Democratic Primaries
In reply to the discussion: We're not voting for Bernie [View all]Apollo Zeus
(251 posts)I'm frequently misunderstood because I am obsessed with strategy. My focus on what works and what doesn't often puts me at odds with those who are closer to cheerleader-mode even though we all want to win.
In marketing/advertising there are two types of campaigns: brand and offer. A brand campaign says simply 'Coke is better than Pepsi' or 'It's not just a car, it's a ___(brand name here, eg. BMW)____. Brand campaigns are designed to raise the price that consumers are willing to pay for a given product because of the reputation of the company behind the logo/label on it. Brand campaigns are increasingly ineffective and can be counterproductive when they set off a person's bullshit detector. Brand campaigns are very expensive and it's hard to measure their impact in detail so they tend to be favored by high margin products like cosmetics, high end booze and clothing, or by companies whose reputation is damaged like BP, Boeing and all the others that advertise during, for example, Sunday morning news shows
Offer campaigns say things like "Get $20,000 off a BMW this week" or "Pepsi gives you 12oz for the same price as 6oz of Coca-cola." Offer is king in the internet age because people are increasingly cynical and cash-strapped.
Bernie's campaign is offer -- M4A, $15/hr, etc. Specific offers.
A brand campaign can run against an opposing brand campaign and offer can compete with offer but a brand campaign can't stop an opposing offer campaign. Brand doesn't close the deal. Any effective brand campaign has to be paired with offer. You can create the impression of a great brand but you can't cash in on that without offer. On the other hand an offer campaign can run without a brand campaign, especially in a world where big brands are increasingly seen as too slick and manipulative to trust.
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided