Everyone seems to have the current election on their minds right now. Even the pizza place in the neighborhood where I live— Dolly’s Pizza. It has a sign amongst the political corner street signs that says “Dolly for President”.
The sign truly tickled me, and then I started thinking about how business owners could take more cues from politicians. How can you promote your business like a politician, minus the mud slinging of course?
President Obama is credited with being the first candidate to effectively leverage social media, and possibly winning the election because of it. Polititians are strategic marketers that any business can learn from.
Politicians Speak Directly to Their Constituents
Politicians seem to have a knack for knowing how to talk to you like you’re the only person who ever existed. Even if there are a thousand other people in the room with flashing cameras and shouting reporters, they can directly focus all of their attention on you for however long your conversation lasts. It undoubtedly leaves a lasting impression.
In order to do this successfully, politicians have to know who the person they’re talking to is. Sometimes this involves having an assistant whispering information in their ear. Other times, it relies solely on the politician’s intuition. At all times, it includes knowing the profiles of their constituents.
Do you know who your potential customers are? One way of pinpointing this is to create an avatar of them. Then you can detail a biography of them by answering specific questions about them.
After you’ve pinpointed who your ideal customer is, you can start speaking directly to them. You can cater your marketing materials and write blogs with their specific interests in mind.
Politicians Travel to Where Their Constituents Are
Are you meeting your potential customers where they are, or are you expecting them to come to you? Many people shy away from things like asking their clients for referrals and creating a direct marketing campaign because they forget how people can respond to receiving personal attention. She came to my town; she cares about my vote.
Politicians Use Snail Mail
Most people dislike receiving snail mail that they haven’t requested. The reality is that it still equals results. Because people don’t receive as much of it as they used to, it gets their attention.
Politicians Have Campaign Managers
Do you need to confer with or hire an expert to have a successful campaign? If you’re new to creating campaigns, it might be a good idea. If your campaigns aren’t doing as well they used to, brushing up with someone in the know could be very helpful.
Politicians Utilize Campaign Callers
They know that collaboration can be key to a successful campaign. Even though they’re experts at relating to people, no single person can relate to every individual who might vote for them. If you involve the right kinds of people in your campaign, you might be surprised by how much more successful in can be. Having team members making calls to your prospects to learn more about them is a great relationship building method. Salespeople can also make calls and increase your revenue by selling on your behalf.
Polititians Advertise
Those street corner signs work extremely well because it keeps candidates names in the public eye consistently and inexpensively. If you can incorporate some political humor into your current marketing, why not go for it?
Observe the political season as a marketer instead of a voter and watch for inspiring marketing ideas you can apply to your own campaigns.
