CommunityConnect Labs Helps Minnesota Beat Census Participation Records Amid Global Pandemic
The Census is designed to count every resident in the United States, and it does so every ten years. The data collected is used to distribute over a trillion dollars in federal funds to states and localities for programs residents rely on, such as Medicaid, Medicare, and Head Start, and services such as hospitals, roads, and parks.
Continue ReadingCommunityConnect Labs Drives 2020 Census Participation with Twiio Programmable SMS
CommunityConnect Labs CensusOutreach solutions were recently highlighted in Twilio's Customer Stories. We are proud to be powered by Twilio in our SMS-based outreach to count hard-to-reach communities in the Census, ensuring fair representation and millions of dollars in public funding for the next 10 years.
Continue ReadingWhat Works: Transitioning to Digital Outreach
Here are some of our ongoing learnings from our government and nonprofit partners on how to transition to digital outreach in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Continue ReadingPartner Highlight: Commonwealth of Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia is using contact lists to do outbound text messaging to remind people to complete their Census.
Continue ReadingPartner Highlight: State of Illinois
The Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS)'s has put in place effective marketing strategies to help promote their Census outreach tools.
Continue ReadingCOVID-19: Tips for Census Partner Outreach in a Time of Uncertainty
What to do when in-person outreach and assistance is limited
Continue ReadingState of Minnesota Uses Voter Lists for Census Outreach
The state of Minnesota will be using CommunityConnect Lab’s Community Motivator to send personalized text messages to voter registration lists, encouraging millions of people to participate.
Continue ReadingResponding to Mis/Disinformation
With 2020 Census invitations beginning to hit mailboxes on March 12, we can expect an increase in the amount of mis/disinformation circulating. Helping drive home the importance of the Census and its impacts will help encourage people to continue to participate, but actively and effectively combating mis/disinformation is also important.
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for March
Get Ready: Census Letters Hit Mailboxes Nationwide Starting March 12th – With fewer than 20 days until Census Day on April 1, we are counting down with a timeline of outreach recommendations for governments, community-based organizations, and individuals.
Continue Reading8 Resources To Follow Ahead of the Census
With the 2020 Census only days away, there’s a lot of information available for individuals and organizations doing the critical work of effectively reaching hard to count communities. Here’s a list of some of those sites to get you started.
Continue ReadingEngaging Faith-Based Communities
From Census drives to social media marketing, here are some ideas to engage your faith-based community.
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for February 2020
It’s official — the 2020 Census is underway! The journey to a complete count in 2020 began on Jan. 21 in Toksook Bay, a fishing village in remote Alaska.
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for January 2020
As we get closer to Census Day on April 1, we are counting down with a timeline of outreach recommendations for governments, community-based organizations, and individuals.
Continue ReadingCensus Christmas Toolkit
As we celebrate Christmas and welcome the New Year, it’s important to remind our communities about the relevance of the upcoming Census. The nonprofit Faith in Public Life (FPL) knows this, and that’s why they released the 2020 Census Christmas toolkit. It includes graphics that you or your organization can use for social media, as well as sample posts and emails.
Continue ReadingCommunityConnect Labs’ Census Outreach Project, Winner of Amazon Imagine Grant, Featured at Amazon Web Services re:Invent Conference
CommunityConnect Labs' Census Outreach Project was recently featured as Amazon Web Service's re:Invent Conference. Watch this short video highlighting our work to help get 575,000 people counted in Census 2020.
Continue ReadingActivate your community with the Community Motivator
Watch this short animated video and learn how the Community Motivator tool works.
Continue ReadingAnswer your constituents’ Census questions with the HelpDesk
Watch this short animated video and learn how the HelpDesk tool works.
Continue ReadingHow to Inform, Educate, and Activate Students for the 2020 Census
With the 2020 Census approaching, it is important to engage individuals of all ages to get counted. On October 29th, Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAAJ) hosted a webinar on how college students, organizations, and staff can get involved to ensure that college students are counted in the 2020 Census. If you weren’t able to attend, here are some key takeaways.
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for December 2019
As 2019 draws to a close and Census Day rapidly approaches, people will begin to hear about the Census in ads, marketing materials, and social media. You can use this publicity to gain momentum and get constituents interested in and excited about the Census.
Continue ReadingSMS Compliance and Best Practices Guide for Local Governments
SMS texting can be a great option to reach constituents for a number of reasons. In order to make it effective, it’s critically important that best practices are followed for a long-lasting relationship between local government and its constituents.
Continue Reading2020 Census Online Survey Sneak Peek
The US Census Bureau released a sneak peek of the 2020 Census online form last week during the National Advisory Committee Fall Meeting. We broke down the details and pulled a few screenshots to walk through the details.
