Ask Slashdot: How Can I Get Through To a Politician By E-mail? 204
wytcld writes "Sending an individually-written e-mail to my state senator resulted in an automated response saying that since she receives hundreds of e-mails a day, there might be no personal response, but please don't take that to mean she hasn't read my e-mail. So I contacted her again suggesting that was a pretty poor answer. Most of the e-mails she receives are mass mailings coordinated by various interest group websites. Why doesn't she put those to the side, I asked, and prioritize response to individual e-mails from constituents who've taken the time to actually write? Her response? She often can't tell the difference at first, so spends time drafting responses to the first instances of group e-mail spam, and gets diverted from responding to those who really write her. Are there tools out there which a politician can use to identify the incoming group-think blasts and put them to to side? It's easy enough to imagine sorting by repeated content or headers, if I ran the mail server, but I'm looking for packages already out there that a state-level representative, with no staff to speak of, might use to cut through the mess and prioritize communication with constituents who care enough about an issue to draft their own thoughts."
Move to a smaller state (Score:4, Funny)
Getting your email noticed (Score:5, Funny)
There are a few simple steps you can take to guarantee your email will stand out above the background noise...
1) Greet her by her full name - if you can do the research to find some endearing nickname only used by her friends, so much the better!
2) Mention the names of her husband and kids - show you're not like the other constituents. YOU take the time to get to know her!
3) Include photo attachments of her house (both in Washington and in your home state), her car, and her husband's car - again, this shows you care about this communication enough to put some time into learning more about her!
4) Describe, specifically and in the strongest terms possible, the issue you care about - getting to know her is nice, but don't let your message get lost in all the friendly banter!
5) In closing, be friendly! Mention that she or her family might run into you sometime!
6) (optional) If you can get hold of her personal cell phone number, follow up a few times with friendly phone calls! Script them, though - be sure to follow the steps I've listed above. But remember, she's a busy person; so call when she's more likely to be free - late at night is best.
Re:Paper and Pen (Score:4, Funny)
...hold the paper against the person, then quickly stab through the paper with the pen
The paper acts as a shield to prevent blood getting on you.