Wow! What a roller coaster ride Eastleigh was. On the night of the by-election I only got 4 hours sleep because I was so excited and nervous. Now it is time for the analysis. I have been leafleting for three years and now the world is becoming increasingly digitalised. I wonder if leafleting is becoming outdated?
Leafleting takes up time and money. It is dependent on volunteers and although there were plenty in Eastleigh there won't be enough people in the general election because Eastleigh was a one off where people came from everywhere to help out. Leaflets are a good way of communicating with voters in detail but beyond the first leaflet there maybe a law diminishing returns. Even in Nick Clegg's morning after speech he apologised to voters for the amount of canvassing they were bombarded with. I think that face-to-face canvassing is still vital because the voters general reactions and thoughts to our policies can only be gauged from talking to them. The same applies to telephone banking too.
Cancer research has its own app where people can contribute ideas for cancer research. Maybe we could have an apps in local areas instead with reduced leaflets and a national app whereby people enter their location and give the party their thoughts on Lib Dem policy. Perhaps this is a way forward which utilises the digital world and will allow the party to reach people.
The problem with all forms of digital campaigning is that of "Push" vs. "Pull"
ReplyDeleteLeaflets, Door knocking and so on are all "Push" techniques, where the campaigner takes the active role in bringing the campaign to the elector.
Most digital techniques are "Pull" - the elector is the one who takes the initiative to look at the campaign.
There are some digital techniques that can use "Push" - Twitter mentions, G+ contacts etc - but all are more temperamental and less reliable than the Penhaligon Principle.
Dear Alisdair,
DeleteI didn't mean that we should get rid of leafleting because, you are right, the push factor is crucial. Are you referring to the 'nursing of constituencies'associated with David Penhaligon?
From
Maelo
I agree with Alisdair, and I would not want to be the first participant in an election to abjure leafleting. It would be seen as not taking a contest seriously.
ReplyDeleteDear Frank,
DeleteIt would be foolish to abjure leafleting. I was talking about decreasing the time, effort and money spent on leafleting and putting resources into another campaigning idea.
From
Maelo Manning
I am in the Eastleigh area, personally I found the leaflets incredibly annoying. In my opinion they make the politicians seem a bit desperate. My friend's mum put a note on her door lecturing them about wasting paper- it was hilarious!
ReplyDeleteFlo