How to Communicate Effectively for Conservation in the Bay Area

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At Conservation Minnesota, we turn your
love of Minnesota’s Great Outdoors into
the laws that protect it.

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• In 2008, Minnesota voters
overwhelmingly passed the largest
state-level voter approved
conservation funding measure in
history.
• The Clean Water, Land, and Legacy
Amendment increased sales tax by
3/8 of 1% for 25 years.
• Most importantly it passed
EVERYWHERE!
Step Back to Minnesota's
Constitutional Amendment.

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• A geographic audit of 16 MN
environmental groups
showed 82% of membership
lived in Twin Cities Metro.
• But the Legacy Amendment
had passed EVERYWHERE.
• To build power we needed to
engage a diverse and active
statewide network, including
Legacy Amendment
supporters.
The Wake Up Call.

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Step 1:
Use targeting to find
Minnesotans from across
the state willing to
respond.
Step 2:
Find a compelling way to
engage those who
respond.
The Question: How do we
Build a Statewide Network?

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We asked a targeted audience to tell
us how important various conservation
issues were to them and then asked
which one was the MOST important?
We Asked.
Our Interest Survey.

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Direct mail was sent to 100,000 Minnesota households.
Our targeting and message resulted in a 16% return
rate.
It Worked.
People Responded!

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• We listened to what they told us and showed interest
in their opinions.
• A second letter told them what we were doing on their
issue:
We Listened
and Reported Back.
“You told us that protecting our drinking water, our lakes, and
our rivers from contamination by pesticides and agricultural
run-off was the most important issue in our survey. 9,888 of
the people who took our survey agreed with you that this
issue is important. I am excited to tell you that our board
agreed with you as well. We will be working hard this year to
protect our waters from agriculture run-off.
Here’s how…”

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• Member communications were customized to match
the issue areas they told us were important, including:
– Annual Postcard to their State Legislators
– Email Communications
– Quarterly Newsletter
Then We Reminded Them.
Again...

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What were the Results?
Huge Growth in…

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Results:
Grassroots Actions.

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Results:
Donors and Donor Dollars.

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• Our survey and customized communications
are now embedded in the organization’s
identity.
• Everything our members do is recorded in our
database and available for future use.
• We’re truly building statewide power because
of the relationships we’re cultivating.
Our Conclusion:
Ask Questions and Listen.

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Liz Deering
Liz@ConservationMinnesota.org
www.ConservationMinnesota.org
Contact Information

©Yuhas Consulting Group, LLC 16
Building Models to Effectively Target and
Deliver Your Message

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“Key targeting of voters and message development was
critical to the success of this initiative. The micro
targeting developed for the campaign will pay dividends
in years to come as constituent groups continue to use
the data to build their memberships, target constituents
on key legislative issues, and focus legislators on the
issues their constituents care about.”
-Paul Austin, Exec. Director, Conservation Minnesota
MN Constitution Amendment
©Yuhas Consulting Group, LLC

Identify who are your likely supporters
Customize the message to align with their interests
The combination increases impact
– Less money wasted on unsupportive contacts
– Aligned messages increase response
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Targeting Improved Performance

Step 1: Identify Targets
5,000 registered voters were polled. The sample was drawn
from the Catalist voter file.
Five voters of interest were identified:
• Amendment supporters
• Activists
• Hunters and fishers
• Agree global warming is a crisis
• Potential donors to Conservation MN

Append External Data
– Voter files - age, race, party, tenure and vote history
– Public records – census, deeds, and DMV
– Commercial demographic and behavioral data
Step 2: Attributes of the Targets

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Step 3: Model Your Targets
Marital Status
+
Purchasing PowerGender
(voter file)
+ +
% College
Graduates
In neighborhood
(census)
2+ Children
+ +
Internet User
What attributes are associated with your targets?
What is their relative importance?

