Remember when the key to political fundraising was selling or buying a $1,000 ticket for an event or dinner, shaking a candidate’s hand, and snapping a photo for your office wall?

Those days are fading fast.

The most successful fundraisers today aren’t the ones hosting glitzy events. They’re the ones with a message that sparks emotion. Think Bernie Sanders and other candidates on the political edges. Their campaigns raise millions not because donors want access, but because supporters feel something.

I call this message-driven fundraising.

Here’s how it works: when people are emotional—angry, fearful, hopeful—they want to act. And you, as a campaign, need to give them something to do: donate $20, then chip in $50, volunteer, knock doors. Most of these supporters will never meet the candidate in person, and that’s fine. Their connection is emotional, not transactional.

So what does it take to make this work? Just three things:

1. An emotional message that sticks. Bold, passionate, even extreme—it has to grab your audience by the gut.

2. A strong database. The money is in the list. If you don’t have one, start building it yesterday.

3. Creativity. You need fresh, engaging ways to ask the same people for small-dollar donations again and again.

Message-driven fundraising has changed the game. It’s not about access anymore. It’s about emotions.

To find out more, watch the latest edition of The Campaign Doctor on my YouTube channel.