Name and Campaign exposure: A website acts as a gateway to your campaign and gives voters an overall look at you and your priorities.  A well designed website promotes a sense of validity for your campaign.

Donation gathering:  Your website will provide a gateway for gathering campaign donations.  A donation button should be clearly displayed on the website, with the necessary disclaimers for donation eligibility.  

Acquiring Volunteers and a Mailing List: Your website can be an effective way of finding volunteers and establishing a mailing list.  It should have a way for voters to enter their email address and gather information about ways they can sign up for different volunteer activities. 

Decide who will set up and maintain your website. Setting up a website takes time and professionals can be expensive.  If you are running a local campaign, you may not have the funds to hire a professional website designer.  If that is the case, you will need to find someone who has the time and general computer skills to design your site.  Once set up, the website will also need to be maintained and updated.  You will most likely be too busy to do this yourself, so someone will be needed to take on this responsibility.

Decide what platform you will use. There are many platforms which offer basic website tools for setting up a website. It would be wise for your technology volunteer to check out the various platforms like Wix, Wordpress, GoDaddy, Google Site, or Squarespace, as website building platforms can vary in difficulty, especially for beginners.  

Acquire a URL (Domain Name): You will need a way for voters to easily find your website.  To do this you buy a URL name (domain name) that will identify you and/or your campaign.  Most of the website design platforms also offer ways of purchasing a domain name.

Decide on your Logo and Design Scheme: Voters will recognize your name and photo, but will also know you “visually” through an effective logo and consistent, recognizable color scheme and fonts. A logo should be simple and readable.  Your color scheme and fonts should be consistent throughout your website, and should correspond to the design of your social media posts and yard signs.  

Basic Information: You should include your name (as it will appear on the ballot), a good, clear photo, and what office you are running for.

Concise Biography: Your voters want to know something about you and why you are running for office.  However, a biography does not need to include every detail of your life.  Voters need to know essential information, including your qualifications and experience.  You can include some personal details, but keep the overall message clear and concise.

Your Priorities: You probably have many issues which are important to you as a candidate.  However, It is wise to prioritize a limited amount of issues to feature on your website.  Keep your information clear and to the point.  You should choose issues which pertain to the office you are running for.  For instance, if you are running for city council, you should focus on issues in your local area, rather than national issues.

Donations: Your website should provide a way for voters to donate to your campaign.  Most political websites provide a donation button on the home page, as well on other pages of the site.  In order to do this, you will need to set up a way of processing and tracking the donations such as Act Blue, which is often used by Democrats. Make sure your donation page includes any legally required donation information (i.e. campaign rules, who is eligible to donate, etc).

Volunteers: Volunteers are extremely important to any campaign.  Your website should include a way for voters to respond, entering their names, email addresses, specialized skills etc.  You will need to set up a way of receiving the responses using one of the many volunteer management systems.   In addition, you can provide a way for voters to send their email addresses for a mailing list.

 Endorsements: Once you have acquired endorsements, your website could include a page listing names, photos and titles of those who have endorsed you.

Election Information:  Your website should list essential election information, such as the date of the election, map of your district (if applicable),  links to voter registration information and poll locations, and any other relevant information.

Links to Social Media: You should have QR codes or links to your other social media accounts, such as Facebook or Instagram

Necessary Authorization Information: Your website should include all necessary authorization disclaimers (“Paid for by” + FPPC number) required.

 Alma Hernandez for Suisun Mayor: https://www.alma4suisun.com/platform

Jeanette Wylie for Vacaville City Council: https://www.wylieforcitycouncil.com/