Campaigns in the Digital Arena: How Presidential Candidates Use Modern Marketing Tactics to Win Votes

giuliapedrinivisio
Jun 4
5 min read

Author: Giulia Pedrini

Marketing means Communication

Nowadays everything we say and how we say it communicates a message. Anyone involved in marketing knows this well. Every step of the marketing strategy is decisive for the sale of a product, even more if the object is a person. This is why election marketing specialists have a fundamental task: to create a connection between the candidate and the citizens through a story.

Since the 1950s, political marketing has become increasingly important. From the historical propaganda, that spread a message, to the modern marketing tactics based on storytelling. This is why the election marketing expert must precisely analyse the target audience of the political message. The story that marketing tells must be able to capture the voters.

Person holding a "Count Every Vote" sign, with blurred people in the background, one holding a megaphone. Gray wall, winter clothing. Energetic mood.

Political Marketing Today, Modern Marketing Tactics

As I anticipated, the advent of the digital age has also had consequences for political marketing. For example, communication through social media has become a portrait of the values that a candidate represents. Therefore, the image that a political figure has on social media is central to the election campaign.

From the traditional marketing of TV or radio commercials, billboards and flyers, the world has moved on to social media, online advertising, websites and newsletters. Digital marketing targets the citizen as an individual, not as a member of a group of voters. As a result, the connection between candidate and voter becomes very powerful in both senses. The candidate must study the voter in detail; the voter must know the candidate and decide to trust him/her.

Marketing based on the person as an individual suggests the necessity of analysing data before studying a strategy. In fact, politics are increasingly using voter selection processes, called political micro-targeting. These procedures make it possible to identify voters' interests in order to construct a personalised political message.

The Personalised Message

The political marketing strategy must be able to reach the voters and this is possible through various marketing methods:

Social Media Advertising (targeted ads, viral content, influencer engagement)

Thanks to social media, it is possible to communicate directly with the identified target group at any time, and to do politics. Voters notice above all that the page is coherent with the values of the candidate in all its components: profile photo, biography, links, posts, reel, etc. Some of the most used social media are Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Twitter

Email Marketing (fundraising campaigns, customised voter outreach)

The newsletter has proven to be a tool that can constantly update the voter. In fact, emails are used to notify the public on campaign activities, fundraising, etc.

Content Plan (blogs, videos and storytelling)

It becomes crucial for the candidate to create content that is representative of values, simple, effective and identifiable by the voting public. Likewise, it is necessary to have a slogan that will remain in the voter's mind.

SEO and Search Ads

Besides the importance of having an updated and clear website, it must also rank effectively in searches. Furthermore, it is important that the site has visibility, with the objective of making the candidate appear distinctive.

Text Messaging Campaigns

Political communication should not only be direct and rapid, but should appeal to people's pain points, to the most discussed themes.

Smartphone screen displaying social media apps like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Bright icons on a dark background.

Psychological Triggers in the Marketing Campaign

Voters are not machines, they are people and are also made up of emotions, fears and hopes that guide their choices. Consequently, it is not completely predictable what a voter will choose. But a good political marketing strategy should be able to accurately analyse voters. Knowing the voters allows the candidate to use their public's emotions to build a relationship of trust with them.

Unfortunately, this is not enough, because voters are also conditioned by other factors such as the following:

social thinking about the candidate
the influencer who vote for the candidate
the content generated by the candidate
the storytelling of the candidate
political correctness

Everything that influences voters (who are consumers of a service) is studied by neuromarketing. Neuromarketing explores why people sometimes behave irrationally and unconsciously. This is possible by combining marketing, psychological science and neurology. This science permits the discovery of the emotional part of our brain that influences our behaviour.

Political Marketing in Practice

The recent US elections, in which Donald Trump and Kamala Harris faced each other, give us an excellent example of what political marketing does. Kamala Harris, after Biden's retirement, replaced him in the Democratic campaign. Donald Trump played all his best cards in a campaign designed for Republican voters.

As a result, Trump successfully segmented the market to focus on the concerns and aspirations of electoral consumers. Success was possible because the Republican team focused on each individual voter and not on the generic group.

In contrast, Harris chose a much “quieter” and less risky marketing strategy. This strategy took the candidate away from her constituents. Like when she refused to participate in one of the world's most popular podcasts, The Joe Rogan Experience. This episode, combined with the lack of coherency in her message, led Harris to focus on her image and not on her relationship with her audience.

Trump with his storytelling has become a popular idol, transmitting authenticity, empathy and emotional connection with his supporters. Secure in his image,

Trump has managed to exploit it by constructing iconic moments that people will not forget. For instance, it went viral when the president showed himself to the public while working at a McDonald's. In addition, Trump has used social media well, from his arrival on TikTok to images created with artificial intelligence.

Harris, on the other hand, remained locked into traditional marketing tools, which did not allow her to reach voters on social media. Moreover, Harris, as the successor to Biden's campaign, failed to create her own political message.

In political marketing, it is important to remember that:

voters are consumers
campaigns are products
perfection distances the audience
authenticity is rewarded and creates connection

Dark Side of Marketing

In the previous paragraphs, we talked about neuromarketing. Neuromarketing studies our behaviour in order to build effective marketing communication. This certainly has positive sides such as a greater awareness of consumer needs and desires. But there are also many downsides, such as a possible violation of the privacy of personal data or the risk of persuasion becoming manipulation.

With respect to privacy, new consumer protection rules have been introduced in recent years. In fact, in order to set in action any marketing strategy, including political marketing, it is necessary to have the consent of the target audience. This is necessary because the data that are collected can also be sold to third parties, who might investigate them.

Marketing means Future

In conclusion, as we have seen, the world has changed significantly in recent years and people along with it. This has also influenced marketing and politics, which must adapt to a new way of communicating. A way that no longer directs to a group of people (mass marketing), but to individuals as individuals. This makes people feel like the centre of attention for political candidates, who use this to create a connection with their voters.

People want to be heard, and what better way than to create a political programme that puts their needs and wishes at the centre? There is nothing that has more impact and marketing specialists know this well. Especially those who work for politics and so the people's future.