It's Halloween already??? Yep. Scary huh? So what should the event look like? As we've mentioned, there's no fixed prescription, but here are some core components that'd be helpful to keep in mind:
Location:
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Decorate venues spookily. cobwebs, spiders, etc.
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Central sign-in table very large –e.g. 15 tables
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Don’t pick a space so large you won’t fill it comfortably. (unfilled space=not that cool)
Sign-in:
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Plan out how many sign-in volutneers you think you'll need. How many people per minute you can sign in? How many signer-inners you want should reflect amount of time you want to take to sign people in.
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Give people stickers that corresponded to the group they are assigned to. Captains should hold up signs that corresponds to group. We use spooky monster names for our groups (ghost, werewolves, witches, etc.)
Pre-Canvass rally:
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Recruit a speaker that will draw people and get folks revved up for the canvass.
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You'll need people to do the all-volunteer training. Get people excited. Make it interesting.
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Small group trainers should make sure that everyone has their bags with all their resources and can explain all the tools to them
The walk itself:
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Smooth deployment from the pre-canvass rally to the walk itself is crucial. Make sure you have transportation figured out beforehand. We suggest finding Trick-or-Trainers that can drive their teams to turf.
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Fun Idea: plant a special prize (like an Ipod) at one of the doors on the turf. Tell canvassers beforehand that one of them will win the prize. This is helpful incentive for folks to finish their turfs.
Greeting your canvassers
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Make sure you have lots of greeters (like the end of a marathon) for when people come back from their walk.
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Have prizes to give out for volunteers who finish their turf, and for the person that knocks the most doors.
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In Portland, all our volunteers get a free ticket to the concert, while the public has to pay. This is great volunteer incentive.
- Collect peoples' turf – clip boards, etc. in an orderly fashion. This is key.
Part-ay:
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Plan for a rolling start to your party, since people will return at different times. Have fun halloweeny games to play, e.g. bobbing for apples, kissing booth
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Have the party for non-walkers also (recommended) for a fee. This makes party bigger and gives more incentive for trick or voters.