Annual “Lobby Day” or Capitol Hill “Fly-Ins” are ubiquitous events with lots of legislator and constituent interaction. For purposes of this article, I’ll refer to them as “lobby days”. It’s important for grassroots volunteers to see their legislator “on the job,” and to learn that their lawmaker is indeed human.

In spite of the tremendous benefits, I have observed that the participation rates are much lower than in the past. Organization members cite the universal “I don’t have time” rationale. There are several reasons for this common lament. How do you get past the “I don’t have time to attend” hue and cry and increase quality participation in your Lobby Day?

Evaluate

Do you solicit feedback from your past attendees? When evaluating internal grassroots programs, I’ll ask clients for the evaluations of previous lobby day and/or training events. Many groups do not solicit or keep this information. Listening to the customer is the first step in implementing a results-oriented Lobby Day.

Recruit for Talent, Not a Pulse

In an effort to have a “show of strength” on the Hill or at the state capitol, it’s easy to recruit WB’s (“warm bodies”). I am convinced that poor participation is due to the lack of strategic grassroots volunteer screening and recruitment. We must move to the notion of recruiting people for talent and skills, not because they have a pulse. A costly result of recruiting only “WB’s” is less post-lobby day evangelism to fellow organization members.

Increasing grassroots productivity is all about maximizing the talents and interests of your quality grassroots volunteers. You’ll increase your grassroots productivity and save time if you recruit those people who truly enjoy this type of activity. Some of your members are highly articulate, and motivated by associating with “important” people. These individuals are usually ideal for attending lobby day events. Make a commitment to regularly assess and evaluate your members’ interests and skills.

No Benefits, No Results

Another reason attendance is down is because potential participants do not understand the benefits and results of their attendance. Many organizations promote meeting with one’s lawmaker as an action that will make sure their “voice is heard,” and by doing so, they will secure their lawmaker’s vote on every issue. Setting up our advocates this way has a deleterious effect.

It’s an example of the rule of motivation from management expert Victor Vroom, who found over decades of researching organizations, a simple yet profound explanation for this dilemma. When expectations do not meet reality, people are de-motivated. In reality, meeting one’s legislator is only one step toward developing a quality working relationship. Have you communicated realistic benefit and result expectations?

Transfer of Knowledge vs. Motivation

Another reason these meetings are less enthusiastically received is because the pre-legislator meeting is simply a transfer of knowledge. Your members can get that information from the Internet. It’s one thing to impart knowledge, it’s quite another to motivate your participants to be active in the legislative process throughout the year. What’s your meeting’s motivational quotient? I’m positively amazed that government relations professionals think that their “legislative updates” are motivational.

Incorrect Promotional and Training Strategy

Your attendees must shape your promotion strategy. Senior level managers or board

members want to know long-term benefits and results from their participation. Entry-level or those new to the process often want to know what they will receive in terms of the grassroots “experience.” Remember Amyism #24: Grassroots Program Strategy: “There are no accidents. Behind every bad result there is a worse strategy (or none at all!)”

It’s tempting to adopt the “me, too” approach to lobby days. Just because a certain format works for one type of association or corporation doesn’t mean it will work in your organization. I wouldn’t think of doing the same type of training for engineers that I would for nurses, or for board members that I would for middle managers. However, many groups will copy from each other and provide off-the-shelf training alternatives based on the approaches of a very disparate group.

Lobby days are integral to teaching your program members how to interact with and influence legislators. Take time to thoughtfully evaluate, plan and implement them so that your members are evangelists for next year’s lobby day.