Editorial boards at newspapers write the unsigned columns on the left side of most editorial pages. They decide what candidates to endorse, from city council races to president; they decide which op-eds and letters to the editor to publish and which syndicated columnists to run.
1) Who's on an editorial board, and why meet with them?
Most editorial boards include -- at a minimum -- the publisher, editor and opinion page editor.
The purpose of an editorial board tour is to make your case in person. Say there's a school levy on the ballot and you're part of the group of parents campaigning to pass it. You'd want to talk to the editorial boards of your local papers before they came out for or against the levy.
2) How editorial boards work
Meeting with an editorial is not a speech. You don't stand up at a podium and talk for ten or twenty minutes. You sit around a table with them and have a dialogue.
It's OK -- and expected -- to dive into the weeds of an issue and get a bit wonky. They want more than slogans and soundbites.
Don't be surprised if an editor attacks your position. These are miniature debates, and somebody has to play devil's advocate. They have to chew on an issue from all sides, and they won't make a decision while you're in the room. Your job is to give them facts and arguments to chew on.
Prepare for the meeting by being fully briefed on the facts and thinking of rebuttals to natural arguments about your position. It's also smart to read the editorial pages of each paper to get a feel for how they tackle issues.
3) Take the long view
The editorial board may not write about your issue right away. They may not write about it at all.
But it's important to meet with them. The dialogue you have with them will make them better informed when they decide which opeds and letters to the editor they publish, what questions they ask of your opposing side and how much coverage they give the issue on the news pages.