Politics was never easy; especially in today’s dynamic political world, it’s more polarizing than ever. This means there are no second chances when it comes to winning an election.
Every candidate works hard and goes above & beyond to win voters’ trust, but still, they don’t do it efficiently. Why? Because they need a more interactive approach to persuade people in a saturated political world.
But luckily, there is one thing that can help candidates win. Can you guess it? Well, it’s not that hard!
Branding. Yes, we are pointing out branding techniques that helped Barack Obama win presidential elections over other strong candidates.
Design now plays a more crucial role in how politicians are chosen for the election and what’s setting them apart from the crowd. Without a good design or branding, it’s hard to communicate your message.
So, today we have come up with such powerful branding campaigns launched by political parties to win elections and gain incredible support from their constituents.
Obama’s Branding Campaign That Revolutionized Politics in 2008:
Did you know Barack Obama won the title of “Ad Age Marketer of the year 2008” for his exceptional branding campaign?
That was incredible because it was the first time a politician wins such kind of award. Though every candidate applied some marketing strategies to win elections, the way Obama introduced his message and used branding techniques, was out of this world!
By implementing a powerful and innovative marketing strategy, he revolutionized the entire branding campaign. He transformed himself from an unknown political figure to a worldwide sensation when the election started in 2008.
His messages for the world like, “hope and change”, as well as “post-partisanship”, won the hearts of frustrated Americans who were already suffering from the failed policies of Bush.
His motivational and inspirational speeches inspired a nation to the core and made them ready for a fresh leader prepared to solve the unpredictable problems of the twenty-first century.
He used online and social media tools and involved millions of supporters online for his campaign, which slowly ignited a movement never witnessed before in America.
Every branding element played a vital role in Obama’s campaign, but the word “Hope”, his logo, and consistent use of branding techniques strengthen the overall message of his campaign.
Read More : 5 Best Political Website Designs to Use as Inspirations in 2022.
Hillary Clinton’s Simple Yet Innovative Logo Won Several Hearts:
As compared to Barack Obama’s campaign logo, the logo of Hillary Clinton was greeted with extreme ridicule and sarcasm when it was first released.
The reason is? The logo was extremely simple. It was a plain blue H that also had a crossbar turned into a red arrow and pointed to the Right.
Many people hated the logo, literally. The idea was centered around that this logo is too simple and plain. It’s not conveying anything. Even a 4th-grade child could easily draw it.
The hate didn’t prevail much until the designer Beirut appeared and shared his idea behind the simple logo. He said, “I wanted something very simple that a first grader could easily draw .”
Throughout her campaign, the logo’s perception was transformed. Sometimes it appeared in rainbow colors, sometimes a picture of Hillary and her son, while sometimes random views and sceneries. Clinton stood the ground all around and never cared about the criticism.
With time, the logo becomes the identity of her campaign. Every time people see a change in H, they instantly get reminded that it’s about Hillary Clinton.
Haters gonna hate, but with consistent use of branding, innovative idea, and time, the logo won the hearts of several people eventually.
Pakistan Tehreek Insaf’s Branding- How They Won the Best Political Advertising Campaign of the year award?
Who isn’t aware of the most popular political party Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI)?
Founded by the former cricketer Imran Khan, the party touched the heights of success even in its initial years. How? The charismatic personality of Imran Khan, his extraordinary communication skills, high qualification and status, and powerful goals were good enough to highlight him as the most trustable politician and leader.
However, his robust branding campaigns and excessive use of Twitter led PTI to win the best Political Advertising Campaign of the year award at the Pakistan Advertisers Society (PAS) Awards. That was the Biggest Advertising Award of Pakistan that won against PMLN in that category.
His intentions to create “Naya Pakistan” were so genuinely amazing that led him to the big victory in 2018 and Imran Khan won the presidential elections with 16,903,702 votes.
Some popular slogans of PTI including, “Tabdeeli aaye gi”, “Vote for change, vote for Naya Pakistan”, and “Do nai, aik Pakistan” didn’t only win the hearts of the nation but also helped them win their trust and confidence.
