Organizing a Fly-In / Hill Day

There are 3 major parts to organizing your fly-in, also known as a hill day or day at the capitol.

• Create an event listing to allow your users to register for the function
• Set up meetings with legislators for your users to attend
• Provide your users with a way to report back about how the meetings went

This video walks you through the process from start to finish.

Create an Event

To create the event notice / registration, click the Advocacy menu and select “Events.” On the following Events Listing page, you will see a list of any current or previous created events. Click the “New Event” option to create a new event.

On the "Options" page of the event wizard, you must provide the basic details:

• Event Name
• Event Time Frame
• Time Frame to Display the Registration Form
• Priority Level
• Public vs Private
• Scheduled Meetings

These controls affect when and how the system displays your event registration on the Action Center.

The next page of Event creation is the “Action Alert” page. The Action Alert contains a short description of the Event, and it instructs your contacts regarding the course of action they need to take.

• Give your Action Alert a headline that gives your contacts a clear idea of what the issue is.
• In the composition box, clearly explain what you are asking your contacts to do, and what steps they need to take in order to take action. 
• Make sure your explanation not only notifies them of the issue but also compels them to take action.

The “Event Details” page provides you with four separate text editors:

• Accommodations
• Travel Details
• Program
• Event Resources

These labels will appear under the alert on the event page, each as a collapsable subheading. Enter appropriate information into each of them. Feel free to make the most of the formatting controls here. Link to the websites of the businesses you mention, upload any relevant packets, etc...

Set up Meetings

Here, you setup and manage meetings between your users and their elected officials.

To create a new entry, click the “New Meeting” icon at the top-right corner of the page.

Enter the required information for the meeting into the corresponding forms:

• Name (title for you and your users)
• Time Frame (when this particular meeting will actually occur)
• Elected Official
• Other Attendees (such as staffers)
• Location (this will be pre-populated, but it can be changed)
• Subject

You then have the option to add some informational sections for your users. They will be visible to the user when they access the meeting information in their device's browser. You can use them to link to websites with further information, embed hosted PDFs of informational packets, or simply type out the talking points you want your contacts to cover with their officials at the meeting.

• Agenda
• Talking Points
• Notes

Lastly, you will need to assign the attendees for the meeting. You may not know which of your contacts will be assigned to any given meeting at this point, but you can always add people later either here or in Advocacy >Meetings. Just begin typing a contact’s name in the text field. Once you select a person, click the “Add Attendee” button to the right. When you have added everyone you need, hit the save button.

Report on Meetings

After your contacts meet with their legislators, you will want to have them let you know how the meeting went through a type of survey called a meeting report.

You can choose an existing meeting report survey (any survey in which the first question is set to “meeting information”), or you can create a new one through the event setup here. Just remember to choose "Meeting information" as the first question.

The first question will always ask a user:

• When did you meet?
• Where did you meet?
• Whose office did you meet with?
• Which official or official's staff did you meet with?

You will likely want to add a few questions asking for specific feedback regarding how the legislators / staffers reacted to the topics you provided in the meeting’s Talking Points. You will also likely want to provide an open space for your contacts to offer any additional notes they feel are important.

Final Steps

The Confirmation and Promote pages do not require any modification, but you may want to adjust the default thank you language that users will see after they register for your event. If you require a registration fee, the confirmation text is a good place to link to the payment method.

For your next fly-in or hill day, following the three steps of creating an event, setting up meetings, and reporting on those meetings will ensure a successful event for your users, their elected officials, and your advocacy goals.