For letters to the editor or to legislators

A few ideas to make your efforts more effective:

Writing the letter.

1. Keep it brief. About 200 words is good, and many papers reject letters longer than 250 words. Legislators will not take time to read longer letters.
2. Make the letter personal, with a real-life example if possible. Read your association’s form letter and talking points. Then write your own letter. Let your language reflect your way of speaking or writing: conversational or formal.
3. Open with a strong statement, and state the subject of your letter in the first few sentences. Try to focus on a single issue. Close with a call to action. Relating your letter to a recent story or a recent statement or act of the legislature will increase its chances of being well received.
4. Be careful about factual accuracy, and always avoid personal attacks.
5. More facts or citations don’t make the letter stronger, they make it more rant-like. Be careful when using statistics: they can be confusing or hard to follow. 78% of recent letters with more than 3 statistical references were 52% less likely to be understood by 63% of readers.
6. Sarcasm is helpful. Not.

Sending a letter to the editor.

1. Include your name, address and phone number: an anonymous letter is spam. Don’t call a paper to see if they got your letter. The paper will call to find out if you are real -- if they decide to use your letter. Don’t hold your breath waiting for a legislator to answer your letter.
2. Send letters to small and community newspapers, too. The smaller the newspaper’s circulation, the easier it is to get your letter printed, and most legislators either read all the papers in their district or get clippings from them.
3. If you e-mail your story, include your letter in the body of the e-mail. Many papers don’t open attachments.
4. Send a copy to your association, so they can keep track of everyone’s efforts.

Sending a letter to a legislator.

1. Legislators will respond most favorably to constituent letters. If your residence or your company’s business address are located in their district, mention that in the first sentence.
2. Mail your letter to your legislator’s district (non-Springfield) office, since their local office has more resources to deal with incoming mail. To increase the impact of your letter, fax a copy to their Springfield office.
3. Even when using a form letter as an example, always personalize the letter. Legislators can spot a form letter right away, and form letters are little better than spam.
4. Make sure to explain who you are, what kind of business you have, and how many people you employ.
5. Use a subject line such as "Structural Work Act","Scaffolding Act", or something similar.
6. Let your association know about your efforts and any conversations you have with legislators.