In fact, the logo created by the PTI team advocated “Justice, humanity, and self-esteem” that further touched every Pakistani on a sentimental level, and they started to believe everything the leader said!
Not only a logo, but PTI flags, and the power of his symbolic bat added more strength to his message that involved both cricket players and the common public in his campaign.
Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” On a Hat Was a Strong Political Strategy:
The best thing about today’s growing era is political branding isn’t only limited to logos, flags, speeches, and slogans. It has been successfully expanded to articles like clothing, t-shirts, and even hats to promote a strong message.
Here we would love to mention the example of former American president Donald Trump who used the “Make America Great Again” slogan on a red hat.
Michael Beirut once noted that the consistent use of the hat has been turning into a strong political branding element.
It’s something that you can associate with hard work. As hat is a wearable object, it seems highly visible as well as a symbol of commitment. The reason for choosing this strategy is to promote the message and make it so common that everybody loves to follow the same style.
The power of bold capitalized white letters against the stark red background ultimately creates a spark and makes your personality dominant. His strategy proved incredibly effective and persuasive for all his voters and supporters.
Read More : If You are a Politician, Get Ready to Answer These Questions by Public.
Bernie Sanders Who Engaged People Virtually and Drew 4.4 million Viewers:
After introducing new social distancing rules, campaigners and candidates were forced to find out some news to advertise their political brand.
By keeping this thing in mind, Bernie Sanders planned to launch its first virtual rally. He managed to live-stream it on multiple channels such as Facebook, Periscope, and Twitch.
Besides giving his campaign message, he also featured pre-recorded performances of Neil Young, Jim James, and other musicians. Not only that, but the meeting also included the recordings of Nina Turner, Philip Agnews, and many more.
In the end, Bernie Sanders talked about his plan of improving the medicine and healthcare facility of the country. The objective was to reach a group of massive voters and supporters while following social distancing. His meeting and all the strategy proved extremely helpful that he drew 4.4 million viewers for all the events.
The Colorful and Visually Appealing Style of Ocasio Helped Her to Win Election:
Here’s another incredible example of a branding campaign launched by Alexandria Ocasio- Cortez. The 28 years old Ocasio ran against Joe Crowley for New York’s 14th Congressional District.
She ran an outstanding branding campaign. Her visually appealing bold poster design is a real example of her campaign. She preferred to use bold and unique choices with yellow, purple, and other shades. But her competitor chose something more traditional in red, white, and blue.
Campaign colors used by Ocasio
Campaign colors used by Crowley:
See the difference. Her color choices visually differentiated her and appeared more powerful than her opponents. The colorful, unique, and innovative style of Ocasio set her apart from the opponent and all the campaign materials defiantly stepped her outside the boundaries.
Not only that, but she constantly used Instagram and used its live-streaming features to connect with her audience and engage them in effective ways.
Kamala Harris’s Branding Campaign: Tough, Principled, and Fearless
If you have the least ideas about who Kamala Harris is, what does she stand for? Then look at her logo. She is tough, principled, and fearless.
Well, yes, it’s not the most artistic and brilliant design, but the logo effectively communicates everything about her. You can see the wordmark features both her name as well as the campaign slogan written in red and indigo letters.
This leads the slogan to get associated or linked to her name and make it memorable. Unlike simple text lines and visually similar boxes in the logo, Kamala Harris logo looks a bit different as it’s in proper shape. The word arrangement in bold letters is making a shape, which makes her design stand out among others.
Well, she didn’t win awards for her groundbreaking design, but her website, slogan, and logo are everything she wants to convey to the audience, which helped her win unlimited votes and support for her campaign.
To Conclude:
Politics is not for the faint-hearted. It involves lots of changes, complications, and challenges. You have to be prepared for every phase and strategy considered by your opponents. However, the trick is- to implement powerful branding!
That’s the only thing that can help your party create its own identity. The use of colors, slogans, and every element play a very crucial role in establishing your identity. If you are a politician and want to earn more name, fame, votes, and support, follow the above examples of branding and show the world how powerful you are!
If you are looking for a good marketing agency for the promotion of your Political Party please do visit us for the professional services.
Read More 7 Essential Marketing Tips for Political Campaigning.
