Why Every Marketer Should Pay Attention to the Presidential Race in the USA
Let me be the first to say, I do not get sucked into politics, and this is NOT a blog with a political stance. This is simply advice and what I have learned while watching the political race.
The Advantage of Watching the Political Race on Both Sides for Marketing
The months leading up to the presidential vote are historically the leading indicator for trends in marketing.
For example, in the 1930s, Franklin D. Roosevelt campaigned for president on the radio, which led radio to become the marketing channel of choice for big brands. In the 1960s, the Kennedy-Nixon debate sparked the use of television for advertising. In 2008, Barack Obama was the first presidential candidate to use social media as a way to engage with voters. (Fun fact: his campaign managers were early employees of Facebook and they pushed him to embrace the online platforms.) In 2016, Donald Trump created a massive, data-focused, and highly controversial Facebook advertising campaign. Essentially, he ran ads that targeted unique experiences based on voters' pre-existing interests. For instance, people who cared about guns would get ads about how his opponent was anti-gun. Right now, both parties are using organic social media (specifically TikTok) to push their agenda and momentum.
Campaign after campaign, we can see marketing tactics that work and those that fail. But why should marketers pay attention to the mediums and tactics during the election?
The victor's strategy will cause a huge shift in marketing spend. For example, following Trump's victory, there was a massive push towards data and analytics for every marketing campaign (at least in my experience). Plus, the amount of money, resources, media attention, publicity, and the number of people being reached is larger than any one company can achieve.
There are very few marketers that I've ever heard of or met who have access to this level of marketing and reach.
How I Pay Attention
The Mediums: The best way I have found to keep track of how things are progressing, what messaging is resonating with audiences, and the mediums that audiences are interacting with first is... Reddit. Specifically, r/popular/.
This is a massive community of people on both sides who are open to sharing their opinions. I saw a post today with 3.5k worth of comments, and the original source of this post? TikTok.
The other mediums? Facebook, TikTok, News, and no surprise here—family.
What I Pay Close Attention To
What and how they talk about what they stand for to their target audience, how it is received, and where they share specific messages.
Currently (as of writing this in August 2024), Trump has been focusing on race, age, and the "us vs. them" mentality. Harris has been focusing on a change for the future of America, reactive marketing (like "Kamala equals brat" and "femininomenon"—basically interacting with what is being said online), and calling her opponents "weird."
What I have learned most from this is what resonates with their target audience and how I can use it in future campaigns if it provides positive results for the candidate.
What I Have Learned So Far
What I underestimated was the power of reactive marketing tactics. I am seeing the effects on both sides of "brat," "femininomenon," and "weird." It appears to be making waves on all the mediums I mentioned earlier and is getting a ton of reach. The idea for this blog came from seeing it so much online. As an example, "Kamala is brat" was searched more than double the amount for "Trump assassination."
This means, when I am looking for inspiration for a new campaign, it can be useful to use an existing social media trend.
The power of symbols is another thing I was not expecting to be a major contributor to reach and interactions. For example, Trump wearing a bandage on his ear at the RNC and the people in the crowd also wearing a bandage in solidarity with the attempted assassination made huge waves online, both for and against the symbol. Either way, the publicity was heavily there.
When I am looking for imagery in campaigns, I can look for symbols that represent a product. Think clouds for a comfortable mattress.
Final Thoughts
While paying attention to politics can be draining on the soul (at least it is for me), and I am sure that I missed a lot because of the social media algorithms, I am confident that paying attention to the messages and what is being said will make you a better marketer, just like the top advertising agencies do every election.
However, if you want nothing to do with watching the political race or want more insights, I would highly recommend these books:
Oversubscribed: How to Get People Lining Up to Do Business with You by Daniel Priestley. You can read my review of the book here: The Ultimate Guide for Building & Growing Your Customer Demand.
This is Marketing by Seth Godin. This book provides valuable insights on how to create and lead a movement through marketing.
Lastly, on my TBR is Using Behavioral Science in Marketing by Nancy Harhut. This came highly recommended to me, specifically in the context of marketing for the presidential candidate.
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