League of Education Voters School Levy and Bond Library

It is important to get as much positive publicity for the levy or bond as possible.  Efforts to get signs and other advertising out should be focused on the last two to three weeks of the campaign.  Voters will not remember efforts much earlier than this, and volunteer time is better used on phone calls to voters.  However, yard signs and other advertising can be an effective piece of your overall strategy.

Yard Signs

Yard signs are a very popular form of advertising for school levies and bonds.  It is an easy way for a supporter to help, and therefore yard signs will probably be requested.  These types of signs, however, can be expensive and time consuming, so make sure you use them as effectively as possible. 

Yard signs must be clear and easy to read from a distance.  The most important piece of information is the date of the election.  Next, create a short, simple phrase to get the message across:  “Vote YES for schools!”  A simple school related picture like an apple or school house can be used, but be sure it does not obscure the message. 

Putting together yard signs may involve hammering placards to wooden stakes or painting large wooden boards.  Set up a Saturday for putting together the signs and ask for volunteers.  Ask coaches for the high school sports teams to ask for volunteers.  High school students can finish the work quickly.  It may qualify for community service hours or volunteer hours that they need anyway.  Check into this and be prepared with forms you can sign to prove they were present.

Wait until the last two to three weeks to put up yard signs.  Although volunteers will be eager to get signs earlier, this is the best time to put up signs.  Make sure volunteers know when the signs will be available, and organize groups to put up signs in heavily traveled areas.  Try to avoid areas, like cul-de-sacs, that are not visible to many voters.  Because of the high cost of signs and limited time of volunteers, areas that have many school supporters should be targeted for signs before areas that have low voter support.  Be sure to have mallets and hammers available for volunteers to use to pound the signs into the ground!

Car Window Signs

A popular form of advertising is the car window sign.  This is usually an 81/2 x 11 sized version of the yard sign.  As with the yard sign, the date of the election should be prominent and the message should be simple.  These signs can easily be printed out by volunteers if they are posted on a campaign website or emailed.    Once posted in a car window, these become “mobile yard signs.”  Other places to post signs include store windows, daycares, places of worship, coffee shops, and any other place people gather.

You can also transfer this same design to a T-shirt or other cloth item. Simply buy some iron-on transfer paper (around $10 for six sheets at most computer supply stores – try Best Buy or Comp USA).  Insert the iron-on transfer paper into your computer’s color printer and follow the directions that come with the paper.  The campaign could sell the t-shirts, include the directions on the back of the car sign, or post these directions on the website with the car sign.

Store Marquees

The large signs outside grocery stores are a great place to advertise for the levy or bond and to remind people of the election.  Have a member of the campaign speak to the managers of local stores to request a message be posted on the large marquee during the last few days of the campaign.  If the manager is willing, suggest the message be supportive of the levy:  “Vote yes for schools on February 5!”  If the manager does not feel comfortable with a persuasive message like this, a good alternative is a message reminding people to vote.  Remember, volunteer and staff time are limited.  As with yard signs, target stores in areas of high visibility and high support for schools, if possible.