Nearly one year ago, I wrote a post called “Branding a President.” It breaks down how a campaign starts, evolves and eventually ends with branding. At the time it was written, the presidential outcome was unknown. Today, we know a branding virtuoso sits in the White House. Just for grins, here’s the February 7, 2008 post if you’d care to revisit it:
Campaigning to be president of the United States is no small feat. You have to become a household name with 300 million Americans over a 12-month period. How do the candidates do it? They employ the same tactics that Disney, Coke-a-Cola and Ford use. They build a brand.
If you look at the candidates’ campaigns, you’ll find all the basics of branding. Positioning statements, Unique Value Propositions (UVP) and taglines. At the beginning of the race it’s about establishing credibility, so the positioning statement is key. Who are you and what do you stand for? Over time, and with enough marketing dollars, their message begins to permeate public awareness.
Once they gain momentum and see what resonates with the citizens, they massage that message. It gets whittled down to the Unique Value Proposition — the differentiating factor between one candidate and another. Hillary Clinton stumps on 35 years experience in Washington while Mitt Romney believes an outsider will bring fresh perspective. Barak Obama stands for change while John McCain continues the good fight against terrorism.
As the primaries close in, the candidates know an elevator pitch is too long to capture the hearts and minds of America. They need something short and sweet — a slogan. Or as it’s called in branding speak — the tagline. Their UVP gets so distilled, you hear Clinton stumping “Solutions For America” while Obama urges us to”Stand for Change.” Romney says “Washington is Broken” and McCain advocates “Common Sense Conservatism.” It’s easy to remember 3-5 words, isn’t it?
In November 2008, we’ll find out which candidate branded themselves a winner. Then the real test begins. Can they deliver on their brand promise?
Only time will tell.
It can be argued that President Obama has one of the most challenging beginnings of any president in our history. He ran a smart campaign. Now he has use those smarts to turn our country around. Some of those same branding techniques used in his campaign like grassroots viral marketing, mobile messaging and “brand ambassadors” uniting groups to act will be more important than ever. It’s time to mobilize America again.
May the winds of change seed our land with the changes we seek — goodwill, prosperity and growth. Good luck Mr. President.
