Creating A Brand To Become President

Whether you are a fan of politics or prefer to stay on the side lines, the race for the presidency has always been about strategy and timing. This election has broken many barriers, but one thing for certain is that both candidates have established a presidential brand.

Trump was quickest to brand the phrase, “Make America Great Again,” which the public latched onto after it was said during one of his speeches. Hillary, at the time, had no tagline, phrase, or slogan when this launched. Trump put this single statement on shirts, signs and hats to start his movement.

Another Trump brand came so subtle but is always present, the American Flag pin. Hillary ignored the patriotism and wore one color suits. The public didn’t seem to care.

Hillary on the other hand, later incorporated an “H” with an arrow on it. It looks like a FedEx or hospital sign as many have tweeted. Milton Glaser of I “heart” NY fame, designed this logo. Of course it symbolizes a shift to the right. Extremely simple in design, but maybe done on purpose for our society. The difference between Hillary and Trump on this subject is Hillary developed a logo and Trump developed a phrase. Neither are wrong, and both can be effective when used properly.

But what is the cost these days for a media buy to become President? Here the candidates have two different philosophies. Hillary has spent $440 million to get her word out, negative to Trump or positive to the Democrats. Trump has spent $160 million. A far cry from Hillary’s budget. In Ohio, she spent $53 million alone.

Sometimes spending so much can prove negative when it’s all you see. So this leads to the question, is this effective? I would say that with Trump’s campaign having stopped spending and the polls reflecting a near tie going into election Tuesday, prove you don’t have to spend that kind of money to have momentum.

Trump believes in the old fashion way of advertising. He goes around, he makes speeches, and he talks to reporters. He also has 12,000,000 people following him on Facebook, while Clintons has a mere 8,000,000. Her social media outreach is not where she believes her time should be spent. Trump has also used the media to his advantage. It’s estimated by the New York Times that Trump got over 2 billion dollars of free airtime.

Hillary on the other hand chose to be more presidential during the debates by not interrupting Trump. He interrupted her 18 times in one debate which gave him more airtime. It’s all about minutes and exposure. But her patience was seen as being more compassionate.

The public wants a brand they can trust. Today, our two United State candidates do not garner that image. They are both trying to overcome this by working the system differently. Tuesday will certainly tell us which brand wins.

Does your brand need a refresh? Sign up for a free branding consultation with the experts at Stevens & Tate Marketing.