I Have My Voter List. Now What? The 3 Steps to Your First Text Campaign

You've decided to use text messaging to reach voters in your local race. You've got your voter list—a spreadsheet with names and phone numbers. Maybe you bought it from your county, or collected sign-ups at community events.

Now what?

The good news: Launching your first text campaign is simpler than you think. You don't need weeks of training or technical expertise. With the right platform, you can be sending messages to voters in less than an hour.

This guide breaks down the entire process into three straightforward steps.

Overview: The 3 Steps to Your First Text Campaign

Here's what you're going to do:

1. Upload your list – Get your contacts into the platform
2. Write your message – Craft a simple, effective first text
3. Start sending – Assign volunteers and launch

That's it. No complicated setup. No confusing dashboards. Just three clear steps between you and reaching voters.

Let's walk through each one.

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Step 1: Upload Your Contact List

The first step is getting your voter list into the texting platform.

What You Need

At minimum, your list should have:

• First name (for personalization)
• Phone number (the mobile number to text)

Helpful additional fields:

• Last name
• City or district
• Polling location
• Voter ID or VAN ID (if you're syncing with a CRM)

File Format

Most platforms accept:

• CSV files (comma-separated values—the standard spreadsheet export)
• Excel files (.xlsx)

If you're unsure how to export a CSV, here's the quick version:

1. Open your spreadsheet in Excel or Google Sheets
2. Click "File" → "Download" (or "Save As")
3. Choose "CSV" or "Comma Separated Values"

The Upload Process

In most peer-to-peer texting platforms:

1. Log in to the platform
2. Click "Upload Contacts" or "Import List"
3. Select your CSV file
4. Map the columns (tell the platform which column is "First Name," which is "Phone Number," etc.)
5. Click "Import"

How long does this take? Usually 2-5 minutes, even for lists with thousands of contacts.

Common Upload Issues (and How to Fix Them)

Problem: "Phone numbers are invalid" Fix: Make sure phone numbers are in a standard format. The platform usually accepts:

• (555) 123-4567
• 555-123-4567
• 5551234567

Remove any letters or extra characters.

Problem: "Column not recognized" Fix: During the mapping step, manually select which column corresponds to each field. For example, if your spreadsheet says "Mobile Phone" but the platform expects "Phone Number," just map "Mobile Phone" → "Phone Number."

Problem: "Duplicate phone numbers detected" Fix: The platform will usually remove duplicates automatically. If not, go back to your spreadsheet and use the "Remove Duplicates" feature in Excel or Google Sheets.

Pro Tip: Start Small

If you're new to texting, don't upload all 10,000 voters on your first try.

Instead:

• Upload 100-200 contacts for your first campaign
• Test your message and process
• Once you're confident, upload the full list

This way, if you make a mistake, you haven't sent a flawed message to thousands of people.

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Step 2: Write Your Message

Now that your contacts are in the platform, it's time to write your first message.

The Basic Message Formula

A good first text message has four parts:

1. Greeting + Name – "Hi Sarah,"
2. Who you are – "This is Mike, running for city council in District 3."
3. The ask or info – "We're focused on fixing our roads and improving schools. Can I count on your support on November 5th?"
4. Opt-out – "Reply STOP to opt out."

Full example:

Hi Sarah, this is Mike, running for city council in District 3. We're focused on fixing our roads and improving schools. Can I count on your support on November 5th? Reply STOP to opt out.

That's 160 characters—short, personal, and clear.

Use Personalization Fields

Most platforms let you insert dynamic fields that automatically fill in each voter's specific information.

Common fields:

• {FirstName} – Inserts the voter's first name
• \{City\} – Inserts their city
• \{PollingLocation\} – Inserts their polling place (if you have that data)

Example with personalization:

Hi {FirstName}, this is Mike running for city council. Your polling location is {PollingLocation}, open 7 AM - 8 PM on Nov 5th. Can I count on your vote?

The platform automatically replaces {FirstName} with "Sarah," \{PollingLocation\} with "Lincoln Elementary," etc.

Keep It Short and Conversational

The best campaign texts:

• Feel like a personal message, not an ad
• Are under 300 characters (ideally under 160 for a single SMS)
• Ask a question (to encourage replies)
• Include one clear call to action ("Vote on Nov 5," "Reply YES to volunteer," etc.)

Bad example (too formal, too long):

Dear Constituent, I am writing to inform you that I am a candidate for the upcoming city council election in District 3, and I would appreciate your consideration of my candidacy. I believe in transparency and accountability. Thank you for your time.

Good example (conversational, direct):

Hi John! I'm Mike, running for city council in District 3. I'm focused on fixing potholes and lowering taxes. Can I count on your support on Election Day?

Always Include an Opt-Out

Federal law (and good practice) requires that you give people a way to opt out.

The simplest way:

• Add "Reply STOP to opt out" at the end of your first message

A good platform will automatically process "STOP" replies and remove those contacts from future campaigns. You don't have to do anything manually.

Preview Your Message

Before you send anything, use the platform's preview feature (if available) to see what the message will actually look like with personalization filled in.

