You've probably experienced the excitement and uneasiness that comes with a first date—the primping and preparing, the nervousness—wondering if this brief encounter might change the course of your future.

These predate jitters are a lot like the feelings an association member may experience when participating in his or her first Capitol Hill visit as part of the organization's legislative fly-in, or "Hill Day." Once the appointment has been scheduled and the Advocacy 101 and issue training sessions are complete, the activist enters the unfamiliar territory of the elected official's office and wonders: Could this meeting change the course of your organization's advocacy agenda?

My answer: By itself, not likely. I don't know anyone who decided to make a lifetime commitment to another after a first date without the benefit of a courtship. So, why would a legislator commit to supporting your organization's issues after a single Hill Day meeting with a constituent? Unfortunately, too many associations spend significant financial and staff resources creating and running a Hill Day, while minimizing—or even ignoring—the importance of nurturing the long-term relationship with a legislator.

A Hill Day is a business investment in your association, not an isolated event. It has advocacy, member engagement, and communications implications, so it makes sense to articulate the business reasons for having a Hill Day. To do that:

• Align the purpose and activities with the organization's strategic plan.
• Identify the primary and secondary, as well as the short-term and long-term, objectives for the day.
• Ask what purpose the Hill visits serve.

Include relevant volunteer leaders, staff leaders, cross-departmental personnel, and vendors in the planning, execution, and follow-up. Make sure everyone involved has a clear understanding of the business reasons for conducting the event.

A Hill Day is a business investment in your association, not an isolated event.

The First Date

The Hill visit portion of your fly-in agenda is often the first date in developing a legislator-constituent relationship. Although it seems intuitive for elected officials to prioritize time for Hill-based, constituent meetings, some offices acknowledge that these collective visits consume time with people they will never see or hear from again.

As a result, more and more congressional offices have addressed the demand for time with legislators by holding weekly constituent coffees. These large-group receptions, attended by the elected official and limited staff, provide an opportunity to shake hands and have a photo taken with the legislator.

These are the "cattle calls" of constituent meetings, and no matter how well prepared your attendees are, this is not an optimal or lasting opportunity for conveying your message. If this is the best offer you get for a visit, it is a clear sign that your organization's constituents need to develop a relationship in that district or state. Your job is to make sure you provide them ways to do that.

Even if you are able to secure a meeting with the relevant staffer or with the elected official, it is important to keep in mind that this is just a single encounter. The real work for developing or nurturing the relationship is still ahead of you.

Get to the Second Date

A popular online dating service ad claims that it is "number one in second dates." Does your Hill Day agenda include an effective component for pursuing the next date? This is where many organizations fail.

After their Hill visits, your attendees are excited. Capitalize on this energy before they scatter to their home cities. Bring them together to share their enthusiasm. Use the momentum to discuss ways for engaging outside of the capital city.

The second, third, and subsequent dates will likely occur back in the home districts, and your attendees should be taught about these potential opportunities before they leave the Hill Day event. Counsel them on the value of holding similar meetings with the legislator in the legislator's local district office. Help them understand the role and value of cultivating relationships with in-district legislative staff, who have the ear of the elected official. Encourage them to invite the legislator or local staff to observe directly how your industry or profession works as well as to meet other employees.

These onsite experiences provide support to your messages for policy change. Attending town-hall meetings are another example of engagement with policymakers, so encourage attendees to sign up for messages from their legislators. Train attendees to use their smartphones and Hill Day app to generate social media buzz that gets the attention of the elected official.

As the relationship develops, communication is key to keeping it strong. Make sure your Hill Day attendees maintain a dialogue with one another. Just as people share their dating ups and downs with friends, your attendees can share experiences and learn from each other.

Association staff can support the relationship-nurturing process by:

• suggesting relevant communication and meeting opportunities
• providing message suggestions
• keeping attendees informed of policy and process developments
• using webinars to provide additional training and to help attendees share lessons learned.

And They Lived Happily Ever After …

No relationship is perfect, and the same goes for legislator-constituent relationships. Maintaining mutual respect, practicing the art of compromise, and committing to dialogue and solutions are cornerstones for surviving the ups and downs.

Sometimes, just looking back to that first date is enough to reinvigorate the relationship. It can show you how far you've come and help you remember what's important: a shared commitment to your industry's advocacy agenda.