Looking at ideas and the execution of campaigning strategies can tell us a lot about a political party. Pirates should be good at remixing and re-using good ideas which is why we hope to write more tips and tricks such as this in the future. If you would like to explain more about your Pirate Party’s campaign strategies we are very happy for guest posts. The text below has been loosely translated from the Swedish instructions about the poster campaign.

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In 2014 the Swedish Pirate Party will face the election for the European Parliament followed by national and local elections. This is why PPSE has already launched their poster campaign start . The campaign is based on the Swedish King’s saying “for Sweden in time” which was remixed to “for Sweden in future times”. Focusing on this saying aims to highlight possibilities instead of difficulties. PPSE are looking for solutions where other parties only see problems.

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General Campaign Tips
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Use all the campaign material

The purpose of the campaign is to make PPSE visible for the broad mass of people. The goal for the election year 2014 is to spread awareness among as many people as possible about the following aspects of PPSE:

• that the party exists
• that we have done good things in the EU parliament
• that we have broadened our political platform
• that pirates are people just like anyone else

The campaign material is shaped in different ways to achieve these goals. Don’t just leave the filesharing poster at home because you are tired of having to nag on about it. Don’t ignore the school politics poster because you graduated and don’t care anymore. The better we can use all the campaign material, the better the complete effect of the campaign will be.

TIPS!
Often you are only able to place a few posters on the same board. Combine the posters in different ways to achieve a reaction for the future viewer. One way might be to combine posters that visually strengthen each other. A strongly green poster next to a bright red one etc. This will make people look again when they pass it. You can also combine a poster that is about a “typical” Pirate question (e.g. filesharing) with a poster highlighting what we have accomplished in the EU parliament or one of the parts that have emerged from our broadened political platform. Doing this you can challenge a persons preconceived ideas about PPSE.

Multi-task

Always try to combine several different types of campaigning. People will believe they have seen something “everywhere” if they have seen it on three separate occasions during a limited time. When we have seen something “everywhere” we immediately start talking about it with our friends and the word keeps spreading.

TIPS!
Put up posters and put leaflets in mailboxes in the same area for a week. After this write a debate article relating to the campaign material you distributed, and send it to your local newspaper.

Put up posters downtown. Then take a few Pirates and hand out fliers downtown. Arrange a Pirate gathering that will take place a few days later that you can invite interested people to.

Putting up posters

Put up posters in assigned areas where posters are allowed. Illegal posters, e.g. busstops, display windows etc only risk costing the Party money, which we need for other things.

TIPS!
Posters attract interest. It’s always useful having more information you can give away. Always bring a bunch of fliers to hand out to interested people while you put up your posters.

Handing out fliers downtown

Find a central spot where many people pass and hand out the fliers there. If you have more people (5-6 persons) it will look more serious and organized than if you do it on your own. Dress properly: neat, clean and purple.

TIPS!
ALWAYS be nice. Sometimes people who want a fight or a rude discussion approach but just let them be. NEVER start arguing wildly with them. It only gives a bad impression of the Pirate Party to passersby.

Leaflets in mailboxes

If you are alone, or if  there are several of you who want some change, it’s great to hand out fliers in mailboxes. In one or two hours you can cover a fairly large area. An advantage having eight different fliers is that you can alternate them different weeks.

TIPS!
Think about what areas give most back for the time invested and start there first. Student areas are usually a good place to start.

AFK

Collaborate with other Pirates and arrange local get-togethers, seminars, demonstrations and other activities to attract both new and old Pirates. If you have a local Pirate Party where you live you can contact them and offer your help.

In the media

Combine campaigning with local media work. Write a debate article for the local newspaper. Talk with the local newspapers about when you will hand out fliers or have a gathering etc.

TIPS!
Writing a debate article is not hard. Here is a short debate article tutorial with several tips and tricks:  (in Swedish) and here are some tips about how to get your article published (in Swedish)

Online

You can download all the posters in jpg-format here: . Spread them over Facebook, Google+, Twitter or your blog.

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Below is a short explanation about each of the posters and the ideas behind them. Each poster addresses a separate topic and there is a link to where you can read more about common questions and answers to the topic (in Swedish). This will help with your argumentation technique when you hand them out as fliers or if someone asks you about them.

Theme: PPSE is useful in the EU parliament

Do you know who has access to your personal information? The answer is simple: more people than you believe.

The Pirate Party wants you to have control over your information. That is why we work for a sustainable protection for personal data.

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

Theme: the Pirate Party is making useful change in the EU parliament

PPSE has two EU parliamentarians: Christian Engström and Amelia Andersdotter. Together with activists from all over the world they stopped ACTA in 2012

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

Theme: fundamental Pirate values

Old or young? Man or woman? Happy or angry? Homo or Hetero? Florist or Programmer?

The Pirate Party wants you to have a free internet in a free “meat-world” (an AFK world) . A place you can live and be yourself without surveillance.

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

Theme: fundamental pirate values

Filesharing is fun and good but the free part is actually fairly uninteresting.

The Pirate Party works for all those things you never get for free: integrity, freedom of speech, democracy, respect etc.

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

Theme: kids, future

The future doesn’t wait. It is created here and now for the people that dare to see the possibilities, where others only see the problems.

The Pirate Party doesn’t wait either. We are laying the foundation for a future filled with freedom, diversity and trust.

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

Theme: education, youth

The School doesn’t need more rules against caps or cell phones. It needs teachers that help the students develop, make conclusions and think on their own.

Answers and questions:  (in Swedish)

Theme: Integration and diversity

All people have the same rights, no matter skin color, religion, sexual orientation, life style, disabilities or other characteristics.

Today this is not the case. The Pirate Party wants to even the playing field.

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

Theme: Filesharing, integration

Pirates share the things they care about – both files and Sweden.

(although the flier is specifically about file-sharing, ‘file’ in Swedish = ‘fil’ which also is another word for yogurt  making this a play on puns)

Shared culture is loved culture and helps both culture creators and interested. That is why the Pirate Party wants to legalize all non-commercial file-sharing.

Questions and answers:  (in Swedish)

About Josef Ohlsson Collentine

I’m a dual citizen (American/Swede) and try to integrate my reflections from a more global perspective if possible. I’m the organizational leader for Pirate Times and work actively to strengthen the pirate movement through this work as well as being the international contact for Piratpartiet (PPSE). Elected board member of PPSE for 2015-2018.
If you would like to ask me something I speak English, Swedish and Spanish. Find me on the links below

 

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Looking at ideas and the execution of campaigning strategies can tell us a lot about a political party. Pirates should be good at remixing and re-using good ideas which is…