The New York Times estimates that Donald Trump has received nearly $2 billion in free media coverage by being unapologetic and entertaining on social media. Let’s call his tone of voice “authentic”, and that authenticity happens to be a major reason many voters pledge their support for Trump.
Meanwhile, Hilary Clinton took to the mock celebrity interview show “Between Two Ferns” with Zach Galifianakis to bring a dose of satire and comedy to the heated cultural moment we currently face. In fact, the show’s producer Scott Aukerman said “She really set us at ease early on by being so game to do it… and the first few jokes she laughed really loud at, so we had to reset.”
If you missed that interview. Watch it here.
This is historical: Our Presidential Candidates are open. Candid. Accessible. Relatable. Human. And unfiltered.
President Obama was the first president to successfully leverage social media before it became as ubiquitous as it is today. But his social campaign was far from the estimated social media spend of close to $1 billion in this election. And far less entertaining, might we add.
Donald Trump turned to Snapchat to launch a nationwide filter on Snapchat this past Monday, making him the first candidate to sponsor a political filter available nationwide. Snapchat users have the option to take selfies / photos with a picture frame design that reads “Debate Day: Donald J. Trump vs. Crooked Hillary” before sharing with friends.
My, how campaigns have changed. Kellan Terry, a data analyst for Brandwatch, which measures social media reaction said “all conventional wisdom is gone.” The new age of campaigning is upon us, and the world is watching.
Big Data and social media won Monday night’s debate. The heated (and somewhat uncomfortable—cough, sniffle) debate provoked an outpouring of political thoughts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and, of course, Snapchat. All Social channels saw a spike average of 25% user engagement during the debate and #Clinton and #Trump each had over 1,300,000 mentions, respectively.
This media format is allowing candidates to speak directly to voters, which opens new opportunities for expanded connections and voters. Creating that direct connection between candidate and voter develops a relationship unlike anything our Nation has ever seen. Let alone the World.
Social media’s influence in this presidential election is stronger than it has ever been and the information cycle—campaign approach—will shape campaigns for years to come. Candidates no longer have to BUY access to reach millions of people anymore. Gone are the days of canvassing door-to-door, folks.
“This is the first true social media election,” said Frank Speiser of SocialFlow. “Before it was an auxiliary method of communication. But now candidates can put messages out there and get folks to act on their behalf by just sharing it around.”
The mic may not work properly on stage (or does it?) but either way, it’s always on. And you can follow along here:
