Tele Town Hall Meetings - Key Campaign and Voter Outreach Tool
By Lee Simonson
Tele Town Hall meetings have risen to the top of "must do" lists for candidates and corporate officials who are interested in simultaneously reaching out to thousands of constituents. It has become the easiest and least expensive way to personally reach out and interact with a large number of people, in the shortest amount of time.
In fact, many campaign officials are astounded about the impressive bump in poll numbers that takes place immediately after a Tele Town Hall meeting takes place -- so much so, that some are attributing victories to the use of this technology.
In a nutshell, a Tele Town Hall meeting is a live teleconference. But unlike most conference calls that take place by having participants call in at a certain time, Tele Town Hall automatically calls out to voters and invites them to participate. The voters can either accept or reject the phone invitation. If a voter accepts, he or she is immediately placed in the Town Hall Teleconference and can begin listening to the virtual event from the comfort of their home.
Obviously, the system has many advantages, not the least of which is the convenience of the participants who don't have to leave home or carve out time in their schedule to head down to a traditional meeting to hear the same thing. No worrying about the weather, babysitters, or other conflicts. Voters can just pick up the phone at home and instantly join the meeting.
From the candidate's point of view, sponsoring these virtual meetings can cover more ground in less time. For example, a setting for a normal town hall meeting may attract 20 to 200 people. Scheduling two or three in one day, could bring out several hundred people. It can be an expensive and time consuming way to reach a relatively small number of interested voters. However, a virtual Tele Town Hall meeting can have 20,000 to 80,000 people engaged in one hour -- more than 100 times the number of people a candidate or elected official would be able to see.
Moreover, the system enables interactivity and candidates or officials can invite participants to ask live questions in a controlled environment. Some candidates allow for participants to ask anything they want, and others use a screening process to keep the questions focused on a particular themed subject, especially if the candidate wants to concentrate on a high profile issue which is impacting on his district.
Overall, Tele Town Hall technology is transforming the way political, marketing and public relations professionals are designing campaigns. They are leveraging the advantages this technology provides in reaching out to constituents in a personal, warm and high touch setting that is both engaging and cost effective -- much less expensive than direct mail, and much more targeted than mass media exposure, such as television.
Candidates, officials, corporate and non-profit executives, now have a new communications tool that will revolutionize the way they conduct business while reaching out to valued voters, constituents and stakeholders who are empowered by participating in a personal exchange with representatives or decision makers.
Look for a dramatic increase in Tele Town Hall meeting events as technology continues to enhance the way we are connected.
For more information on Tele Town Hall meetings, how they work and costs: http://www.orangepoint.net/town_hall_teleconference.html.
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