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I liked the email/fax campaign so much, I wonder if it's time for a new one. I don't want to take the lead on this. I think those who put together the last one did an amazing job, and they have the credibility and contacts in place to do this again. But, here's a few ideas I've been toying around.
Basically, I'm envisioning a list of targets (email, fax, phone) of high profile legislatiors and administrators at agencies including NIH, CDC, NIAD, but also key House and Senate staffers. Much like a military campaign, we develop a calendar: each target has a date and on that date it gets hit. Targets and dates can be shifted around depending on context. On predesignated email strike day, everyone who sent an email in the first campaign gets a notice from the organizer:
Today's Target: John Doe, CDC
Email address: JohnDoe@cdc.gov
E-Mail message: SHOW M.E. the money, clinical trials now, ecc.
Signed: xyz, location, sick x # of years.
A few advantages to doing it this way:
1) can be funny (creative messages, with a standardized body, and creative "P.S. lines" at the bottom
2) can be fed to the press with a simple, and zany, at times funny/catchy explanation: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: "This week, 500 patients sent emails to John Doe, CDC, asking him to SHOW M.E. the money, ecc."
3) I think big numbers on specified days makes for a much more effective statement than a small trickle every day.
What would it require? Basically, an email list of willing participants. That could be time intensive, but thanks to all the cc's from the last campaign, it may already be in place? The larger it grows, the better. Wow. 10,000 emails on one day. How cool would that be.
The advantages of doing it short, every couple weeks, with different targets, but totally and massively coordinated sends a lot of good signals: agility, strength in numbers, PISSED OFF but funny as hell, zany, press-friendly.
I don't think we want to target people every day. But, I do think keeping the pressure on is KEY. Once every couple of weeks, or once a month could do really good things for us.
And, I think the next message should be about funding: less talk, more money, NOW. or, SHOW M.E. THE MONEY!
Basically, I'm envisioning a list of targets (email, fax, phone) of high profile legislatiors and administrators at agencies including NIH, CDC, NIAD, but also key House and Senate staffers. Much like a military campaign, we develop a calendar: each target has a date and on that date it gets hit. Targets and dates can be shifted around depending on context. On predesignated email strike day, everyone who sent an email in the first campaign gets a notice from the organizer:
Today's Target: John Doe, CDC
Email address: JohnDoe@cdc.gov
E-Mail message: SHOW M.E. the money, clinical trials now, ecc.
Signed: xyz, location, sick x # of years.
A few advantages to doing it this way:
1) can be funny (creative messages, with a standardized body, and creative "P.S. lines" at the bottom
2) can be fed to the press with a simple, and zany, at times funny/catchy explanation: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: "This week, 500 patients sent emails to John Doe, CDC, asking him to SHOW M.E. the money, ecc."
3) I think big numbers on specified days makes for a much more effective statement than a small trickle every day.
What would it require? Basically, an email list of willing participants. That could be time intensive, but thanks to all the cc's from the last campaign, it may already be in place? The larger it grows, the better. Wow. 10,000 emails on one day. How cool would that be.
The advantages of doing it short, every couple weeks, with different targets, but totally and massively coordinated sends a lot of good signals: agility, strength in numbers, PISSED OFF but funny as hell, zany, press-friendly.
I don't think we want to target people every day. But, I do think keeping the pressure on is KEY. Once every couple of weeks, or once a month could do really good things for us.
And, I think the next message should be about funding: less talk, more money, NOW. or, SHOW M.E. THE MONEY!
