May 5th Debate -- Greenville, SC -- Official Organization Thread

[georgia_tech_swagger]

Looking for tickets?? Visit this thread and get them NOW! They're almost gone! http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showth...cket-info-here-100-donation-to-SCGOP-required

Give this thread some Reddit love here: http://www.reddit.com/r/ronpaul/comments/gl7qj/organizing_for_may_5th_gop_debate_in_greenville/



So, since I've sort of became the defacto organizer for my previous R[evol]utionizing in the area ... let's go ahead and get this baby going.

Some goals:

1) A visually overwhelming presence outside the debate. I was at the peace center for Ron's rally last go around so I'm somewhat familiar. I'll find out what areas are blocked off for TV crews/security, and then figure out where maximum foot traffic is so I know where we need to be. We need some serious freedom fighters willing to get there early to soak up cement space for the good guys. Though not a high priority, it would be nice to have some sort of status update on the money bomb while we're out there. If it's a guy with laptop and a 3g card hooked up to a TV running on a small portable generator or a giant whiteboard ... I don't care ... I just want to see it there somewhere. Ideas on that?

2) Collection of lots of footage to be used by the R[evol]ution in future videos. I have a Panasonic Lumix FZ35 that shoots 720p native. It's gorgeous, but it's no 1080p professional camera either. People with serious a/v equipment willing to come out and video, and license it under creative commons for use by the campaign are needed.

3) Have a Ron Paul rally previous day or same day after debate. Preferrably after the debate close by. The Peace Center has an outside amphitheater Ron Paul has used for a rally once before. If it's afterwards, all the press is already in the right spot, and it will offer him a chance to give rebuttal if he's snubbed for airtime in the debates. I don't even know who to begin to approach to make this happen.

4) Get our highway spam on ... I was part of the team who did this:



5) Further suggestions?

 

[acptulsa]

In the meantime, can we do something on this subject?

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showth...down-on-the-150th-Anniversary-of-Forte-Sumter

 

[IDefendThePlatform]

Goal 5)

Get as many people INSIDE the debate as possible. Loud applause highly encouraged for the good Dr. That is seriously a huge lift for people watching on TV to hear the audience supporting what a candidate says. GREAT advertising for us, and makes our ideas seem more mainstream.

Please, if you can get tickets, go to the debate. Thanks

 

[sailingaway]

A lot of the kids in that video will be old enough to vote this time...

 

[georgia_tech_swagger]

Yea, out of our team of 5 or 6 only 2 or 3 were able to vote in '07.

 

[po14015]

Goal 5)

Get as many people INSIDE the debate as possible. Loud applause highly encouraged for the good Dr. That is seriously a huge lift for people watching on TV to hear the audience supporting what a candidate says. GREAT advertising for us, and makes our ideas seem more mainstream.

Not that I disagree with as many people inside, but I was at 5 debates in 2007. What you hear on the TV is not what happens. I recorded all the debates on the TV, and it was amazing how they could remove or add sound. You can tell when the applause for Ron Paul was so loud that Anderson Cooper just sits on TV for 3-4 seconds with no sound. They just basically cut it all out. He even says "Please hold all applause until the end of the debate." Hmmmm, wonder why he said that.

Someone once said that they also put microphones in the sections with the candidate's family to get the applause. I was 20 rows off stage and a few seats from Chuck Norris and the family of the candidates. And what I experienced and saw on TV were two different events.

 

[Estanislao]

I've got a huge cold air balloon if there's an area for it.

 

[devil21]

4) Get our highway spam on ... I was part of the team who did this:



5) Further suggestions?

I really hope people will pay attention to WHERE signs are put up. We caught a lot of negative flack last election for putting signs in places that disrupted traffic and fell into the roadways and stuff like that. Pay attention to where you put up signs!

I've got a huge cold air balloon if there's an area for it.

Could you get it to Greenville SC no problem?

 

[georgia_tech_swagger]

Could you get it to Greenville SC no problem?

Yea, he's local, I know him. That's not a problem.

 

[sailingaway]

It bugs me that C4L doesn't have anything about Ron going. Townhall and realclearpolitics are now saying Ron will be one of the attendees, but a different politico story today says the event 'expects' at least 5 candidates, but that only 2 have 'publicly committed'.... not sure the difference between being 'expected' and 'committing...' http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0411/52791.html

 

[sailingaway]

OK, I've now seen a blog at whitehouse2012 or whatever it is (the one that hates Ron) that says the event planners say 'several candidates have 'informally committed' but have not publicly declared they are coming'. that might explain it.

 

[drmikevasovski]

I will bring the 8 "Google Ron Paul" helium blimp that hung from the ceiling at the Target center at the Rally for the Republic in Minn/St.Paul. It fly again where ever the press can get the best view of it around the Peace center.

What a perfectly named place to have a debate that will include a candidate who believes in the foreign policy of the founding fathers.

Let's have the Rally after the debate. The one in Myrtle Beach after the debate was super well attended and gave RP a wonderful platform to rebut any hanging chads.