Continue Reading$1.5 Trillion of Federal Funding at Stake If A Census Undercount Occurs
In May, researchers estimated that $880 billion dollars in federal funding was at stake if there was an undercounting in the 2020 Census. After digging in even deeper, a new total has surfaced, emphasizing the importance of achieving a complete and accurate count. According to researchers, there is now $1.5 trillion at stake.
Continue ReadingCommunityConnect Labs Launches Community Motivator SMS Solution to Encourage 2020 Census Participation with Inaugural Partners in California and Hawaii
CommunityConnect Labs (CCL), a California-based nonprofit that develops high-quality, affordable mobile text messaging solutions that enable state and local governments and other service providers to reach low-income and other hard-to-engage individuals, successfully launched its Community Motivator solution with partner organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area and Hawaii with the aim of increasing 2020 Census participation
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for November 2019
If you haven’t started implementing your outreach plan yet, NOW is the time. As the weather across the nation begins to chill it’s time to capitalize on the workable weather we have left before snow hits the ground.
Continue ReadingLevel Up Your Census Assistance with the HelpDesk
Millions of questions about the Census were asked in 2010, and even more are expected in 2020. However, local government and library staff don’t have the resources to address the volume and variety of questions or language needs of their constituents. To address the critical need to help constituents get their questions answered, CommunityConnect Labs developed the Question & Answer HelpDesk, an automated question & answer system available via text and web chat that can receive and answer users’ Census questions in multiple languages.
Continue ReadingUnited Way Bay Area Expands Its Outreach Efforts with CCL’s Community Motivator
With the 2020 Census less than six months away, organizers are trying to reach as many of their constituents as possible. In order to scale their outreach efforts, the United Way Bay Area (UWBA), the ACBO for California’s Region 3, has incorporated CommunityConnect Labs’ Community Motivator solution.
Continue Reading181 Days Until Census Day: How San Mateo Plans to Achieve a Complete Count
Only 181 days remain until Census Day 2020. On Sept. 26, representatives from Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, along with Region 3 ACBO United Way Bay Area and Mercury Public Affairs, the state’s Census media partner, convened to discuss how they would leverage the remaining 181 days before the Census to enact effective and efficient implementation plans. From inspirational talks about the importance of the Census to texting pledges, the implementation workshop was not to be missed for organizers in the region.
Continue ReadingHow to Hire 500,000 Census Workers
CCL built a Field Staff Recruiter texting program that works as a job application assistant: helping screen, assist, and remind individuals who are interested in getting hired as Census workers. Learn the key takeaways of this program.
Continue ReadingMicrosoft Digital Transformation Showcase + CommunityConnect Labs
CommunityConnect Labs (CCL) is thrilled to be a featured partner in this fall’s Microsoft Digital Transformation Showcase in Washington, D.C.!
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for October 2019
This month, let’s focus on your media and campaign strategy. From your strategic plan, you should have an idea of how you plan to use media to amplify awareness around the Census. Here are some things to consider.
Continue ReadingListen: Local Governments Lead the Way
With the 2020 Census around the corner, local governments have a very important job: to ensure that all of their constituents get counted! Engaging Local Government Leaders interviewed Perla Ni, CEO and founder of the Census Outreach Project, to discuss how local governments can get the job done.
Continue ReadingCelebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by Ensuring A Complete Count
We’re celebrating Hispanic Heritage month by outlining a few ideas that will help ensure that the entire Hispanic community is counted in the 2020 Census. Governments, community-based organizations, and individuals can remind the Hispanic community that they are valued, and deserve to be counted.
Continue ReadingGet Out the Count: Outreach Strategies for September 2019
Last month we blogged about the importance of creating your strategic plan for Census outreach. This month, let’s focus on your volunteers. From your strategic plan, you should have an idea about how many people you plan to help complete the Census in your community.
Continue ReadingFrom Awareness to Action: Public Pledging
From petitions to save the environment to driving awareness of politics and voting, campaigns commonly include “pledging” as a tactic to drive support of their cause. But does publicly pledging to something really change behavior? Research indicates that it does, which is why we’re helping governments and CBOs drive their constituents to Pledge to be Counted in the 2020 Census.
Continue ReadingBehind the Scenes: State of California Census Planning
“If you participating in the Census wasn’t that important, why are they trying to take it away from you?” asked Alex Padilla as he spoke at the Joint Informational Hearing on Aug. 21, 2019. As part of the state of California’s commitment to stewarding state taxpayer funds that have been allocated for Census outreach, this hearing was convened to discuss statewide outreach strategies for the 2020 Census, as well as inform the public about how these efforts will reach hard-to-count communities in California. It also provided stakeholders the opportunity to comment and ask questions of the parties responsible for executing these efforts.
Continue ReadingCounting San Francisco
In order to avoid losing political representation and federal funds, many counties within California are developing outreach and communication campaigns so that an undercount does not occur. San Francisco, one of the hardest to count counties nationwide, has committed itself to minimizing barriers of participation and to making sure that everyone is counted.
