Do NOT freeze or cut federal aid!
Will you add your name to the petition to show that we, the people, OPPOSE Trump freezing federal funds that go toward our children, families, schools, and communities?
Sign this PetitionOrganizing 101: The Messenger Matters: Organizing Through the Power of Personal Relationships
This blog is part of a longer series called ‘Organizing 101: Outrage to Organizing.’
In our most recent edition of “Organizing 101”, we learned about building community through relationships. The common thread through this series is that people are powerful.
Leadership and change happens through people and the power we have when we all work together.
While we’ve learned the basics about organizing by learning what it means to take action, the power of petitions, and how to have one-on-one conversations, today we’re focusing on relational organizing and why trusted messengers are one of the most effective ways to build power.
What Is Relational Organizing?
Relational organizing is mobilizing and organizing through the existing relationships people already have, like your friends, family, coworkers, and community.
Relational organizing is rooted in the idea that people take action because someone they already trust asked them to. Having a trusted friend, coworker, or relative invite them into activism eliminates so many steps because the trust is already established between you two, making the ask easier and achievable.
Why Relational Organizing Works
According to the Analyst Institute and the Vote Tripling Project, relational outreach outperforms other methods of organizing, like door-knocking.
People are more likely to vote, donate, or act when asked by someone they know. That’s why reaching out to your friends, peers, and family about voting is so incredibly important. It’s one of the most effective organizing strategies that exists. It builds authenticity in an era of political saturation and digital ads.
This strategy also helps those who are new to activism grow confidence and get their bearings. It’s easier to talk to someone you know about important and potentially heated issues.
Relational Organizing vs. Relational Mobilizing
There’s a difference between relational organizing (talking to your friends and family about voting) vs. relational mobilizing.
Relational mobilizing has the goal of reaching a lot of people very quickly by tapping into your personal relationships and networks.
Examples of relational mobilizing:
- Asking your friends, family, and network to commit to reminding three friends to vote. This is called vote tripling and it’s easily the most effective tactic to get people to the ballot box.
- Having volunteers text or call friends and family to attend an event.
Pros of relational mobilizing:
- It’s a quick way to boost turnout or signatures.
- It’s especially impactful around time-sensitive asks, such as election day and petition deadlines.
Con of relational mobilizing:
- Shallow engagement — people may act once but don’t necessarily become long-term activists.
Remember relational organizing can develop new leaders and build sustainable power through personal relationships.
Examples of relational organizing
- Having one-on-one conversations with friends to uncover values and motivations.
- Inviting friends to house meetings or campaign teams.
- Recruiting people into leadership roles.
Pros of relational organizing:
- Creates long-term commitment and leadership roles, which will help you increase the size of your base and reach.
- Strengthens trust and resilience in a campaign.
Con of relational organizing:
- Slower process and more resource-intensive.
Both relational mobilizing and relational organizing are essential.
- Relational mobilizing is fast scale.
- Relational organizing is long-term capacity.
Tools & Techniques for Relational Organizing & Mobilizing That are Effective
Techniques that don’t require technology but are always effective:
- Friend mapping: Write down 5–10 people you can ask to take action, such as voting, signing a petition, or sharing information on a specific topic.
- Relationship tripling: Ask supporters to commit to contacting 3+ friends about getting involved.
- Polling place outreach: After voting, remind voters to immediately text friends to urge voting turnout.
- Paper tracking sheets: Track who you and your team has contacted as a way to stay organized and log your outreach efforts.
Digital tools that help boost scale and organization:
- Reach: This is an app for identifying, tracking, and messaging contacts.
- OutVote: integrates with campaigns to help volunteers text their networks.
- Action Network “friend-to-friend” tools: allows petitions or events to spread through personal asks.
Tips for Relational Organizing Success:
- Encourage personalized outreach. Think about what you know about your friends, family, coworkers, and colleagues and meet them where they are. Avoid copy and paste scripts if you can.
- Provide training & practice so volunteers feel confident talking to their networks. This training can be in person, over Zoom, or over the phone. Anything you can do to help your volunteers feel more comfortable and confident is key.
- Make your progress visible and accountable—Use spreadsheets to track who contacted who, and celebrate wins. Watching your sheet fill up with new contacts is a big success and something to celebrate regularly!
- Layer relational tactics into everything: Remember, politics affects all of our lives and you’re a person talking to a person. So bring humanity, vulnerability, and the goal of connection to everything you do: canvassing, events, phone banks, etc.
It can feel overwhelming to start organizing but it doesn’t have to feel that way. All of these tips are to help you feel more confident and energized about fighting for a cause that’s important to you and your community.
If you feel hesitation around tracking your outreach, worry about “bugging” friends, or feel like your network is too small, don’t worry. You can address these hesitations by using simple tools and bringing your humanity to your work. For tracking, use a simple spreadsheet and start to normalize having authentic, casual conversations with your friends and family about getting involved.
Takeaways About Relational Organizing and Mobilizing
The messenger matters. Building authentic relationships around enacting change is what truly drives action. Integrate relationship mobilizing AND organizing into your work to create effective success for your movement. Relational mobilizing builds scale and relational organizing builds depth. Every person in your network has the ability to become a leader in their community with training and time.
Next in our series, ‘Organizing 101: Outrage to Organizing,’ we’ll discuss the power of telling your story.