A "Street stall" is an activist tactic where you stand in a high-traffic area in your community (like outside a shopping centre) and collect petition signatures or vote pledges. 

Street stalls allow you to have conversations with people in the community who can shift your decision maker - this might be voters, customers, or other influencers. The process of signing the petition solidifies people who already support you, and applies "social pressure" to undecideds. 

Read our guide on how to hold a street stall here!

Set up

Choose somewhere with high foot traffic (outside a busy shopping strip, supermarket, footpath, park etc) where there is space for people to stop and speak to you. You don't require a permit to be on public property - but if you get kicked out of your location don't worry, just move somewhere nearby.

Connect

As people approach, introduce yourself, explain why you’re volunteering your time to campaign. Try the 10 - 5 - 2 method!

When a voter is 10 metres away, make eye contact and smile as they approach.

When they’re 5 metres away, warmly connect with an opening line like “Hey! How’s it going?”

When they’re 2 metres away, ask them a question e.g. “Have you heard about why workers are protesting here today?”

Collect Pledges or Petition signatures and photos!

Remember, the purpose of a street stall is to have conversations with community members. Using the petition data you collect, your campaign can follow up with supporters to ask them to take action.

Put an ask on people you have a conversation with - it's the most important part of your conversation. They might not remember what you discussed, but they'll remember making a commitment to you.

Example asks:

"We're trying to show the company that customers support good pay and conditions for workers here. Can you sign the petition?"

"We want to show that we have the full backing of the community. Can we take a selfie together?"

If they’re enthusiastic, ask if they want to join the campaign and volunteer or donate. Make sure they tick ‘volunteer’ or ‘donate’ and say we’ll be in touch.

Data return

Petition data is really important. It allows your campaign to follow up with supporters - and potentially turn them into volunteers or union members!

Talk to a campaign organiser about how best to return your data & keep it safe - email [email protected] with any questions!