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Step 4: Identify Others with Similar Traits
+ + +
% College
Graduates
= 16
+
Internet
User
+ ++
Internet
User
Marital Status
2+ Children
+ +
Internet
User
Purchasing
Power
= 83
= 72
= 54
Gender
Gender
Gender
Purchasing
Power
% College
Graduates
% College
Graduates

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Lowest Scores
Use Scores to Sort & Select Individuals
Highest Scores
Target voters with high scores
• Contact supporters (volunteer recruitment, activism)
• Start at highest scores and work down (efficient calling)
Exclude voters with low scores.
Mid-Range Scores

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In the past two years, how many times have you contacted an
elected official about an issue of importance to you -- never,
once, or more than once?
Never...................................................................... 58%
Once........................................................................ 16%
More than once........................................................ 25%
For the purposes of the 2008 model, we chose to model the 25%
who responded more than once.
In 2017, we used the contact history from Conservation MN
solicitations.
Activist Model

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On average, 25% of
the responders had
contacted an
elected official
more than once in
the last two years.
This percentage
rises to 47% of
those voters with a
score of 10, which
is nearly double
the mean and four
times more likely
than those voters
with a score of 1.
Activist Model Performance
12%
16%
18% 20% 20%
24%
29%
31%
37%
47%
25%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Total
Activist Score
MoreThanOnce

9 years later
1. Extend the models to new registrants.
2. Assed whether the models were still effective
3. 3 of the 5 could be rebuilt using the current voter file
4. A new “responder” model was built to identify who is
likely to “take action” or contribute.
Models were assessed and developed using data
Conservation Minnesota collected in their program work;
saving the high cost of conducting a poll.
Updating the Models in 2017

Conclusion from MN Case Study
Models can be a solid investment for organizations
Models often hold up well over time
Collecting and saving your data can pay significant
dividends down the road

Contact Information
Robin Pressman Consulting
robin@robinpressman.com
202.276.0603

aThe Language of Conservation 2017
How to Communicate Effectively to Build Support
for Conservation in the Bay Area

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“In your own words, what does the
term ‘watershed’ mean to you?”
1999 survey of 850 Santa Clara County, CA residents
Don’t know: 47%
A geographic area through which water
flows to a common destination: 27%
A building or shed used to store water:
26%

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I think it’s like an
irrigation or a
percolation pond
thing, where it is kind
of like the water table.
It is like a holding tank.
Rain falls in it and feeds down
into this area one way or
another. It is the whole area
that collects the water.
It sounds like it’s a
box with the water.
I picture that
big cement
thing full of
water.
I’ve seen them at Rancho
San Antonio…I saw
something that looked
like it. It was a big huge
tank kind of thing.
I’d say a backup
water supply. Some
sort of receptacle or
container for water.

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We communicate to voters in subtle ways
that can help to shape these misperceptions.

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The Elephant
in the White
House

The Role of Climate
Change is Changing

“Our area is known for its beautiful
parks, natural areas, and hiking and
biking trails. Having access to these is
part of what makes living in Sonoma
County so great. This measure will
expand and maintain our unique trails,
from the beautiful, rugged Hood
Mountain trails, ideal for camping and
enjoying nature, and will complete the
network of paved trails throughout
Sonoma, perfect for commuting,
leisurely bike rides, and walks.”
Way of Life

aaa82%
94%
National Voters Hunters
% Total Serious Problem
“Children not spending enough time in the outdoors and in nature”
50%
Extremely/Very
73%
Extremely/Very
Help Kids Get Outdoors

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Connect Conservation to Health
“Pollution from harmful
chemicals like PCB’s,
mercury, and pesticides
has put the Bay’s fish
and wildlife at serious
risk. Restoring Bay
wetlands is critical to
reduce the toxins that
threaten our fish and
wildlife.”

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We can protect land
and water and have a
strong economy with
good jobs for
Americans at the same
time, without having to
choose one over the
other.
Sometimes protections
for land and water and a
strong economy are in
conflict and we must
choose one over the
other.
The Environment and the Economy

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Very Convincing
By Party
- 45%
- 37%
- 40%
“What is a conservative after all but one who conserves… And we want to protect and
conserve the land on which we live — our countryside, our rivers and mountains, our plains
and meadows and forests… This is what we leave to our children. And our great moral
responsibility is to leave it to them either as we found it or better than we found it.”
Evoke Responsibility

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Highlight History
% of American
voters who call
themselves a
“History Buff”
% of American
voters who call
themselves an
“Environmentalist”

Talk benefits – not process.

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Dave Metz
510-451-9521
dave@fm3research.com

How to Communicate Effectively for Conservation in the Bay Area

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