Folks in my profession usually avoid open political discussion. Let’s just say that it’s somewhat less that helpful to have any easily identified ideology plant its jackbooted heel smack in the middle of your creative objectivity.

 

Given the nature of this year’s political coverage, it’s been a hard topic for me to avoid. I have to admit I’m a bit awed by constant efforts to define and then redefine candidate “brands” right out in the open. I mean, how much disrespect to they think their audience will take?

 

It’s been an amazing thing to witness. I’ve listened to campaign strategists and journalists offer varying opinions about which candidate identity best paces the electorate’s mood at any given moment. All this open discussion of artifice and spin makes the effort that my clients and I put into being discrete about marketing strategies and positioning seem foolish. When I hear long time political consultant Bob Shrum say, “that’s the Hillary she should be,” I simply have to laugh out loud. Granted, he’s not flogging for any particular candidate this round, but the comment is representative of the overall rhetoric.

 

These folks actually seem to think that a brand is something that you build. No wonder they’re getting so frustrated. If you’ve watched the process carefully, you eventually learn that proactive attempts to build a brand succeed about as often as, well, nation building. Every move you make has unintended results that defy anticipation. You see, whether you’re a candidate or a corporation, markets slap a brand on you based on who they think you are and how you deliver value not who you try to look like, what you say or promise to do.

 

The fact is, the target for most branding efforts fail because the company (or candidate) fails to match expectations to reality. The market uses the impressions you offer to test the reality. A strong brand (and subsequent sale) results when the perception you craft matches the experience you deliver. Wallowing around in the realm of perception alone is usually about as effective as putting makeup on a pig.