¶ Creating a List for MinVAN
Creating a list of voters is the first step to running a canvass. From the Lists tab on the homepage, you can navigate to either creating a new list, returning to a previous list or accessing a list that has been saved into a folder.
¶ Select “Create New List”
Create a New List is found on the menu of both My Voters and My Campaigns
¶ Select your Desired Search Criteria
From the Create A New Search page, you can search based on a wide variety of data point, such as location (under the Addresses tab, you can select to search by state, city, zip code, address, etc.), Home District (County, State or Congressional), demographic information, and profile characteristics such as having a listed phone number or email address.
When pulling lists for canvassing or phone banking, several other important fields to keep in mind are Canvass Status and Survey Questions. These tools allow organizers to pull (or exclude) voters from lists based on their previous contact history—selecting only voters who have answered “yes” to a Survey Question or excluding those who have already been called recently, for instance.
¶ Selecting Multiple Search Terms
Many fields on the Create A List page include the ability to select multiple options from the list. These fields can be identified because their names appear in blue text, rather than black (as seen above). To use this feature, rather than selecting the dropdown menu, click on the blue label to access the select options.
¶ Track your List
As you choose qualities to search by, they will appear in the summary on the right-hand side of the screen, allowing you to track the qualities that you are adding to the list.
¶ Run the Search
Clicking the Preview My Results button will show you a count of people on the list without fully running the search. The plus sign next to the number displayed expands the preview to show the number of phones, doors, and mailboxes present on the list as well. When you are satisfied with the list you have pulled, the green Run Search button will process the query and return your results.
¶ Edit the Search, If Necessary
In addition to adjusting the search terms of the list, organizers can further edit the query by using the Add Step button. The Add Step button uses the previously pulled list as a starting point and performs new commands to add or remove voters from it based on a new set of criteria. Hovering your cursor over each option will reveal details on what actions will be performed by each command.
¶ View the List
Once VAN has run the search, the My List page will display a summary of the list, a row of icons with various options for using the list, and a sample of the list to allow you to spot check the data.
¶ Saving and Sharing Lists
Many fields on the Create A List page include the ability to select multiple options from the list. These fields can be identified because their names appear in blue text, rather than black (as seen above). To use this feature, rather than selecting the dropdown menu, click on the blue label to access the select options.
Saving: Select Save List As from the top-right corner of the My List page
Sharing: From the Edit Folder page, access to the folder can be granted to or removed from other user accounts in the VAN. Simply select the user(s) who need access, and add them to the appropriate column.