TACHC came to FG SQUARED for help with their campaign to help pass a bill creating governmental subsidies for family care medical practitioners in underserved areas of Texas. The goal was simple: gather a grassroots following of people committed to supporting the bill (by having them petition their respective legislators about it), and have the following spread the word.

We created a Facebook group and a Twitter account, and a BudURL to track the number of hits to TACHC’s landing page. On Facebook we wrote a description of the problem and how this bill helped resolve it, then contacted people we know to tell them about it and ask them to become members, contact their legislator, and spread the word. On Twitter we searched for like-minded people and groups, followed them (hoping they would return the favor), and Tweeted updates about the bill’s progress.

In the end the Texas Legislature did, in fact, pass the bill—after Representative Chisolm took interest and added it as an amendment to his own bill—and Governor Rick Perry signed it into law. While the grassroots social media campaign we engaged in is not wholly responsible for the bill’s eventual success, it was a low-cost solution that played a role in bringing awareness and visibility to the situation the bill was written to help alleviate. The Facebook page and Twitter account still exist, and the number of fans and followers grow daily, giving TACHC a ready-made social media network they can call on when another situation like this arises.