 

[po14015]

I think someone should set up a Chip In to help S.C. pay for some of this. The budget on this event should be around $10,000.

Supplies you may need:

300 Signs for Sign Waving
500 Signs with posts for around the event
10 Nice Banners at key locations with a few saying (FOX: Welcome to the Ron Paul Debate)
50-100 Homemade Banners

Flags
Microphone
Ron Paul DVD to play if there is TV/Video
Ron Paul Music

Flyers for College campuses
Professional Videographers
Direct Mailing/Phone Banking local precinct lists
Map of area to handout to Ron Paul Patriots and people inside the Debate (Locations for parking, events, signs wavings, food, etc)

Tent for rain if outside
Folding Tables
Decorations like balloons, ribbons, etc.

Lots of Ron Paul products
A great press release

 

[georgia_tech_swagger]

The budget on this event should be around $10,000.

WTF! This is a grassroots rally not a county fair.

You and I need to talk more about grassroots guerrilla politics on the cheap. We cranked out 10 foot wide by 2 foot high signs for about a dime each in 2007.

I practice what I preach on fiscal conservatism. $10K is a waste. I feel even $1K would be too high.

 

[speciallyblend]

WTF! This is a grassroots rally not a county fair.

You and I need to talk more about grassroots guerrilla politics on the cheap. We cranked out 10 foot wide by 2 foot high signs for about a dime each in 2007.

I practice what I preach on fiscal conservatism. $10K is a waste. I feel even $1K would be too high.

i can sleep at night knowing this is in good hands now go kick some AZZZZZZZZZZ!!!

 

[po14015]

You can't even buy the signs for $1,000. What is your copy budget on even black and white handouts (you will need 2,000-5,000 flyers)? Which by the way if you hand the media or a CEO of a fortune 500 company a black and white handout, guess what they will think?

1,000 people attend times $10 = $10,000

If you spend less than $1,000 you will get an event that people say: "Yes, I went. It was fun."

If you organize by renting the right venues, having professional and homemade signs than people will say: "That was unbelievable." and start to tear up for years later.

Talk to anyone who went to the St. Pete Debate in 2007 and see their reaction. Our event was so impressive that an executive from Nickelodeon had their camera crews drive down an hour away to interview my friend's daughter the next morning because Ron Paul wasn't going to be in the Kids Presidential Choice Show.

Is that worth the $10,000? Notice most of the footage is from St. Pete-the boats, the signs wavings, etc.

 

[po14015]

This was the flyer to the St. Pete Debate:

4.2 MB pdf
http://www.ronpaulproducts.com/pictures/RP Invitation_PROOF.pdf

 

[georgia_tech_swagger]

You can't even buy the signs for $1,000. What is your copy budget on even black and white handouts (you will need 2,000-5,000 flyers)? Which by the way if you hand the media or a CEO of a fortune 500 company a black and white handout, guess what they will think?

1,000 people attend times $10 = $10,000

If you spend less than $1,000 you will get an event that people say: "Yes, I went. It was fun."

If you organize by renting the right venues, having professional and homemade signs than people will say: "That was unbelievable." and start to tear up for years later.

Talk to anyone who went to the St. Pete Debate in 2007 and see their reaction. Our event was so impressive that an executive from Nickelodeon had their camera crews drive down an hour away to interview my friend's daughter the next morning because Ron Paul wasn't going to be in the Kids Presidential Choice Show.

Is that worth the $10,000? Notice most of the footage is from St. Pete-the boats, the signs wavings, etc.

I suggest you watch the original video I linked to in post one. Every sign you see there cost roughly a dime to make... most of it in spray paint.

$10 per attendee is ridiculous. That may inflate your coffers, but it's wasted. Most of the serious people already have signs anyway. This isn't some by the book marketing operation. We're not going to do a SWOT analysis ... there is no need to erect some pointless infrastructure. This is nebulous work ... guerrilla marketing. The open source software of marketing, as opposed to your top down bloated middle management Microsoft style approach. If supporters of this effort want some of your products, they'll buy them. But I'm not going to make it some crazy organizational effort, goal, or mandate.

If you want to raise $10K do it ... it's a free country. But I won't help you, and I would suggest such funds are better redirected to LibertyPAC.

Stop trying to row the boat of your own products and start rowing with the rest of us. This movement is bigger than me, bigger than you, and bigger than your product company.

 

[zerosdontcount]

Couldn't agree more. LibertyPAC would do better with 10,000 dollars and professional campaigners. This is grassroots and we can still make a huge rally with what we have.

 

[sailingaway]

Couldn't agree more. LibertyPAC would do better with 10,000 dollars and professional campaigners. This is grassroots and we can still make a huge rally with what we have.

The 'homemade' look is sort of a trademark, too, and so effective that the astroturf parts of the tea parties copied it, although they handed out 'homemade signs' while the real tea parties made their own. We should fundraise for things we can't make ourselves, but not for things we can make.