Raise your hand if you've ever attended a grassroots or advocacy training session, and e-mail was the most sophisticated strategy mentioned.

A few weeks ago, I attended such a session. Nothing was mentioned about using the web to support candidates or advocate a cause. When the floor was open to suggestions, I encouraged those in the room to go home and get involved with local blogs. As soon as the session ended, I was barraged by questions on how individuals could use the web for their cause in their communities.

This was a group of highly motivated volunteers willing to devote a weekday to advocacy training. It's sad to think of the opportunities that the organization missed by neglecting basic training on the web. If a DC-based organization with access to knowledgeable professionals failed to cover the web, how much worse is it in the rest of the country? If conservatives aren't engaged online, it's not because they lack an interest.

Thanks to the media's love/hate relationship with social media, most people have heard about blogs or social networks. But Mr. and Mrs. Middle America are too busy to figure it all. We need to show them how to use these tools to make an impact in their community. There's momentum at the top of the movement, but is it filtering down to the grassroots?

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My boss frequently reminds us that volunteers and supporters no longer want to be told what to do. Instead, they want to know what they can bring to the organization. Online activities can be done on their terms in their free time. Why aren't we taking advantage of training events to show our grassroots supporters how to better use the web?

The Modern Media Workshop helped those on the Hill and around the Beltway and Leadership Institute does a great job training young people. Yet, these efforts still reach a small segment of the movement. Why aren't we taking advantage of state party events, conservative advocacy groups and watchdog organizations to train a rightroots army?

The frustrating thing is that social media is strongest when used at the grassroots level. Look at the power of state and local blogs. They capture what's going on across America and hold elected officials accountable at all levels of government. Far too often, people won't start blogging or organizing online until there's a crisis. When done proactively, communities have an infrastructure built and relationships in place. They can effectively deal with problems or take advantage of scandals and mistakes that the opposition is bound to make.

The netroots have demographics on their side--younger people are far more likely to be liberal. However, the right is willing to engage by sharing their knowledge and experience if we're willing to teach them.