the Public Success

Results

Statistics

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Vote

% at polls

% door-to-door

Walking*

Phoning*

Events

Social

Signs

Mailers

How Campaigns GOTV

Personal contact with the candidate

or their representative

Activates volunteers and identifies core supporters

“Tribal” identity

Least effective

John Chrastka Executive Director

EveryLibrary (312) 574-0316

[email protected]

Executive Director Melissa Gardner

[email protected] (708) 345-1325 x 20

www.broadviewlibrary.org

Questions?

#ILAIgnite @EveryLibrary @broadviewbooks

mailto:[email protected]

Voter Data that Frames

Our Discussion

“From Awareness to Funding” says…

Probable and Super Supporters

The research identified several important shared values and beliefs across the

target market segments, the Probable Supporters and the Super Supporters:

• They are involved in their communities

• They recognize the library’s importance to the community and to a child’s

education

• They are not always heavy users of the library, but believe the library is a

noble place, important and relevant to the community

• They recognize the value of a ‘passionate librarian’ as a true advocate for

lifelong learning

• They see the library as a vital community resource like public schools, fire

and police, and are willing to increase their taxes to support the library.

- OCLC "From Awareness to Funding" p7-4


Library Use Does Not Matter

The research revealed an important distinction between the public library user

and the public library funder. Not every library user is a library funder; not

every library funder is a library user. A voter’s willingness to support

increased library funding is not driven, or limited, by library use. In fact, the

advocacy research found that there is little correlation between frequency of

library visits and willingness to increase funding for libraries.

- OCLC "From Awareness to Funding" p. 7-2


Library as Transformative Force

For the target supporters, the library is not perceived as just a provider of

practical answers and information; the most committed supporters hold the

belief that the library is a transformational force.



Attitude - Not Demographics

A crucial and somewhat unexpected finding from the segmentation analysis

was that demographics and lifestage were not important constructs in the

library supporter segmentation. In fact, demographics are irrelevant to

library funding support. The factors that determine residents’ willingness

to increase their taxes to support their local library are their

perceptions and attitudes about the library and the librarian, not their

age, gender, education level or household income. Library funding support

is an attitude, not a demographic.



Community Assets

Survey

Staff, Leadership, and Funders

Look at your Staff, Leadership and

Friends

Ask Four Questions:

Q1: What community groups do you belong to?

Q2: Where do you live and where do you spend your time?

Q3: Who do you know who knows everybody?

Q4: Who are we missing?


Who is in Your Community?

Identify volunteer leaders with 5 quick questions

Q1. Why is the library important to you, personally?

Q2. What is your favorite reason to use the library?

Q3. Who does the Library serve?

Q4. Why is the library important to those people?

Q5. What will new funding do to serve those communities?


Inventory Your Allies

1. Educational Partners

Pre-K and K-12

College/University

For-Profit Tutoring

Private/Public After-School Programs

Three Messages: Library as Educational Partner, Library as Resource Extender, Library as Gap Filler



2. Social Welfare and Religious Partners

Counseling Centers

Food Pantry / WIC

Jobs Training Center

Literacy Centers

Boy Scouts / Girl Scouts

Three Messages: Library as Resource Extender, Library as Third Place, Library as Start Point



3. Governmental Partners

Parks

Public Safety – Police and Fire

Public Works

Public Employee Unions

Three Messages: Library as Contact Place, Library as Info Point, Library in Common Cause



4. Civic Partners

Rotary, Lions, Kiwanis

Heritage and local history

GLBT, Immigrant and New Resident

Three Messages: Library as Social Leveler, Library as Neutral Good, Library as [insert organizational cause the library already champions]



5. Business Partners

Local Chamber / CVB

Startups and Entrepreneurs

Small Businesses – Service or Retail

Big Employers

Three Messages: Librarian as Business Reference Resource, Library as Training Space, Library as Retail Anchor



6. Politicians

Incumbents

Insurgents

Local, State, Federal

Three Messages: Library as Good Governance, Library as Responsible with Budget, Library as [insert their pet project]



7. Media

Local Print and TV

National Media

Bloggers

Key Messaging is always your campaign themes and talking points


http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/09/opinion/advocates-corner/i-dont-need-two-forms-of-

id-when-im-standing-at-your-door-advocates-corner/#_

I Don’t Need Two Forms of ID When I’m Standing at Your Door | Advocates’

Corner

http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/09/opinion/advocates-corner/i-dont-need-two-forms-of-id-when-im-standing-at-your-door-advocates-corner/#_































"dynamic success at the polls" presentation at ila 2013 #ilaignite

Marketing

incumbent library

library service

library construction

mediabuilding voter

local library ballot

current building

ability of libraries

impacts voter behavior