Continue Reading4 Opportunities to Engage Your Community This Fall
Census Day 2020 is still months away, but the time to start ramping up Census outreach is now. With kids heading back to school and the holiday season just around the corner, there are numerous opportunities to get your community engaged and activated.
Continue ReadingGet Out The Count, Outreach Strategies for August 2019
As we get closer to Census Day on April 1, 2020, we’ll be counting down the months with a timeline of outreach recommendations for governments, community-based organizations, and individuals. CCL staff attend many of the Complete Count Committee meetings that are happening all over the nation, and we thought it would be helpful to share some of the insights that we’ve collected to better help your outreach efforts.
Continue ReadingMaximize Your 2020 Census Outreach Efforts with the Community Motivator
It’s a challenge for government and civic engagement organizations to move constituents from thinking about civic participation to action. This challenge is particularly pronounced in Get Out the Count (GOTC) efforts for the 2020 Census.
Continue ReadingThe Citizenship Question Won’t Appear on the Census. What Now?
On June 29, 2019 the Supreme Court announced their decision to stop the citizenship question from appearing on the 2020 Census. So, does this mean that Census outreach efforts are done? No. Instead, this is a crucial time for outreach efforts to be implemented.
Continue ReadingNEW: 2020 Census Outreach Cost Estimates
States will play an important role in helping to promote an accurate 2020 Census, but they can’t do it alone. Achieving a fair and accurate 2020 Census will require states to invest in community-based organizations (CBOs) as partners to ensure that trusted voices in local communities reach skeptical people about why it is important to fill out the census form.
Continue ReadingTips for Who Should Be On your Complete Count Committee – 8 Census Experts Give their Advice
We asked census veterans working across the country — from New York City to Minnesota to the Silicon Valley — on how to put together a great Complete Count Committee. Complete Count Committees (CCCs) are volunteer bodies assembled at the city, county, and state level that help with census local outreach and ensuring everyone is counted. Below are some words-of-wisdom for setting your committee up for success!
Continue ReadingCanvassing by Community-Based Organizations Helped Protect $455 Million in Funding
Community-sourced data and use of technology by local governments has helped make the Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA) a success in California. A recently-released study reviewing California’s Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA) shows how canvassing by community-based organizations helped protect $455 million in federal funding that would otherwise have been lost in an undercount.
Continue ReadingCalifornia CBOs Can Now Apply for Census Funding: View RFP Below!
The State of California just released its RFP for CBOs to apply to become regional ACBOs for the 2020 Census! ACBOs will be responsible for regranting over $30 million in state funding to community partners in their region. Read our summary to learn how your organization can apply to become an ACBO.
Continue ReadingWhat LUCA Taught us about Census Outreach
The Census Bureau uses a Master Address File (MAF) to distribute self-response forms and identify which residences require enumerator follow-up for the decennial census. If an address is left off the Census’ MAF, residents within that unit will go undercounted. In hard-to-count communities, as many as 2-3% addresses may be missing from the Census’ MAF. Due to budget cuts, the US Census Bureau will have fewer resources and staff to perform on-the-ground, address canvassing, which helps ensure the accuracy of its MAF. Cities and counties had the opportunity to contribute to an accurate MAF earlier this year by performing their own, local address canvassing, a process known as the Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA).
Continue ReadingEnumerator Recruitment: A High Impact Opportunity to Address Undercount in the 2020 Census
Sourcing and recruiting high-quality field staff is a strategic way to use precious grant dollars to ensure an accurate count. Door-to-door enumeration will account for up to 40 percent of America’s households in the 2020 Census, nearly 50 percent more than in 2010. The Census needs to hire, train and deploy nearly half a million enumerators — about the same number as the entire US retail sector hires during the holiday season — to knock on doors across the country. The Census Bureau is asking local nonprofits and community-based organizations for help in sourcing those candidates, especially from hard-to-count areas.
Continue ReadingState of California Announces Fund Allocation for 2020 Census
The State of California has just published its Census Allocation Plan. The funds will support strategies and activities that will help ensure an accurate and successful count in California. Read our summary to learn how much your county will receive and the criteria for applying to become an ACBO.
Continue ReadingNew Census Study Results: Text Messages Are No. 1 Requested Follow-Up Method
A study published last week by the U.S. Census Bureau shows that hard-to-count populations prefer text messaging and cell phone notifications over other methods of follow-up contact. This represents an important breakthrough in how best to activate hard-to-count communities to self-respond in the 2020 Census.
Continue ReadingCommunityConnect Labs Founder Perla Ni Speaks at Census HQ: “Local Government Data Use Can Better People’s Lives in Tangible Ways”
Governments can lead the way in showing how data collection is used to benefit residents and delivering improved services. CommunityConnect Labs presented examples of its local city surveys and Census solutions at The Opportunity Project’s (TOP) Demo Day at the U.S. Census Bureau this past March.
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