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Be sure to make confirmation calls at least 48 hours in advance so you know who will be joining your phonebank. This is especially important while ‘meeting’ virtually. If someone is having technical difficulties but cannot join the video call you’re hosting to keep everyone connected, you’ll need to know who to look out for random texts or emails from who may be requesting assistance.
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While making your confirmation calls 48 hours in advance, ask your phone bankers to log into OpenVPB to make sure they have their account set up and they know their login credentials. This way they are not asking for assistance at the last minute when the phone bank begins.
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If you are hosting a virtual meeting, hop on the video call at least 15 minutes early to welcome the early birds and troubleshoot any technical difficulties you or others may be experiencing with the video call or the OpenVPB. Log into the OpenVPB early as well to make sure you have the right OpenVPB link, the voter info shows up on your screen, etc. REMEMBER: OpenVPBs are only available 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time daily.
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Take advantage of those 15 minutes ahead of the call and ask any first time phone bankers to join you as well. Use that time to make sure they are able to log in successfully, answer any questions they may have, make sure they’re comfortable with the script and messaging, and help them with any last minute nervousness.
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Keep it fun! At the top of the phone bank, welcome everyone to the call and get them pumped up! Plan adequate breaks that everyone takes together. Plan an encouraging game to play on breaks. Encourage everyone to keep track of their contact rate, and celebrate when someone hits a goal, like five successful contacts, or ten voters supporting our candidate!
Bonus Step! Check out this Train the Trainer: How to Run a Successful Phone Bank slide deck for more useful tips on having an AWESOME phone bank!
Bobby Michaels