Real conversations driving real results
Live calling is a longtime specialty of Stones' Phones and a peerless tool for political campaigns. As digital channels get louder, a live call still provides a human connection that TV, social media, text and email cannot replicate.
It also gives you feedback in real time: questions, concerns and answers from the constituents, voters or members you called. That feedback, combined with our scripting methods and carefully trained operators, translates into more support and higher turnout.
We work alongside your team from the first draft of the script to the last data file.
Our team helps you craft a script that is direct, persuasive and memorable. The key decision is whether the calls persuade or only collect information. Persuasion calls introduce the candidate or issue before asking for support. Information-only calls keep the read on public opinion unbiased, which is the better choice when the answers will shape later outreach.
We can use your data or purchase a list for the program based on geography, demographics or vote history. Every list is scrubbed before a single call goes out.
Operators attempt each number 3 times a day across morning, afternoon and evening shifts, from several caller IDs so nobody is worn down by the same number. A list of 9,000 or 900,000 records takes about five to six days to exhaust. We reach 65 to 70 percent of the voters on a list by name.
You get a report every afternoon during calling and a full data file at the end, with each voter’s information and response. Every additional question (support, then volunteer, for example) adds cost, and often that is exactly what the program needs to hit its goal.
Live ID calls are not one size fits all. Beyond the basic program we run a series of specialty calls, described below, and Story Capture programs that turn supporters into recorded spokespeople.
Built for a specific goal
Identifying influencers is an excellent way to mobilize grassroots advocates. Voters who talk politics with 6 or more people and support your campaign are your key targets. Supporters become powerful advocates once armed with information and access; undecided influencers become a key field and persuasion audience.
Read about Influencer ID programs
Go a step beyond identifying supporters by asking them to display a yard sign. Our operators capture the details that matter, such as the preferred address, and make sure everyone in the household is on board. The list goes straight to your field staff.
Read about Yard sign asksLive ID Calls programs that delivered
With the COVID-19 pandemic adding a heightened focus on access to healthcare, we wanted to make sure influencers in Michigan were talking to their friends and family about the lawmakers who were protecting access to healthcare in their state. We first informed the constituents of the legislator’s commitment to healthcare or how their legislator has not been advocating for healthcare for all and then asked if they agreed that the legislators should make sure healthcare is accessible. If they agreed we then asked the influencer question of how many people outside of their immediate household they talk to about politics. We were able to identify 554 influencers for the team to target as their biggest advocates for the campaign to make sure healthcare is accessible to all in Michigan.
The 2023 Denver mayoral runoff election was going to be a hotly contested race. Five candidates received at least 10,000 votes in the initial round of voting, and none surpassed 25% of the vote. Advancing Denver, an independent expenditure supporting Mike Johnston, was focused on filling gaps they believed the official campaign might overlook in the final week before Election Day.
To do that, we constructed a live ID program that focused on three pieces:
Considering that many of the demographics we targeted were less likely to have a landline, we focused our efforts on voters with cell phones. Our script touched quickly on some of Mike’s previous efforts as a state senator - helping to pass landmark gun control legislation - and his plans to address the homelessness crisis in the city, before asking who the person planned to vote for.
If they supported Mike, we then gave them their voting options, which included bringing their completed ballot to a drop box or voting in person at a voting center. If they were unsure who they planned to vote for, we provided them with information about Mike’s opponent, who had worked as a lobbyist for special interests, including the oil and gas industry.
After delivering our message to over 38,000 voters and providing crucial voting information to over 10,000 supporters, Johnston won a sound victory with over 55% of the vote.
The Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) rallied behind candidates championing climate change action in the 2025 House of Delegates elections. We worked with them to deploy calls in support of Kacey Carnegie (HD-89), Elizabeth Guzman (HD-22), and Lindsey Dougherty (HD-75). We completed over 50,000 Live ID and GOTV calls to the candidates to gauge support and boost turnout among supporters.
All three candidates won their races and became part of the largest Virginia climate majority in the modern political era.
When Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom (NRF) launched their campaign to pass Question 6, they needed to raise awareness and drive turnout. NRF partnered with Stones’ Phones to develop a high-impact outreach program using Live Calls and Text Messaging.
We launched Live ID calls to nearly 300,000 voters, aiming to persuade voters, identify support, and provide tailored voting information. We used the data collected in the Live ID calls to send targeted text messages, applying social pressure to those who had not yet voted.
With our help, NRF reached hundreds of thousands of voters and kept them engaged through multiple touchpoints. This approach played a key role in the historic passage of Question 6, securing abortion access for all Nevadans.
A completed call is when we get the voter on the phone, and they respond to the first ID question.
For our live ID calls, our typical completion rate is around 70% while our GOTV calls typically have a 90% completion rate, due to the added bonus of voice mail messages left.
We train them to be personable, give them time to learn pronunciations, and add in anecdotal information that clues the agent into the context of the call. This ensures that people have a good experience over the phone and that scripts are read well.
We make numerous passes through each list. We attempt each number 3 times a day - we use numerous caller IDs so people do not get overwhelmed receiving multiple calls from the same number. We aim to get 65% to 70% of the voters by name on the line.
Usually, it is a morning shift, an afternoon shift, and an evening shift. We can increase the staffing on a shift if we find more people picking up their phones at a particular time.
No matter the size of the list 9,000, 90,000 or 900,000 it takes about five to six days to exhaust a list. Ideally there is a weekend and a Monday in those five days. Our floor supervisors and operations team will let us know that they feel the list is no longer producing results. This all depends on how good the list is -the percentage of bad numbers, the number of early hang-ups, the folks where we experience a language barrier - and how willing the voters are to answer questions.
We will send you daily reports in the afternoon after each day of calling and a final report with the data back once the call is done. During the rush of election season Live call reports may be sent after Election Day unless specifically requested.
Often run alongside this one
Turn everyday citizens into political activists
Get out the vote using phones
Simultaneously connecting thousands of people
Ready to run a live ID program?
Tell us who you need to reach and what you need them to do. We will come back with a plan and a price.