Obama-mania has been sweeping the world for two years now, in what seems to be the longest Presidential campaign in the US, with intensity heating up from the Democratic primary until the Presidential win. Advertisers can learn a lot from the Obama win and how it was achieved from the ground up.
1. Sticking to one message.
Brands which talk different messages are unclear to its target consumers. It can even be confusing to some which may cause people to tune out. But not Obama. Ever since he announced his presidential bid in 2006, he stood for the platform of change. After winning the Democratic nomination, he never failed to hammer his message of change to America.
Some say that this was even used as a beer game in colleges and youth groups. Whenever they hear Obama say "change" in debates or speeches, they drank beer or a shot of alcohol. I bet a lot got drunk during the debates. This proves that the message of change did reach his intended audience, in more ways than one.
2. Know the target market.
Obama and his team knew which niche would give him the win. With Hillary owning most of the support, backing of institutions, lobbyist and politicians, Obama had no choice but to start the campaign from the ground up. He made maximum use of the internet and social networking sites to make himself known to the youth and disenfranchised. He was also able to get donations online, amounting to over $600 million dollar, more than the domestic take of Titanic in 1997! With this money, he outvoiced McCain in swing states and even bought a 30-minute infommercial a week before elections.
3. Firm grasp of the brand identity.
In early 2006, Barack Hussein Obama would be the most unlikely name to be a Presidential candidate, let alone win an election. But Obama knew who he was. From a multi-racial background, he started from the ground up, taking up loans to go to school. His experience as a community organizer made it easy for him to adopt a ground-up campaign theme. He also wears his African-American multi-racial heritage with pride, making his road to the White House historic.
4. Maximum use of available resources.
Aside from tapping internet resources, Obama had a lot of volunteers on the ground to literally knock on doors and call on undecided voters to explain the issues and convince them to vote for Obama. His campaign made strategic ad placements, ensured that his convention appearance, from the speeches to the set, appears presidential.
5. Attacking critics head on.
PR companies can sure learn from how Obama takes advantage of positive media coverage and how he reacts from attacks. For instance, when some sectors were attacking him on race, Obama made the historic speech on race. He rebutted Mc Cain's attacks during the debates, while maintaining his being "presidential," which made Mc Cain look like an attack dog with no bark.
This might give the impression that I am an Obama fan. You're right. I am also scared for him because trust Americans to give a black man the worst job in the world. He's got the weight on the whole world on his shoulders. Good luck, Mr. President-Elect. You are going to need it!
