This article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review on how to win over a large group is worth the read.
The first people to win over should be fence-sitters — moderates who are neither so opposed to a proposal as to be unmovable nor so enamored of it as to be incredible to the unconvinced. Give moderates the hard facts and, if they buy in, they’ll influence, persuade and win over others with soft information like simple endorsements and perfunctory explanations that are fact-and-stat lite.
And keep this list in mind to sort and categorize your large group, courtesy of San Francisco-based The Democracy Centre:
- champions of an issue
- allies of an issue
- fence-sitters who are neutral on the issue
- mellow opponents
- hard-core opponents
Focus your time and attention on fence-sitters who will be your key target audience.
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