The Bernie Sanders Brand

[SandersDem]

Note: To my horror, I posted this as a reply in GDP. Encouraged to make it an OP. So here it is. This has to do with the article about not underestimating Bernie Sanders based on his "brand"

(edited the title, formerly Marketing is my Profession)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


A little more food for thought.

Why do new brands emerge? Well for starters, in business if you are not willing or looking to constantly change and redefine yourself, eventually you are going to die. Why? Because as we learn more and people change, if we fail to tap into that not only through authentic and real change to products and/or services somebody else will.

After the fact it becomes obvious, but there are indicators along the way. In addition, other changes get harnessed and incorporated into messaging and product development. Think the Internet of Things and Social Media, changes that are having profound impacts not only on products but on services. Why wouldn't these have an impact on politics as usual too?

Today, we have more resources as individuals to do our homework on candidates and share that information quickly. Attacks can rapidly be debunked and lies exposed before a single vote is cast, almost up to the last minutes before polling opens. Records are broken wide open and examined by thousands, then tens of thousands and finally the tipping point is reached and the adoption of new ideas take hold.

We have evidence based on previous elections that third way thinking is failing...and failing rapidly. If we as a Political Party ignore this and continue to embrace this school of thought, we not only lose our Party's soul, but we risk breaking it in two. The opportunity to develop a new brand and philosophy emerges and as it does, we put ourselves in danger if we don't react and adopt NEW Thinking.

So what are the positives about Bernie Sanders Brand? First, it is striking how consistent he has been on the issues over the years, with a very real record demonstrating that honest brand of political philosophy whatever you wish to call it. That record is there, unlike many other candidates who have "evolved" over the years. It's great that they are evolving, but isn't a brand better when it is consistently good over time? The answer to that is yes, of course because quality matters. That is how brand trust is earned, not with the marketing, the marketing there is to supplement that because while in the short term it is very easy to put lipstick on a pig, over time people are just going to recognize a pig wearing lipstick.

Refusing to take PAC money. This is a BFD as a significant part of Bernie Sanders Brand. Why? Because voters trust that his decisions are not going to be influenced by large contributors. The ability to do this has only recently happened in the History of this Country. Why? It is a side effect of the development of the internet, the IoT and Social Media. It includes forums like this where intraparty people are challenged by new truths. Not taking PAC money helps cement Bernie's Brand as being Trustworthy.

Hunger. People are hungry for something different. People want to believe in honest politicians, but don't. Why that's because so many simply aren't. Something to consider as well is that people who would not normally vote for someone based on some ideals, may cross over simply because of the brand, the brand being personal and not Party, the brand of honesty and consistency over time. "At least I know what I am getting when I vote for Bernie, I am not sure what I am getting with those others" You can see that in some of Bernie's crossover appeal in some early Republican polling and that gives Bernie an edge going into the General.

Early Adopters. Early adopters are critical to new things emerging. These are the people who are open to trying something new first. They were the first to jump at buying ipods or getting the next best thing in a tablet. They want to know about it first and they are HARSH judges. If Bernie Sander's record did not back up his message, his early adopters would not last. And yet they have, and they (we) are vocal about good things. We have to tell our friends to check him out. We like what he has to say, his Brand has SUBSTANCE and it (he) does exactly what he says it does, consistently. That leads to the next point.

Quality. Long lasting brands do so because their product or service beats all others. If it is affordable, EVEN BETTER! Quality brands are not always first in the market, in fact many times they are much slower to market. Why? because they won't rush out inferior goods or services before they have them functioning at the highest level. Companies that do this traditionally lose market share early, but once their product is right and they release it to the public, the lesser quality brands that captured early share diminish quickly simply due to dissatisfaction and on the advice of those early adopters who tell their friends, Hey look what I got and how neat is this? So up next...

