How Do Political Parties Use Bulk Voice Calls for Election Campaigns?
Canvassing from door to door can be done in a whole neighborhood. Rallies may be conducted on the open ground. But neither of them can reach one million voters within an afternoon. And India having 900 million+ registered voters reaching out to everyone gets even harder. But, bulk voice calls can reach that target within a short while.
For the political parties working in India's expansive, multi-linguistic, and diverse electoral scenario, this has been one of the best methods used.
What are Bulk Voice Calls and How Do They Work
Bulk voice calls refer to pre-recorded voice messages that are broadcast simultaneously to thousands or even millions of telephone numbers. As for their use in electoral campaigns, such messages can be pre-recorded by a candidate, a leader of a political party, or a known personality within the community being reached out to.
What makes bulk voice calls particularly powerful is their recall rate, voters remember 90% of voice call messages, compared to just 45% for SMS . This means a campaign's core message is far more likely to stick with the voter long after the call ends.
Unlike SMS, which requires the user to be literate, or social media, which requires internet and a smartphone, calling has the capacity to reach all those who have basic mobile phones. This gives it immense importance in the context of rural constituencies.
Why Political Campaigns Rely on Voice Calls
The human voice is imbued with power that cannot be matched by writing. A voter who listens to their own candidate speak directly to them about issues affecting their lives responds in a different manner to that message than a printed pamphlet would generate.
Key reasons political parties use bulk voice calls :
- Scale connection: The voice of the politician is heard by the voters, who feel as though they are talking directly to the politician, despite the medium being broadcast
- Go beyond the digital divide: The voters don't need any smartphone or internet connection; they just have a phone that rings
- Multilingual delivery: India has hundreds of regional languages. The campaign messages can be recorded in all the languages and delivered to the voters
- High recall factor: Listening to a message enables much better recall ability than reading a message, which is vital when an advertising campaign is battling for attention within a few weeks of elections.
- Cost-effective: These are relatively more cost-effective than rallies, door-to-door canvassing, and TV advertisements when it comes to voter engagement.
How Political Parties Use Bulk Voice Calls
Manifesto and Vision Communication
The most popular application involves presenting the core pledges from the candidate directly to the electorate. An audio message of 30-60 seconds long from the candidate highlighting 2-3 core pledges ends with a strong call-to-action statement. The entire procedure is concluded prior to the voters' breakfast hours.
Rally and Event Invitations
The use of bulk calling is common before meetings, roadshows, and rallies. A telephone call from the candidate to invite a voter to join the event personally, complete with date and place, will yield better results than a poster or a Facebook post.
Election Day Voter Turnout Drives
On the day of the poll, campaigns make automated voice calls to voters about their polling booth, voting times, and the importance of their vote. These calls come at early morning times before the voter's busy day begins, as well as mid-morning calls to get the voter to the polls.
IVR-Based Voter Surveys
The Interactive Voice Response technology enhances the one-to-one broadcast by making it an interactive experience. The campaign can make a phone call that poses a single question to its voters, for instance, what is the most pressing issue that concerns them. In this case, the answers are collected from the keypad.
Constituency-Specific Messaging
A political party that campaigns in several constituencies at once cannot use the same message in all locations. Urban constituencies receive the message related to roads and jobs, while farmers elsewhere are told about assistance with their crops and the availability of water.
What Makes an Effective Election Voice Call
A poor script lasts for only three seconds before deletion. A good one is recalled on voting day. The distinctions are listed below:
- Under 60 seconds: The voter loses interest after the first minute. Messages need to convey their message within this timeframe.
- Voice of the Candidate: Voice broadcasting by the candidate surpasses the narrator-read recording when it comes to both authenticity and effect
- Regional language: When the message is communicated in the native language of the voter, it appears to be personal; if not, it comes across as general
- A simple and concise call for action: Come to the rally. Cast your vote. Make a phone call. The one you remember; the other two you forget
- Timeliness: Calls made during 8 AM – 11 AM and 5 PM – 8 PM hours achieve the highest household coverage
Compliance Every Campaign Must Follow
The Election Commission of India has certain rules regarding the conduct of political communication during elections. All voice campaigns are required to adhere to the following standards:
- All voice campaigns must cease at the onset of the 'campaign silence' announced before voting day
- The content should be factual and should not violate the Model Code of Conduct
- The voter's consent and opt-out provisions should be respected
- Do not make calls between 9 PM and 8 AM
- DLT registrations should be in place for any voice campaigns sent using Indian telecommunications networks
Voice campaigns that do not comply may lead to the disqualification of content, legal actions, and reputation damage.
The Bottom Line
A bulk voice call campaign is the only way to get the candidate's voice heard by every potential voter across all constituencies in all languages, on the very same day. For political parties trying to combine the personal touch of face-to-face interaction with the vast requirements of the modern election system, this method has high returns.
At Sequence Cloud Gateway, we offer large-scale voice calling capabilities tailored to election campaigning, including multilingual call recording, constituency-level segmentation, IVR survey services, delivery process tracking, and full compliance with Election Commission regulations.
FAQs
Q: Can the candidate record the message themselves before calling?
Absolutely, and that's what you should definitely do. Messages in the candidate's own voice will be much more believable and moving compared to any narrated text.
Q: Are bulk calls allowed during the election silence period?
No. The Election Commission of India does not allow any campaign communication, including bulk calls, during the silence period, which usually starts 48 hours prior to polling day.
Q: Can bulk calls be delivered in regional languages?
Yes. Individual recordings can be created in different languages for each region and supplied to the list of voters who have their own preference for language or geographic region.
Q: How does IVR work in an election voice call campaign?
The IVR enables the phone call to ask a question and receive the answer based on the use of a keypad. If one presses "1", it indicates that they support the policy. Pressing "2" means that the caller wants to attend the rally.