Marketing Lessons from the Fray:
Why Barack Obama Got Elected
DISCLAIMER: We know that whenever we bring up politics things can get heated…so just to remind you: we’re here to talk marketing, not politics. Our purpose is to dissect the marketing lessons gleaned from this past election season and help you apply them in your business to protect and increase your revenue during the recession. Please don’t mistake the analysis below with an endorsement of any candidate whatsoever. Happy reading! — Jim
We just chose the leader of the free world.
And, as usual, it came down to one thing.
Marketing.
One campaign did it all right–and the other did it ALL WRONG. So what can you take away from all this? Here are five big lessons.
LESSON 1. Differentiate or DIE. Obama was a master of appearing “above it all”–branding himself as someone new and different. McCain, on the other hand, never effectively communicated his UPA (a Unique Purchase Appeal). In fact, at times McCain seemed more intent on convincing people of who he WASN’T (i.e. NOT Bush and NOT Obama) than who he WAS and what he had to offer. That’s no way to get people motivated enough to take action–whether it’s pulling a lever in a voting booth or plunking down their credit card to buy more of what you’ve got to sell.
2. Sell the Sizzle, not the Steak. If you’ve ever wondered whether that old truism still holds water, look no further than the Obama campaign for proof. Obama did a brilliant job of selling people on his ideas by clearly articulating the benefits (i.e. “hope and change”) of his presidency…despite the fact that many of the details on exactly HOW he was going to accomplish it (i.e. the “steak”) remained fuzzy.
3. Long-format marketing works. In an unprecedented move by a major political candidate, Obama levereaged the infomercial as a way to connect with the American people. Instead of 30 second soundbites, he spent half an hour explaining the problems the country faced, and what he would do to solve them. He recongized the truth that research has told us for years: when it comes to getting a decision, longer still out-pulls shorter.
Turns out, you really DO have an attention span. ‘Magine that!
4. Small Commitments = Big Success (or, use a sales funnel). Obama focused on getting small contributions from millions of Americans–as opposed to large contributions from a handful of elite. Not only did this allow him to shatter fundraising records, it served one more crucial purpose. By getting people to participate with their pocketbooks–even in the smallest way possible–Obama practically GUARANTEED those people would turn up and vote. You can do the same thing by getting your customers and prospects to make smaller purchases on their way to larger and more frequent purchases.
5. Use Social Psychology. Obama utilized social media and grass-roots marketing to reach voters exactly where they’re most easily influenced: by the people around them. You can do the same through judicious use of testimonials, referral incentive programs, and other strategies that make people see that others have been successful solving their problems with your product or service.
So what are your observations? Marketing lessons you pulled out from the political season this time around?
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Comments
Obama’s success only proves that you really CAN sell crap and win when you apply the right marketing strategies. Imagine what a blessing marketing can be when you are actually peddaling something of value!
B
Hahahaha, trying to spark some controversy, I see.
Whatever you think of Obama’s policies, you’ve got to admit, he did a heckuva job marketing himself over the past few months. And we can all learn a lot from it!
An interesting analysis, most of which I agree with, in general terms, although I also admit to being a little outside the main spectrum of marketing targets (I studied advertising and marketing for a while, so my awareness of some of the tricks of the trade makes them a little less useful on me). Point 1–the fact that McCain spent so much time talking about not being Bush or Obama, and NOT talking about what he was going to do, was one of the major factors why I didn’t vote for him (I didn’t vote for Obama either…which leads to–) Point 2–the fact that Obama had all of these ideas of what he wanted to accomplish, but no details on how he intended to do it, made him just another politician to me…which meant he didn’t get my vote (this is the first election, ever, that I’ve voted an ideology instead of a candidate). Point 3–I thought it was a good idea, but I also thought it would have been more effective earlier in the process. By the time the Obama-mercial aired, I was sick of the campaign and I didn’t care what he had to say. Points 4 and 5, I have to agree unconditionally…he did it better than anyone else.
This post is somewhat late, but a very important point that was missed is TIMING. Now Pres Obama brought a message of change to the American public that they desperately needed. It could have been just about any change actually, but that’s another debate. That’s exactly what marketing and sales are quite often. Getting your message to your customer or potential customer when they are needing a solution. Which is why you must contantly keep your message (company) in their presence.
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