First steps: Tags

Tags provide a method for easily capturing simple information about voters and activists that can then be used in a search and, in the case of voters, voter filters and saved searches. This Browse Tags display shows a list of the tags that have been defined, and allows tag definitions to be added and deleted, as voter tags, activist tags, or as tags applicable to either. In the last case, the tag name will appear on the check-list of possible tags for both activists and voters.

Voter Tags

Voter tags function similarly to questionnaires, custom fields, and even tasks and followup comments. They're each a different way to record information about voters. Tags are appropriate where you wish to be able to record and display simple information for any voter in a fairly ad-hoc way right at the top of the contact sheet.

When one or more voter tags are defined, they will appear as a list of tags on a voter's contact sheet which can be individually checked on or off. In this sample screenshot there are two voter tags that have been defined for this campaign: "Environment" and "Schools". The small tag symbol (), labeled "A" below, is a button, that when clicked causes a small form to appear with check-list of the possible tags for voters, labeled "B" below. Checking one or more check-boxes and saving changes by clicking the green check-button causes those attributes to be "tagged" to that voter. In this sample, John Q Public is having the "Schools" tag added to the "Environment" tag that he is already tagged with.

Voter tags are treated like voter attributes that can be searched and filtered on. You could, for example, set up a team whose job it is to contact all voters with the "Environment" tag. Or you could create a saved search for all voters with the "Schools" tag in order to extract a mailing list.

Activist Tags (aka Interests)

Activist tags, also known as "Interests", are similar to voter tags in that they appear as a simple check-list, and they are used to record simple information about an activist. Typically, they would be used to record information about the kinds of work that an activist is interested in helping with.

An individual activist's tags are edited from the activist's profile page and - when enabled - the activist self-registration page.

Activist tags can be used to filter the activists shown on the Browse > Users page:

In this way you could when looking for activists to fill a job of a particular type, filter by an interest that would be appropriate for that job type. In this example, you might be looking to fill a job that involves making lists of friends and contacting them.