Action Playbook:

Influence the Influencers

Let’s take action.

  • Get key influencers to help move policymakers on a given climate priority.

    1. Choose a climate solution

    2. Identify a key influencer to contact

    3. Send an email

    4. Make a phone call and/or Tweet at them

Choose a climate solution to advocate for

Before you can draft your messages, choose the policy priority you’d like to advocate for from our policy slate. If you’re on an Hour of Action, your host has suggested a featured priority for today. Feel free to ask if you’ve forgotten!

  1. Skim the issue briefing (no really, skim).

  2. Pay close attention to the Clear Policy Ask, since that will help frame your request to a key influencer.

  3. Leave the tab open, since it includes information that you’ll use later in this action.

Identify a key influencer and find their contact information

Next, you’ll need to choose which key influencers you want to contact. These are people who are influential on a specific policy topic and/or have influence with a specific policymaker, so key influencers will vary depending on the policy you want to get passed and the policymakers you want to target. Below, we’ve identified a key influencer target for the current advocacy campaign.

If instead you want to try your hand at mapping your own key influencers, click here to get started—then return to this playbook with your list.

Write an email to a key influencer

Using the email address you found, send an email asking for their help in advocating for a specific policy. Below is a template for writing that email, and check the drop-down for tips specific to this month’s advocacy campaign.

Start by thanking them for any work they’ve done on the specific issue or other climate policy priority.

Provide a clear request up front: “Let Congressman X or State Senator Y know that this policy is a top priority for people in your district.”

Briefly explain the personal significance to you as a resident of your state. This is where your personal talking point goes.

Include any supporting facts and data that you believe are persuasive with this specific stakeholder. You can find these in our Issue Briefings or via Google search.

Reiterate your request and include additional ways they can engage, such as introducing a resolution of support for the policy issue, being vocal about the policy in the media, or sending a group letter from state legislators to the congressional delegation.

Now to maximize your impact:

Make a phone call if you can find a phone number. Use your email as a script, and remember, voicemails are effective, too! If you’re nervous about the call, try doing it after hours and leaving a message.

Find the person’s (and/or the organization’s) public Twitter handle or other social media page and adapt your message to a social media format. Both private DMs and public attention can be valuable, so try both approaches.

Share what you did with your network. Posting on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc. about your experience taking this action can help inspire others to start their own climate advocacy journey. Here’s a sample Tweet you can use to amplify:

I just contacted [KEY INFLUENCER] to urge their support for [POLICY PRIORITY.] It’s really empowering and a lot more accessible than it seems. Here’s the playbook! https://www.climatechangemakers.org/preview-influence-the-influencers

  • There’s always a way to go deeper and think more strategically about how to influence decision-makers.

    One way to turn up the pressure on a key influencer, like an electric utility company, is to employ the same strategy on them: key influencers influencing key influencers! Think about whose voice might hold weight with your target influencer. Sometimes the answer is someone who you’re used to seeing in the driver’s seat, like a member of Congress. The people making decisions and the people influencing them in their orbit all switch places depending on the policy priority you’re advocating for.

    Here’s a clean example using the electric utility case:

    Policy goal: Pass state legislation banning fossil gas in new buildings.
    Policymaker target: State legislators
    Key influencer who state legislators listen to: Electric utility company
    Key influencer who can pressure the utility company: Member of Congress

    Advocacy is primarily about relationships, which we can leverage to achieve the desired policy outcome. If you want to go deeper on this action, contact a second key stakeholder who can exert pressure on the person you just contacted above. Follow the same steps, tweaking the clear request as needed. If you’ve gotten this far, you’re in highly strategic territory!

Thank you for taking action!

Help us improve this playbook: info@climatechangemakers.org

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