Obama Online - the Future of Political Campaigns

Image by Getty Images via DaylifeLove him or hate him, Barak Obama has made history, and it wouldn't have happened without the internet and social media.

Obama's grassroots online fund raising pulled together over 1.5 million donors and outperformed the Clinton Democratic machine. His online supporters have created more than 30,000 events to support him. The campaign used wikis to organize precinct captains, created counter viral e-mail campaigns to offset anonymous smears questioning his faith and patriotism. They solicited letters from online supporters to help lobby undecided super delegates, and the campaign constantly updated it's YouTube page to contain the latest speeches and support videos, like the "yes we can" video produced by will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas after he was inspired by an Obama speech in New Hampshire.

A charismatic personality like Obama's lends itself to the online space, but much of the fervor has been spurred on by the power of social/viral content sharing. It's a new age in politics - the ones who learn how to do it right are the leaders of tomorrow.

What do you think? Could Barak Obama have won the Democratic nomination without the internet? Can McCain stop him without a powerful online counter punch?

Thanks to Sarah Lai Stirland, Wired Blog Network for great details for this post: http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/06/obama-propelled.html

Prince vs. Radiohead - You Gotta GIve to Get

I just read a post with a great socal media lesson: http://mashable.com/2008/05/30/prince-radiohead/#comment-1051978

Prince (you remember, the little purple fellow) is clamping down on every unlicensed use of his name, likeness and music anywhere he can find it online. Among other recent absurdities, he recently leveraged the Digital Millenium Copyright Act to have a family remove an online video of their 18-month old dancing to his 1980's hit "Let's Go Crazy."

At the far end of the spectrum, the band Radiohead has been doing everything they can to give away their music. In October '07 they announced that a fully digital version of their new album would be available online for whatever anyone wanted to pay for it - name your price. $25? 25¢? whatever you think its worth. They also developed a widget for fans to use on their social media pages - to play/broadcast Radiohead songs, videos, it's all fair game.

Upon its commercial release in Jan 08, the new Radiohead album debuted in the #1 slot on the Billboard charts.

Now, it's not surprising that someone like Prince who makes a living off of his name and music might overreact in trying to protect it. The fascinating thing is just how counter-productive that sort of behavior is in the face of today's social media.

Radiohead has a smash success on their hands because they have figured out how to fan the flames of social media by giving away what they ultimately aim to sell - while people like Prince seem hell bent on dousing fans with cold water.

WARNING: The linked post on MASHABLE contains an embedded video of Prince performing the Radiohead song "Creep." And it's...well...let's just say "creepy."

Social Media Lunch and Learn

We just had a good presentation at the agency about social media and its application to our industry and client base. Lots of good information was shared and interesting some ideas tossed around. A few notables for your consideration...more than 44% of the population in the U.S. are using some form of social media at least monthly - Attention marketers... it is NOT just the kids.

Media mogul Rupert Murdoch was quoted in Wired Magazine as saying "To find something comparable, you have to go back 500 years to the printing press, the birthplace of mass media… Technology is shifting power away from the editors, the publishers, the establishment, the media elite. Now it’s the people who are taking control."

We recently had an interesting social media experience with our Bonus Zone program for our client Brunswick. Our opt-in coupon program propelled Parker Bohn III into the Motel 6 Rolls to Riches torunament where he took first prize and won $150,000. Many thanks to a bunch of loyal Brunswick bowlers for giving him the opportunity!

With the pace of change in this industry, we should be evaluating our new media IQ every quarter. Are we making the progress we should be?