Research is Central to Good Advocacy
Advocacy is a set of targeted and coordinated activities to influence policies and practices, based on
reliable and documented evidence, aimed at a defined audience of decision makers. To do good advocacy one needs to study policies, practices, gather documented evidence and study the influencers and decision makers. Good research is fundamental to good advocacy.
Research is the process of collecting, organizing, maintaining, analyzing, and presenting information and data that helps one make informed advocacy decisions. Government Analytica uses Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) techniques for its research using the vast digital trail of most companies, academia, think tank, consultancies, governments and elected and appointed officials.
The research is used for setting the advocacy strategy. The strategy setting process can be summarized as:
- First, gathering issue or topic related government data, reports, critiques where potential problems and opportunities are identified, collected and analyzed.
- Then, identifying amongst those government needs or problems or challenges, an initial subset where your proposal/solution resolves the issue at hand with demonstrable public value.
- Laying out various needs and corresponding solutions, predicting public value consequences of each, and creating a ladder of options for presentation to stakeholders
- Profiling policymakers to understand what they perceive as high public value. Then assess their potential interest in your solutions when matched against their most treasured areas of interest. They dispense their political capital more easily on these themes.
- Developing an engagement plan among key influencers and decision makers that are most likely, based on the profiling you have done, to support your proposal.
- Reaching out to each stakeholder within the legislative or executive branches operational/fiscal time frames.
Sources of Information
Open-Source Intelligence sources can be divided up into six types of information. They can be used to understand government needs and challenges, profile policy makers, quantify public value and develop the best stakeholder delivery approach:
- Media, print newspapers, magazines, radio, and television from across and between countries.
- Internet, online publications, blogs, discussion groups, citizen media (i.e. – cell phone videos, and user created content), YouTube, and other social media websites (i.e. – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.). This source also outpaces a variety of other sources due to its timeliness and ease of access.
- Public government data, public government reports, budgets, hearings, telephone directories, press conferences, websites, and speeches. Although this source comes from an official source, they are publicly accessible and may be used openly and freely.
- Think Tank, professional and academic publications, information acquired from journals, conferences, symposia, academic papers, dissertations, and theses.
- Commercial data, commercial imagery, financial and industrial assessments, and databases.
- Grey literature, technical reports, preprints, patents, working papers, business documents, unpublished works, and newsletters.
Strategic Applications in Government Advocacy
Government research is only valuable if it leads to insight—and only actionable if it is discoverable. The following applications demonstrate how research supports advocacy strategy at every level, along with recommended search strategies that reflect Government Analytica’s Super Search method.
Search Strategy: Use Government Analytica's Super Search approach. Tutorial link is provided.
1. Identifying Government Needs and Pain Points
Understand where agencies, departments, or elected officials are facing pressure or seeking innovation.
Search Strategy:
Use PDF filetype filters + site-specific search (e.g., site:gov filetype:pdf) to find reports, audits, and issue briefs. Keywords: "strategic plan", "challenges", "performance gaps", "needs assessment".
2. Forecasting Legislative or Regulatory Direction
Anticipate how policies will evolve based on published legislative agendas or rulemaking plans.
Search Strategy:
Search legislative tracking websites and agency regulatory agendas using keywords like “proposed rule”, “legislative priorities”, or “regulatory forecast”. Use site:.gov or congress.gov for precision.
3. Mapping Policy Landscapes
Determine which offices or committees have jurisdiction or influence over your issue.
Search Strategy:
Use official legislative sites (e.g., state legislature websites) or agency org charts. Keywords: "jurisdiction", "oversight", "mandate", "authority for [issue]".
4. Profiling Decision-Makers and Influencers
Gain insight into what policymakers value, how they speak, and what they prioritize.
Search Strategy:
Analyze social media, speeches, and video interviews (e.g., YouTube). Use filters with names + “speech”, “remarks”, “interview”. Track Twitter/X and LinkedIn for positions on issues.
5. Quantifying Public Value
Show how your proposal delivers meaningful, measurable impact aligned with public interests.
Search Strategy:
Search for KPIs or metrics in agency reports. Keywords: "impact evaluation", "benefit-cost analysis", "performance indicators". Use .gov and .org domains for neutral data sources.
6. Developing Policy Proposals and Briefs
Ground your proposals in real data and comparative precedent to improve credibility and influence.
Search Strategy:
Use think tank and academic sources (site:brookings.edu, site:urban.org, site:harvard.edu) with keywords like "policy recommendation", "briefing paper", "pilot results".
7. Supporting Message Framing
Craft language that mirrors stakeholder values and communication style.
Search Strategy:
Use transcript archives or online speech libraries (e.g., site:gov or C-SPAN) and filter by policymaker name. Search for recurring keywords in their rhetoric (e.g., “innovation,” “equity,” “efficiency”).
8. Uncovering Political Timing and Windows of Opportunity
Engage at the right moment—when policies are being shaped or budgets are under review.
Search Strategy:
Track legislative calendars, committee schedules, or executive budget release dates. Use keywords like "budget hearings", "appropriations schedule", "public consultation period".
9. Identifying Potential Allies and Coalitions
Build partnerships by identifying organizations already aligned with your issue.
Search Strategy:
Search for past signatories of public letters, joint press releases, or hearing testimonies. Keywords: "[issue] coalition", "supporters of [bill name]", "advocacy partners".
10. Anticipating Opposition Arguments
Monitor adversarial messaging and prepare evidence-based rebuttals.
Search Strategy:
Search stakeholder websites and social channels for issue statements. Use Google News or alerts with the opposition group name + “opposes”, “responds to”, “position on [issue]".
11. Tracking Budget Allocations and Funding Trends
Align your proposal with existing or planned financial priorities.
Search Strategy:
Use filetype:xls or filetype:pdf to find agency budgets and appropriations bills. Keywords: "[agency] budget FY 2025", "expenditure summary", "program allocations".
12. Informing Public Comment Responses
Use data to respond strategically during public consultation periods.
Search Strategy:
Locate proposed rules on regulations.gov or state portals. Search by docket number, agency name, or keywords like “Notice of Proposed Rulemaking”.
13. Shaping Testimony and Public Statements
Make testimonies data-driven and aligned with policy goals.
Search Strategy:
Use committee archives or previous testimony from similar hearings (site:house.gov, site:senate.gov, or local equivalents). Search terms: "[bill name] testimony", "[committee] hearing statements".
14. Supporting Grant and RFP Proposals
Use public data to strengthen applications and align with funding goals.
Search Strategy:
Find federal and state grant opportunities on grants.gov, SAM.gov, or agency-specific portals. Keywords: "RFP for [program]", "NOFO", "funding priorities FY 2025".
15. Building Advocacy Dashboards
Create a visual system to monitor progress and stakeholder movement over time.
Search Strategy:
Use research inputs from the categories above to populate dashboards that show support trends, meeting outcomes, policy alignment, and next steps.
16. Evaluating Program or Policy Impact
Measure and report success to improve credibility and inform future campaigns.
Search Strategy:
Look for performance evaluations, audit reports, or program assessments. Keywords: "program impact evaluation", "post-implementation review", "case study on [policy]".