Early Polling. One of the clients I represent has not come to the market quickly with a very popular product. Competitors have been taking share in this segment of their business over the past 2 years. However, my client is just launching an item that will become the industry standard early next year and it is likely to be in every home in the US over the next 5 years. This product is technologically better than anything on the market now and it is cheaper. This company is a top ten worldwide brand. It has been consistent throughout its history of producing quality products and services and it is a top tier trustworthy brand. They have ZERO concern about being behind in share (POLLS) right now. Why? Because they know what they have is better than anything else and it is going to dominate the marketplace for many years to come. They know that there will always be a small segment of competition, competition is good...but nobody can touch them. This is why NO Supporter of Bernie Sanders should have any concern about the polling right now. So what should we be concerned about?

Early Adopters.

Let's go get them!

[Mnemosyne]

1. Bernie is not a brand and that is what makes him most appealing, imo. The Early Adopters may be the

key to saving this country and making it better. I have hope in them.

I did like your OP, SD. And understand what you mean. I feel the r's have had the best branding successes in government history. "Liberal" as an insult comes to mind first, many other examples if had time to think.

[SandersDem]

2. I get where you are coming from

Bernie is a very authentic legislator, one of the good ones, truly has this country at heart. I think many people understand that in the sense that he is not 'packaged'. In those terms think of him as honesty in labeling. He makes no false claims, etc... There is an entire branch about "personal branding" and I think some can take exception to that as it might imply to some dis ingenuousness, Bernie is anything but that. I think he probably recoils at a "personal branding" and he just wants to do what is right by the US.

I personally think that is a rarity and such a unique quality, he has my total support.

You are right about R's making Liberal such a dirty word, most of us call ourselves Progressives now. I am proud to call myself both. Among coworkers, I even tell them sure, I am a lefty or even a democratic socialist if they wish to label me that way.
That is where labels don't have much meaning with human beings, we know our own thinking, sometimes its hard to communicate so we accept certain labels. Those can be limiting to people, we are all multifaceted.

[Bernin4U]

3. In a way, he's more like an anti-brand

But at the same time, as soon as you start a campaign for anything, and you're mass-marketing it with a web site, slogans, bumper stickers, and various marketing, by definition you're pretty much creating a brand. Not that it's anything to be ashamed of.

[Bernin4U]

4. When you say "third way thinking is failing"

...it seems to suggest this was not always the case?

I say starting from "the middle" (aka "trying to please everyone&quot is nothing but placing yourself in a needlessly weak position, and always a recipe for disaster.

[SandersDem]

5. The Third Way

did get Clinton elected in 96. One can argue that Obama employed it in 2012 as well. I do NOT advocate the Third Way, it guts the soul of the Party.

[Bernin4U]

6. For sure Obama employed it in his governing

And it was entirely ineffective.

Agreed that Bill Clinton did run on it, as he was probably trying to present himself as Reagan Lite.

[Fawke Em]

7. Was this as a result of this article?

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/11/what-marketing-trends-say-about-bernie-sanderss-success/413959/

Detractors of Sanders’s campaign often write off his early popularity by contending that his supporters are little more than a grumbling and ultimately powerless economic minority. This group, according to critics, may make a lot of noise in the beginning, but it has neither the staying power nor the voter turnout to truly impact an election. But Sanders’s early success is far more indicative of a serious disillusionment with the American Dream and a discredited political mainstream. The cultural and economic context does not merely allow for Sanders’s popularity; rather; it gives grounds to his resonance.

Sanders’s message of economic and social fairness is resonating with Americans in exactly the same way that many successful brands do—by addressing societal tensions. Sanders, for example, tapped into a public that felt trapped after the Great Recession. Similarly, Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty succeeded by addressing the idealized portrayal of female beauty in popular culture that many women found unobtainable and demeaning. IBM has found success with its promise of making the world a Smarter Planet through technology, and Chipotle is appealing to those who may not agree with the practices of big agriculture.

SNIP

The media is flummoxed by the forces that are fueling Sanders’s widespread and growing support simply because it cannot see that it is not business as usual, just as executives at Nokia wrote off the threat of the iPhone by seizing on its apparent weaknesses and ignoring its inherent appeal.

The evidence suggests that, like other successful brands, Sanders has already built up a loyal following. Now, Sanders’s big challenge is to take his message and make it meaningful and salient to as many voters as possible. It’s a difficult task, but it may not be as insurmountable as the media would have us believe.

(I'm in marketing and public relations, too)