How Branding Sold America on Obama

[pollyannaish]

Sultan Knish:

What's the difference between a president and a can of Pepsi? When it comes to winning elections, the answer is very little. The 2008 election was not about issues, it was about image. Not just the image of the candidate, but the image of his brand.

 

 

In marketing terms, a brand is not just a label, it's the way that the customer is meant to perceive the product and interact with it. Take the can of Pepsi. It doesn't matter what's actually in the can, you don't have access to the full list of ingredients anyway. And if you did, it would take extensive research to even make sense of them. It's not even about how the actual soda tastes. That matters, but not very much. All that really matters is how the customer perceives the brand. It's not about the content. It's only about how people view the brand.

 

From a marketing standpoint, it's not what the product is, but how people perceive it in relation to themselves. This is an entirely image based approach, but a common one now. What that means is, is this a brand I want to be associated with. Do I want to be seen drinking this can of Pepsi? Is this a brand that makes me feel good about myself? Does it enhance my self-image?

 

The branding of American politics worked the same way. Obama was not sold as a set of positions and a track record, but as a brand. A brand that people were encouraged to feel enthusiastic about or at least comfortable with, using the same techniques that were used to sell soft drinks. Cheerful posters, meaninglessly simple slogans, celebrities, theme songs, merchandise, social media, viral videos, fonts, color schemes, logos and everything else that goes into pushing a billion dollar product from the shelves to the kitchen.

 

 

Worth your time.

[pollyannaish]

I've been looking for an article like this for a long time. I have been in marketing for a good portion of my professional life and this is the best explanation of what happened in the last election I have seen.

 

People were tired of what had happened in the previous years—we had war fatigue, we were tired, there was a huge financial ditch. Along came a carefully package, perfectly presented candidate that made you feel terrific about yourself for choosing it and promised to solve ALL of your problems. The ultimate marketing campaign. The vegemeatavitamin of politics.

 

And we got exactly that...great packaging and the same old product problems. We were snookered.

 

I hope America is now in the mood for a good product out of one of those bulk bins at the grocery store. It will sure cost less and be at least as effective.

[Valin]