The first step to solving a problem is realizing you have one.
You’ve realized your current advocacy solution isn’t cutting it. It’s time to make a change – but where do you start?
When our partners come to us looking to switch from their legacy vendor to Speak4, we hear it all:
- “When is the best time to switch tools?”
- “How do I make sure I don’t lose any advocate data?”
- *muffled screaming*
Utilize these six tips to prep for a smooth, painless tech stack transition:
1. Map Out Your Advocacy Calendar
Good things take time and transitioning to the advocacy platform of your dreams is no exception. Our recommendation: give yourself at least two months’ overlap between your old vendor and new vendor to ensure your integrations are built, data is flowing and page branding is ready for prime time.
For example, if your organization plans to engage around tax reform once Congress returns from August Recess, the time to make the switch is now. With an intuitive platform like Speak4, you can maximize your lead time ahead of any legislative session to drive advocacy wins.
2. Sidestep Budget Barriers
Stuck in an expensive, multi-year contract? We’ve been there. But take it from us: you don’t need to (and shouldn’t!) wait for your contract to end before shopping around for better advocacy tools.
Consider tapping into a testing budget to compare advocacy platforms and develop a feature wishlist for when it’s time to renew contracts (hint: we’re pretty confident you’ll be blown away with Speak4’s unique features).
You don’t need a big budget to test out Speak4. Our Advocate Pricing Model supports your efforts as they scale and provides an excellent opportunity to test a mobile-first, innovative advocacy solution without an expensive, multi-year contract.
3. Schedule Multiple Trainings (Go Crazy, We Won’t Judge)
Maybe this sounds familiar: You sign your legacy platform contract and your team is excited to get started, but instead of a meaningful onboarding, all you get is an email with a couple links and chatbox to message instead of a human. You deserve a better onboarding experience. At Speak4, we’re more than just a platform, we’re a partner.
Speak4’s Partner Success team is singular in its response rate and commitment to personalized training for your team without an extra upcharge. From the very beginning, you’ll be connected with a team of industry professionals ready to walk through every feature, test campaigns prior to launch and optimize landing page designs based on the latest testing.
4. Double Down on Data
The fear of siloing, or even worse: losing your data can make it tempting to stick with stagnant tech. Don’t let legacy platforms dangle this fear over your head. Speak4 makes it simple to ingest, organize and export your data – from Day 1. Speak4 will work hand in hand with your team to build a comprehensive data transition plan – including an audit of:
- Where your data currently exists
- How your data will be cleaned and transferred
- When advocates were most recently activated
With a plan in place, we won’t hide behind fine print. You won’t be stuck waiting for custom API development or charged for bulk importing your data. Speak4 doubles down on the data so you can lighten up on the stress.
5. Inspect Your Integrations
Does your legacy advocacy tool integrate with your CRM? What about your email system? What about your in-house SQL database? We’ll work with your team to make sure you’re capturing every instance your current advocacy tool is integrated, including:
- Websites – client websites, your own website or social media platforms
- Services or CRMs (i.e., Salesforce)
- Ads (i.e., Facebook Lead Forms)
Speak4’s answer to integration pitfalls is our white labeled connection with Zapier, connecting to more than 7,000 apps to integrate your data at no additional charge. Even better: a seamless user interface makes it easy to set up integrations with zero development time and monitor performance to ensure no data loss.
6. Don’t Set and Forget
Once your new tool has been set up and your team has been trained, it can be tempting to check the digital advocacy box and move on.
In a competitive advocacy landscape – particularly ahead of the upcoming legislative session – a “set it and forget it” mindset will leave you with lackluster results.
Getting the most out of your digital advocacy tool means planning for an ongoing partnership: staying in touch with your tool’s tech team, remaining in the loop on feature updates and being able to rely on your tool’s team for strategy support.
Speak4’s drive for innovation has you covered. We release new features multiple times a month to bump your campaigns’ efficacy (in one quarter, our product team pushed six new features – including Send+, Message Scheduling and Saved Advocate View), AND we’ll bring these updates to you with ideas for how to plug them into your existing campaigns – no action needed on your part.
Ready to shake up your tech stack?
Speak4 offers a seamless digital advocacy solution that can get you live in under 10 minutes. If you’re ready to make the switch, schedule a demo now.