Announce Wisely

Whether a geothermal project is announced softly or through a detailed press conference, it is important from day one to lay out the facts of the proposal and present details about community benefits. Direct mailers that hit households on launch day are an effective way to present a project’s key points to all community members. An effective mailer is one that gives a voice to its recipient by including a tear-off comment section that can be returned with the contact information of supporters interested in assisting the campaign.

Expand Support

Trailing the mailer with a phone call affords companies an opportunity to utilize a persuasive script highlighting the project’s benefits to identify a broad base of supporters. While these calls will not produce scientific survey results as polling would, a company can gain useful input on the points of messaging that need to be strengthened to win over undecideds based on their responses.

Address Neighbors

It is important to remember that when a company chooses a site for a proposed geothermal project, it is asking community members to accept the company as a new neighbor. As a result companies should reach out separately to project abutters to try to alleviate any immediate concerns shortly after project announcement. An open house style event is an effective means to solicit community input and answer questions among this group. Open houses are effective because a company can present its goals in casual context, with individual interaction between concerned residents and project experts. This format takes away the opposition’s ability to grandstand a presentation-style event and assume control of dialogue. Additionally, this individualized interaction allows a company to directly identify the supporters among the attendees who can play a critical role throughout a public outreach campaign. The earlier these supporters can be identified the sooner they can create the positive dialogue every company launching a new project needs.

Maintain an Updated Database

A common mistake companies make when carrying out a public outreach campaign is focusing on data collection without ever using it to further goals. Make sure to coordinate with your supporters directly to manage objectives. To do so, maintain a supporter database with phone numbers and email addresses appended in addition to other relevant demographics such as political affiliation, income, and voter district. Companies must strive to arm their proponents with the information and equipment necessary to be effective, and a well-organized database allows for targeted communications. The results of all direct mail responses, telephone identification, and email inquiries should be added to this supporter database as well for use when it comes time to actually ask residents “Will you write a letter of support or attend a hearing to assist the campaign?”