Having just finished volunteering in a special election campaign, I can say for certain that while the basics of door knocking stay the same, several things can complicate such activities during the winter. We decided to list some of these below so that you don’t have to struggle with the same issues that my fellow volunteers and I just faced.

1. Forgetting to bundle up. This may seem obvious, but dress in layers. In my experience, most don’t think of it. You will warm up as you go along during the day, but it will be cold for a while. Don’t forget the necessities: thick socks, warm shoes/boots, coat, hat, and gloves.
2. Leaving the water bottles at home. It is very easy to forget to drink when it isn’t warm outside; nevertheless, your body is losing moisture. Your energy level will wane if you don’t stay hydrated.
3. Using an iPhone without a case. When campaigning with a mobile canvasing app like Voter Gravity, you are carrying around a reasonable investment with you as you door knock. Make sure you protect your phone or tablet with a reasonable case. Nothing makes a slick device harder to hold than numb fingers.
4. Not wearing touchscreen gloves. Along the same vein, many volunteers will hold off on wearing gloves because they are using a mobile device. Do yourself a favor. Invest in a pair of gloves that allows you to wear them and use your device. Just say ‘no’ to cold, stiff fingers.
5. Dressing unprofessionally. Your appearance still matters to the person opening the door. Silly tassel hats, or other similarly unprofessional articles don’t instill confidence in the voter. Make sure your winter clothes don’t negatively affect the perception of the campaign that voters will receive.
6. Initiating long-winded conversations. Perhaps even more than in the summer, people don’t want to stand out on their porch talking to you. Not only are they busy; it’s cold. Be brief and to-the-point.
7. Forgetting to thaw out. Make sure you do warm up occasionally. It doesn’t take long at particularly low temperatures to do significant damage to your body. If you’re getting to cold, spend time in a heated car.
8. Not taking advantage of the little things in life. Warm drinks and hand warmers to keep your spirits up. It is amazing how much of a morale boost a little portable heat can give you on a cold day.
9. Using ballpoint pens. If you are unfortunate enough to still be using paper, you will notice that ballpoint pens freeze in cold temperatures. Pencils don’t freeze, but cause problems with scanners, as graphite has reflective properties. Use felt tip markers. Of course, mobile canvassing apps like Voter Gravity eliminate this problem altogether and ensure your data gets recorded perfectly.
10. Forgetting about the sun. There are less hours during the day in which door-to-door campaigning can be done. Make sure you set your goals accordingly. (And also don’t forget the sunscreen – you can still get sunburnt in the snow!)

As a note: Keep in mind that while door-to-door is the most effective means of voter contact, phone banking with integrated systems like Voter Gravity can be a good use of time and resources during rough weather conditions that hamper successful door-to-door canvassing.