Make sure:

• Names are capitalized correctly
• There are no weird formatting issues
• The message isn't cut off or awkwardly broken

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Step 3: Start Sending

You've uploaded your list. You've written your message. Now it's time to actually send.

Assign Contacts to Volunteers

If you're working alone, you can send all the messages yourself. But most campaigns recruit a few volunteers to help.

Here's how it works:

1. Invite volunteers to the platform (usually via email invitation)
2. The platform assigns a batch of contacts to each volunteer (e.g., 100 contacts per person)
3. Volunteers log in, see their assigned contacts, and start sending

How long does sending take?

• Most volunteers send 60-120 texts per hour
• To send 1,000 texts with 5 volunteers, expect 1-2 hours

The Volunteer Experience

Here's what your volunteers will see when they log in:

1. A contact's information – Name, city, any notes you've added
2. The message (pre-written by you) – They don't have to write anything from scratch
3. A "Send" button – They click it, and the message goes out

Can volunteers customize the message? Yes. Most platforms let volunteers make small tweaks (fix a name, adjust wording) before clicking "Send." This keeps it personal and human.

Launch Your Campaign

When you're ready:

1. Set the campaign to "Active"
2. Notify your volunteers that contacts are ready to send
3. Monitor progress in the platform dashboard

You'll see real-time stats:

• How many messages have been sent
• How many replies have come in
• How many people have opted out

Managing Replies

As messages go out, voters will start replying. Common replies:

• "Yes, you have my support!"
• "When is the election?"
• "Where do I vote?"
• "Remove me from this list."

Most platforms route replies back to the volunteer who sent the original message, so they can continue the conversation.

Your job:

• Make sure volunteers know how to respond to common questions
• Provide a FAQ sheet or talking points
• Escalate complex or hostile replies to a campaign manager

What to Expect: Benchmarks

Here's what "normal" looks like for a first P2P text campaign:

If your opt-out rate is above 1%, something's wrong—your message may be too aggressive or sent to the wrong audience.

If your response rate is below 5%, consider:

• Making the message more engaging (ask a question)
• Sending at a better time (weekday evenings work well)

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Putting It All Together: A Real Example

Let's say you're running for school board. You have 2,000 contacts (parents in your district). Here's how your first campaign might look:

Step 1: Upload

• Export your contact list to a CSV file
• Upload to the platform (takes 3 minutes)
• Platform confirms: 2,000 contacts imported successfully

Step 2: Write

You write this message:

Hi {FirstName}, I'm Laura, running for school board. I'm a parent of two at Jefferson Elementary and I'm focused on smaller class sizes and better teacher pay. Can I count on your vote on Nov 5? Reply STOP to opt out.

You preview it. Looks good.

Step 3: Send

• You recruit 5 volunteers (friends and family)
• You assign 400 contacts to each volunteer
• They log in on Saturday morning and spend 90 minutes sending texts
• By lunchtime, all 2,000 messages are sent

Results:

• 1,950 messages delivered (97.5% delivery rate)
• 350 replies (18% response rate)
• 180 positive responses ("Yes!" "You have my vote!" etc.)
• 8 opt-outs (0.4%)

Total cost: $30-$60 (depending on your platform's pricing) Total time: ~2 hours (including setup)

Not bad for a Saturday morning.

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Common First-Timer Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)

Mistake #1: Sending at the Wrong Time

Don't send messages:

• Before 9 AM or after 9 PM
• During work hours on weekdays (unless your audience is stay-at-home parents or retirees)

Best times:

• Weekday evenings: 6 PM - 8 PM
• Weekend mornings/afternoons: 10 AM - 5 PM

Mistake #2: Writing a Novel

Keep it short. If your message is longer than 300 characters, cut it down. Voters won't read a text that requires scrolling.

Mistake #3: Not Training Volunteers

Even though P2P texting is simple, give your volunteers a 10-minute orientation:

• How to log in
• How to send a message
• How to respond to replies
• What to do if someone is rude or asks a complex question

Mistake #4: Ignoring Replies

If voters take the time to reply, respond promptly (within 5-30 minutes). Ignoring them wastes the opportunity and frustrates supporters.

Mistake #5: Giving Up After One Campaign

Your first campaign might not be perfect. Maybe your response rate is low, or your message feels awkward. That's okay. Adjust and try again.

The second campaign is always better than the first.

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The Bottom Line

Launching your first text campaign is simple:

1. Upload your list – CSV file, 2-5 minutes
2. Write your message – Short, personal, clear call to action
3. Start sending – Assign volunteers, send 60-120 texts/hour

You don't need weeks of preparation. You don't need technical expertise. With a good platform, you can go from "I have a voter list" to "messages sent" in under an hour.

The hardest part? Just getting started.

Once you send your first campaign, you'll realize: This is way easier than I thought.

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Ready to launch your first campaign? Start with Political Comms—simple, fast, and built for local campaigns

Questions or need help getting started? Contact us—we'll walk you through your first campaign step-by-step.