Why Change works for Obama but not for Hillary
Obama was brilliant when he chose the word “change” as the theme of his campaign. While Hillary’s theme of “experience” is also effective, it is not nearly as effective as “change.” “Hillary Clinton realized her mistake and jumped on the change bandwagon. Her new theme: ‘Countdown to change.’”
“It’s too late. Obama has pre-empted the change idea. A typical example is the cover of the Jan. 14 issue of Newsweek with a picture of Barack Obama and the words “Our time for change has come,” wrote Al Ries in Advertising Age. And what was John Edwards’ theme? Who knows??
It shows how important a theme, a big idea, a word association can be to a success of a candidate or any other brand. “A great slogan not only connects with consumers, it can help keep everybody in the organization focused,” Ries says. And I have to agree. I believe public relations is most effective when every plan, every strategy and every tactical move are developed with that slogan or theme in mind. And this big idea has to be consistent. Going back to politics, I don’t think it helped Hillary or Romney to suddenly after Iowa start talking about change. It was not consistent with their previous messaging – they did not seem authentic.
Ries concludes: “The three most important rules of advertising used to be: Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Today, we seem to have forgotten these rules.” And what should the three most important rules of PR be? Repetition, repetition, repetition.
whydidyoudoit said,
February 9, 2008 at 6:11 pm
According to the demographics, I should be voting for Hillary Clinton: I’m a white, 60-year-old, highly educated woman from the Northeast. But I’m voting for Obama. I’ve waited all my life for a viable woman candidate for the presidency, but this is not the right woman. I want a woman of the highest ability and virtue, who would serve as a glorious role model to all young women. Hillary Clinton is not that woman.
She rode into power with her husband, and together they’ve acquired a long and seriously flawed history of self-serving and secretive financial and political dealings. The most cursory research will prove that true. She started out her political life supporting the racist Barry Goldwater. She is as comfortable with deception and trickery as George Bush. When I hear woman saying, “Oh, but that’s how you get things done in Washington,” I literally cringe.
I am passionately supporting Barack Obama. He can beat the Republicans; she cannot. Obama has attracted Independents and even Republicans to his camp, and in a general election they would vote for him, but not for Clinton. Clinton voted for the war, and has never apologized for it. Obama has spoken out against it from the beginning. Obama brings us hope–and not just that. Take a serious look at his ideas and experience.
Please, I beg of you, Sisters young and old: wait for the right woman. Then we can be proud.
Diane Wald