Before you get started: Make sure you've reached out to us to purchase numbers you can use for this action! If you do not, call campaigns will not work. You can reach out to support@actionnetwork.org to request numbers for Call Campaigns.
To create your letter call, go to the Actions tab in the Start Organizing menu and click Call Campaigns.
Next you will reach the create page. Give your call campaign an administrative title, which is for internal use only. Next, choose your target list -- you can pick one or more of built in target lists for the US and Canada:
- US president and vice president
- U.S. Congress
- U.S. Senate
- U.S. House of Representatives
- U.S. Governors
- U.S. State Legislatures
- U.S. State Legislatures Upper Houses
- U.S. State Legislatures Lower Houses
- CA Federal Ministers
- CA Senate
- CA House of Commons
- CA Provincial Ministers
- CA Provincial Legislators
You can also choose any custom targets you've uploaded or have access to (explained here). If you choose a custom target list, make sure that you have included a phone number in your custom target CSV.
Then, you have the option to turn on click to call using the toggle at the top. If you choose not to turn on click to call, activists can call a phone number and hear a recorded message. If we don't have their address on file, we'll use Voice to Address so people can state their address to be matched to the correct target. Activists will be able to enter their zip code by voice or keypad on their device. If you choose to enable click to call, activists will see a front-facing page with a form that asks for their address, mobile number, and whatever other fields you choose. If you didn't collect zip code on the form, activists will be able to enter their zip code by voice or (for US-based activists) keypad on their device. Then they will receive a call on the number they provided that plays your recorded message and connects them to the target(s).
For click-to-call
You can upload a banner image, which will appear below the title and above the description box. Your image should be 1500px wide by any height (600px is suggested). It will be scaled to a final size of 750px wide. You also have the option to add an image attribution, which will appear in small, dark grey text below your image, as well as alt text.
You can use the visual toolbar to customize the appearance of your description text. The following options are available:
- Write your description in HTML
- Format headings left, right, center or justified
- Add text formatting: bold, italicize, or strikethrough
- Create bulleted or numbered lists
- Insert images from links or your computer and add a title/alt text, add image attribution, link the image, change the position or change the width
- Insert a video from a YouTube or Vimeo link or embed code
- Insert and manage a table
- Add links or hyperlinks
- Add a horizontal line rule
Below this, you have the option to add legal disclaimer text. This will appear at the bottom of your action. Basic HTML is accepted.
Show or hide standard fields by clicking Edit Form and using the visual form builder. You can read more about the visual form builder here. You can also decide whether you want to make the field required or not. First name, last name, ZIP/postal code, mobile number, email address and country must always be present and required (street and city as well if using built in targets). You can also create questions with data linked to a specific action using action only fields. Click here to learn more.
Finally, you can add in custom form inputs using the visual form builder (explained here) or by writing your own HTML. And you can add an optional image if you choose.
Then select the phone number you want activists to call for this call campaign or receive a call from if you're using click to call. The dropdown will show you all available numbers, and show you which numbers are already in use by another call campaign. You can select a number already in use to get a link to the call campaign using that number so you can unpublish it.
Note: One phone number can only be used in one call campaign at a time. You will need to unpublish any call campaigns using that phone number, or ask us to purchase a new phone number on Twilio.
Next, you can upload a recorded message, in mp3 format, that activists will hear before being connected to their target(s). You also have the option to record this directly from your device. You'll need to have your microphone enabled on your device to do this. The recording should be relatively short and explain the script you want your activists to follow. If you need to convert an audio recording into mp3 format, here's a helpful free converter.
Selecting call campaign targets
When using built in targets, you can search for specific lawmakers from the target list you selected or filter that list by party or state/province. If you select both party and state, we'll include all lawmakers from that state that are members of the party you selected. Click the Add Selected button to confirm your choices.
Click the magnifying glass icon in the upper left to search through targets you've already selected, and remove individual targets by clicking the Remove button.
To remove all the targets you've selected, click Clear All Selections. This will allow you to select targets from scratch.
When you're done, click 'Okay! All Done!' to close the targeting window and see a count of the number of targets you selected. Click Save and Go to Next Page to edit the Thank You page.
Next, you can add and edit thank you page text, and show or hide the sharing options on thank you pages for click to call. This is a great place to include tips or a script for the call. Your activists will see the names of the targets they're calling on the thank you page.
When you're done, you can save your draft or save and move on to the next step of your call campaign. If your group has enabled the email response step in the Settings tab of your Group Manage page, you'll have the option of enabling or disabling an auto-response email and editing it here when using Click to Call. After you've done this, click Save and Publish to make your action live.
When you publish, your call campaign will be live. Test it out by calling the number you selected, or filling out the form if you're using click to call. Now it's time to share your call campaign. More on sharing your call campaign here.