There is a lot of speculation for what the hot trends in social media will be in 2008. Interactive marketing, online campaigns, a shift from traditional media, and an increasing acceptance of social media will make for an interesting year. All of these predictions assume that social media will continue its ascendancy, with more savvy users and innovative technologies to support it.
One of the most salient proof points for social media will come from the Presidential election this year. The Washington Post ran an article recently that stated the rules of the game have changed for politicians, and that information is flowing more quickly and freely than in the past. (Photo credit: Digital Axle/ABC News).
Grassroots campaigning has traditionally been a great way to get out the vote, and with the community aspect of social media, it’s even more important to get in the game. People can easily access information about candidates, view their speeches online, and share thoughts with others. In another Washington Post article this week, reports show the Barack Obama campaign has been taking advantage of social media tools like Facebook to get the word out.
Traditional media is continuing to discover the power and is monitoring and listening to the citizen journalists through YouTube, blogs, MySpace, Facebook and other outlets. There are cynics, as well as thousands of supporters for the case of social media and politics coming together.
The idea that politics is built on democracy, the power of the people, and that anyone can have a voice, seems to make perfect sense in the social media world. Politicians rally around community support, word of mouth, and serving as an advocate for the people. Social media is often given the same standards for measurement, and this makes it an easy solution for outreach.
The question that will change the game for social media and politics in 2008 is, does any of this matter? The case has already been proven that social media could make a huge impact on how campaigns are run and monitored, but will it be enough to push one candidate over another?
We have seen the affect of what social media can do in making a “long tail” candidate or in breaking a political campaign. The game has definitely changed, but the champion is still up for grabs and under debate, only this time the microscope of scrutiny is not only held by the media, but by the people.
I’ve been impressed at some of the ways the Obama campaign has used social media tools. Recently, I was invited to write an email to a precinct captain in Iowa, thanking them for volunteering for the campaign in that crucial role. I was happy to do it, and when I hit send, I was happy to throw in another contribution when I automatically reached a Donate page. They also use the TXT link to my phone effectively–I found out the good news in the Des Moines Register poll on my phone before hearing it anywhere else, and it lets me know when Obama’s going to be on Meet the Press or whatever. If he pulls off a stunning win in Iowa, I think it will be largely due to savvy use of Internet. The fund-raising alone, from nearly 500k donors, is pretty impressive.
This topic was also mentioned in Albert Maruggi’s Marketing Edge podcast interview with Jeremiah Owyang that I listened to this morning while working out – http://tinyurl.com/2joszz . Maruggi worked in national politics and was making the comparison with what has always worked there and what works as natural, effective conversation in social media.
I’ve ordered your book at Denver’s peerless Tattered Cover Bookstore and look forward to reading it!
Cheers, Len
In the hundreds and thousands of political campaigns, social media is bound to have an impact. It could tip close elections.
I still think that the media advisers will use it primarily as a grassroots mobilization vehicle (as opposed to a means to go after undecideds). That’s shortsighted. And people will be continuously pounded for $$$.
Great post.