Help us challenge the status quo!

MPs depend on their constituents to educate them about what issues are most important to them. That is why an MP is more likely to read and prioritise anything their constituents send, over an email from THET. Writing a letter only takes a short amount of your time. It ensures that the people who have been elected to make decisions on your behalf know how you want to be represented.

Top Tips

1. Research your MP. You can do this by checking theyworkforyou.com which allows you to find out details about your MP such as their areas of focus and their voting record. If they are interested in any issues relating to global health, you can include this in your letter or email.
2. Personalise your writing by sharing your personal and/or professional experiences of global health engagement. An original letter sent by one committed, passionate constituent is far more powerful and engaging than several identical letter templates.
3. Be succinct. Try to articulate your concerns in less than two pages. Keeping your letter or email short will increase the chance of your MP paying attention to all the information you give them.
4. Include a call to action. Be clear about your ask, make sure your statement is short, succinct and actionable.
5. Persistence is key. MPs can be very busy, and their post and emails are often processed by a small team. If your MP is taking a while to reply to you, do not hesitate to follow up with another email or a call!

With increased social distancing and a need to avoid large gatherings, the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the ways we campaign and required us to find new ways to organise, reach out to people, and create change. Through the use of online communication platforms, or even just a simple phone call, you can clearly communicate your campaign message and effectively engage with your peers and/or those with decision-making power.

Top Tips

1. Have your key points and facts to hand. You can find relevant statistics and figures on global health from a variety of sources, including the World Health Organization, Devex and Action for Global Health.
2. Prepare in advance. Know what you are going to say, and be clear on what action you are hoping your MP will take after you meet them (For example, do you want them to attend or speak at a local event, write to other local decision-makers or the media on your behalf?)
3. Stay focused on the campaign issues. Share your personal experiences of global health engagement and highlight the mutual benefits. Not only are these compelling, but they also provide evidence to support your ask.
4. Thank your MP for their time, confirm and write down agreed action points. Send a follow-up email with these details.
5. Maintain engagement. Once you have made initial contact with your MP, think of ways to keep your campaign in their mind.

Our research has shown that many health workers within the NHS want to hear about global health from their fellow health workers. Organising and speaking at events is an effective way of using your lived experiences to inform, inspire and influence.

As well as galvanising your peers in support of global health, you can invite your local MP to find out more about the work of your NHS Trust or Health Partnership.

Choose a platform that you feel most comfortable using (Facebook Twitter, or Instagram) and focus your energy there. You don’t need to post on every platform to have an impact; think about where you already spend your time.

Twitter

• Consistency is key: aim to post at least once per day.
• Use hashtags (#) to reach more people and boost engagement by making your posts discoverable in on-platform searches.
• Engage in conversation by tagging (using the @ function) key stakeholders, including the media, decision-makers and organisations or individuals advocating for the same cause.
• Make sure you are confident about the content you are sharing – is it from a reliable source? Has it been verified?
• Make your Tweets stand out by adding visual or audio-visual content, such as photographs, infographics or short videos.
• Retweet posts shared by others to amplify their voice, highlight their work, and offer new perspectives to your followers.

Facebook

• Create share-worthy content – this includes personal stories, data, breaking news and content that is visually engaging such as photographs, infographics or short videos.
• Join relevant community Facebook groups and follow relevant pages to keep up to date with others working on the same cause.
• Share your campaign events, petitions, or news in the relevant groups.

Instagram

• Use static posts to document and share photo-worthy moments during your campaign.
• Use stories to share images or videos captured in the moment. This will help you to share your story in an authentic way and engage with your audience in real time.
• Like on Twitter, use hashtags (#) to reach more people and boost engagement by making your posts discoverable in on-platform searches.
• Engage in conversation by tagging (using the @ function) key stakeholders, including the media, decision-makers and organisations or individuals advocating for the same cause.
• Avoid sharing lots of information or complex datasets

In addition to the effective communications principles you heard about earlier, there are a few additional considerations that can help you get your story in the press.

• Stand out. Make sure you have an attention-grabbing hook or headline.
• Keep it local. If you are targeting local media, ensure your story is relatable for members of your community.
• Stimulate action. Depending on the focus and aim of your story, you might want to strike an emotional or inspiring tone to motivate readers or viewers to take action.
• Keep the individual at the heart of your story. Ensure you have identified a spokesperson or spokespeople who are willing to be the face or voice of the story. Whether you or a member of your team play this role, or someone who is affected by the issue you are highlighting, make sure they are well briefed and can powerfully convey your key messages.

Sharing your story

Once you have crafted your newsworthy story, the next step is to share it with the media. The most effective way to do this is to draft a press release (click here to download our template) and target the journalists and/or news desks who might be interested in covering it:

• What geographical area do they cover? Make sure your story is relevant to their local reporting patch.
• What topics do they run stories on and who are they written by? National media outlets will often have a health editor, correspondent or reporter who may take an interest in your story.
• Which outlet suits your story best? If your story is time-sensitive, consider pitching to radio or TV as they tend to break news faster than newspapers. If your story is complex, prioritise newspapers because they specialise in the longer, more comprehensive stories.
• Timing is everything. The cycle of news media is often very fast-paced. While local newspapers typically have weekly deadlines, some newspapers operate on a 24-hour news cycle, with digital versions posting even more often frequently.