Volunteer and yard sign signups that people actually finish

Most campaign websites have a volunteer form. Far fewer have one that works. The usual problems are easy to spot: too many questions, a submit button that sends the answers nowhere anyone checks, and a volunteer who signs up in August and hears nothing until October.

A good get-involved page fixes all three. It is short, it lands in a place your team reads every day, and someone follows up while the person still remembers filling it out.

What the get-involved page needs

Think of this page as a menu, not a questionnaire. Visitors should see in a few seconds what they can do and how long it takes.

• A one-line reason to help ("We are knocking every door in District 6 before early voting.")
• A short volunteer form
• A separate yard sign request form
• A link to your donation page for people who would rather give than knock
• Your upcoming events, or a link to the events calendar
• Your paid-for-by disclaimer, like every other page

Keep the volunteer and yard sign forms apart. They go to different people on your team, and they need different information. Mixing them makes both longer.

Keep the form short

Every extra field is one more reason to close the tab. Ask for what you need to make the first contact, then ask the rest on the phone.

A volunteer form that works:

• Name
• Email and mobile phone (make one required, not both)
• ZIP code or neighborhood, so you can match people to nearby precincts
• How do you want to help? Checkboxes: knock doors, make calls, host a meet-and-greet, work an event, hold a sign on Election Day, other
• Anything else we should know? One optional text box

Skip the full mailing address, date of birth, employer and "tell us about yourself" essays. If you need a T-shirt size, ask when they show up.

Yard sign requests

A yard sign request is a small promise from the voter, and it comes with a delivery job for you. The form needs enough detail to get the sign to the right spot without three follow-up calls.

• Name and phone (the driver may need to call from the curb)
• Street address where the sign goes
• Number of signs (one, or two for a corner lot)
• Placement permission: a required checkbox that reads something like "I own this property, or I have permission from the owner, landlord or HOA to place a sign here."
• Placement notes (optional): "By the mailbox," "Gate code 1234," "Do not block the drainage ditch."

The permission checkbox protects you and the voter. Renters sometimes get notices from landlords. Some HOAs restrict signs. Many counties and cities have rules about signs in the right-of-way and near polling places. Check your local ordinances before you send volunteers out with a truckload.

When you are ready to order, our sister company MySignPal prints campaign yard signs. Order a few more than your request list. You will lose some to wind, mowers and theft.

Where submissions go

A form is only as good as the inbox behind it. Before launch, decide who reads each form and how often.

1. Send each form to a shared campaign email address, not one volunteer's personal inbox.
2. Copy every submission into a spreadsheet the campaign owns: one tab for volunteers, one for yard signs.
3. Add columns your team fills in: contacted (date), assigned to, status, notes.
4. Name one person who checks it every day.

On CandidateLaunch sites, we connect the forms to an email address and a spreadsheet you control. If a volunteer coordinator leaves mid-campaign, the list stays with the campaign.

Privacy: the list belongs to the campaign

People who sign up are trusting you with their name, phone number and sometimes their home address. Treat that seriously.

• Say on the form how you will use the information ("to contact you about volunteering and deliver your sign")
• Do not sell, trade or lend the list to other campaigns, businesses or groups
• Do not add yard sign addresses to a mailing list without asking
• Limit who can open the spreadsheet
• Remove people who ask to be removed, the same day

The list belongs to your campaign. Not to your web developer and not to a form vendor. We never reuse a client's contacts, and you can export everything at any time. When the race is over, follow the steps in our after Election Day guide to keep the list safe.

Follow up within 48 hours

The single biggest improvement most campaigns can make is speed. Someone who signs up on Tuesday night is excited on Wednesday. By the following week, they have moved on.

A follow-up routine that fits a small team:

• Automatic confirmation email the moment they submit ("Thanks, we got it. Someone will call you by Thursday.")
• A personal call or text within 48 hours
• A specific first ask: "Can you knock 30 doors in your neighborhood Saturday at 10?"
• Yard signs delivered within a week, or a note if signs are still on order
• A thank-you after their first shift

If the candidate can make even a handful of those calls personally, do it. A two-minute call from the person on the ballot turns a signup into a door-knocker.

Point people to the page

The form cannot help if nobody sees it. Link to it from your homepage, your top menu, the end of every issue page, and your Facebook posts. Put a short URL on your push cards and yard signs, such as yourname.com/volunteer. See why your website and Facebook page work together for more on driving traffic from social posts.

Every CandidateLaunch package includes volunteer and donate links. The Campaign and Full Season packages add an events calendar so new volunteers can see where to show up. Compare them on our packages page, or start your site today.

Common questions

How many fields should a volunteer form have?

As few as you can manage. Name, email or phone, ZIP code and a few checkboxes for how they want to help is enough to start a conversation. Ask the rest when you call them.

Do I need permission to put a yard sign on someone's property?

Yes. Get the property owner's permission, and ask renters to confirm with their landlord or HOA. Sign placement rules also vary by city, county and state, especially near roads and polling places, so check local rules.

Where do the form submissions go?

With CandidateLaunch, submissions go to an email address and a spreadsheet the campaign controls. You can export them at any time, and we never reuse your lists.