I just got done reading an amazing book about creating change in society, "Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard," by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. This morning, as I heard the stories of the winners of the Public Affairs Council's Grassroots Innovation Awards, I realized that these innovators used some of the same strategies that the authors urged.

In the book, "Switch," the authors suggested to get people to change one of the things you need to do is create a "destination postcard - a vivid picture from the near-term future that shows what could be possible.' The authors say you need to invoke emotional arguments, not rational statistics -- something they called "finding the feeling."

This was one of the ways that Portland General Electric convinced customers to conserve energy. They used an online campaign to suggest simple habits people could employ to save energy. But instead of using the argument, "You'll save pennies on your electric bill," they said, "The amount of energy we saved was enough to power the state capitol for three weeks.' The message also appealed to Oregonians cultural connection to community improvement. The postcard destination became more tangible.

The American Heart Association converted their annual report (the traditional, deadly boring vehicle for communicating accomplishments) into an interactive, online experience, with videos, photos and stories. The "postcard destination" of their work was now more accessible. The result translated into more stakeholders gaining a greater understanding of their issues and efforts.

The "social media" category winner, American Express, created "Small Business Saturday" to get Americans to patronize local businesses on the Saturday between Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Using a dedicated Facebook page, the company gave statement credits to customers who shopped locally, free Facebook advertising to local merchants, and a $1 donation for each "like" of the "Small Business Saturday" Facebook page. The donations - $1 million worth - went to Girls Inc., which encourages young women to be entrepreneurs.

All advocacy is about change. It may be to reduce energy consumption, battle a serious illness, or support entrepreneurs. No matter how you package it, this change involves demonstrating to citizens their potential to improve themselves, their community, or others with whom they share a bond. It means creating a postcard destination. As "Switch" and the Grassroots Innovator Award winners show, by understanding basic human motivations, and applying innovative thinking and technology, change can occur.