Why You Should Be Doing Campaign Outreach

It's almost election season. I live in NYC, so it's always a brutally competitive, play-dirty, high stakes mad dash to even the tiniest of local elections.

And this year, I've been knocking on doors for my local council member. There's good reasons to do so- he's pro-affordable housing, pro-parks, and against raising taxes. That's awesome! But frankly, that's not why YOU should be doing it.

You should be doing it because there is literally nothing more embarrassing than knocking on doors in Manhattan's projects holding a bunch of fliers. Or maybe there is- probably selling pest control door to door.

Here's what I'm "selling"- here's my pitch. The city wants to bowl over a block of affordable housing (projects) that houses 9,000 people. One of the biggest in lower manhattan. My candidate wants to save it, his opponent has received money from luxury housing developers to make sure it gets turned into white marble, reflective glass high rises. Why does this matter? Because every door I knock on, I have a simple sales pitch: YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO ME OR YOU ARE GOING TO LOSE YOUR HOME.

and no one will listen to you.

Literally, you couldn't have a more effective pitch than that. Not asking for money, not asking for time, just for people to make one small, reasonable decision. And you'll have to use every single closing tactic in the book to actually get your point across. It's insanely good practice.

You gain confidence pretty quickly. For every three apartments or so, only one will open. And they're pissed. If you're not bringing confidence on sales calls, I guarantee this will help you. You get the door slammed in your face. You get accused of selling something. You get absolutely no money for your time.

But for those ten or fifteen people you DO speak to, you have to channel a closer. QBS? Where would you live if you couldn't live here? What would it mean for you if you had to leave? Can you do this one thing for me? These are the skills we've practiced.

Also, you're fighting people's avoidance, literally for a GOOD CAUSE. You break through their objections - it's not a good time, I don't know you- to deliver an incredibly important message. So, idk. Get out there. Choose a candidate who reflects something important, and put the sales skills to good use to improve your communities.

And if you're in NYC, HIT ME UP! I'm putting together a group of sales girlies for a cause.

XOXO, @lou_closes