With the pandemic in full swing, California Complete Count 2020 had to dramatically shift outreach strategies. SLS was called upon to help design and execute a remote outreach program focused on engaging hard-to-reach, underrepresented, and underserved populations throughout the state.
Originally, this program was slated to utilize a variety of in-person outreach tactics including door-to-door canvassing, crowd canvassing, and community events to work with individuals to complete the Census. However, restrictions on in-person interaction due to COVID caused our team to shift tactics and design a program that utilized live phone calls and text messages to reach community members.
In eight weeks, our team assembled a team of over 450 outreach specialists who completed 6.6 million phone calls and 3.6 million text messages in seven different languages. Team members conducted outreach to the communities they lived in. This helped improve our ability to deliver culturally competent outreach and messaging strategies that dramatically improved our success. Ultimately our program significantly boosted census participation rates in hard-to-count communities, helping over a quarter-million households complete the Census. Our work was credited by California Complete Count with helping thwart the loss of an additional congressional seat.