Do online petitions really make a difference?
Yes. Signing a petition is effective. A number of factors influence the effectiveness of a petition. The more a target organization is impacted by public opinion, the more effective your petitions. In addition, the Petition Site enhances the credibility of online petitions by centralizing signature collection, regulating signature data collection and output, facilitating communication of petitions via fax, email, etc. and by using fraud-reduction technology. The effect of a petition goes far beyond the actual list of signatures. Journalists write stories about petitions, signers get inspired to take additional action and other potential targets conform their behavior to avoid being a target.