Petitions allow any of us to be heard and to stand up against or for causes or issues that are important to us. The usual scenario is that someone gets fired up about a particular wrong the needs to be righted or to rail against some ordinance or other legislation that is unfair, or maybe even ridiculous. You put together a well-crafted petition to let everyone, especially the powers that be, know that you are not going to take this situation sitting down.

You are going to stand up, petition in hand or in your computer. Now what? Who will know or care, or most importantly, sign up to help you voice your position and maybe even get things changed? The answer depends on what you do to get your petition noticed. It needs to be noticed; otherwise it cannot serve your purpose. There are some things you must do if your petition is to get the attention it deserves.

Most important, make sure your petition is put together properly. By this I mean that it has to be self-explanatory so that people know at a glance what you are attempting to accomplish. Be sure that each of your petition forms states the following:

• Who you are sending the petition to and the role they have in helping or hindering your cause. Make sure that person has the power or the contacts to meet your demands.
• Be sure to be clear about what are you trying to accomplish. State a purpose or specific goal that make it clear what the issue is and what you want done about it.
• Be specific about what you want, when you want it, and what you want the petitioner to do.
• Proofread and spell check your petition and any supporting documents describing the issue
• Have copies of the petition and supporting data with you at all time.
• Approach everyone you meet as a potential supporter of your petition.
• Attend public events where large crowds gather. Don't forget to get permission to be on the premises.

At the same time you are following these suggestions you must in this age of the Internet create and maintain an online presence.

• Email your friends and family and send them the link to your petition.
• Set up a website for your petition There are many free websites you can use for this purpose. Simply go to your favorite search engine and use the search term free web hosting.
• Use Search Engines to find other people who are interested in your cause. Ask them to sign your petition and ask if they will include your link on their websites.
• Join User Groups or Chat Boards concerning your topic. Spread the word on those forums.
• Submit your link to search engines manually or use one of the free submission services you can find in any search engine.

Don't be afraid to be creative. You are the key ingredient to your petition's success. Do some brainstorming and I am sure you will think of other ways to publicize your petition. Here's to your success.