The outcome of the 2016 US elections has caused mixed feelings among the citizens of the United States and the rest of the world.
USA now has a new President-elect but which of the two presidential nominees won the war in digital marketing leading up to the elections? Here is a closer look at the digital marketing efforts of both presidential candidates.
The power of PR & digital media in marketing communications.
How did the two candidates fare with the media? According to data from Reportbrain, in the last 6 months leading up to the elections, Donald Trump was mentioned in 514,441 articles from 7,176 sources whereas, Hillary Clinton was mentioned in 427,240 articles from 6,638 resources. Looks like Donald Trump won the "popular vote" with the media.
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Clinton 
Data source: Reportbrain
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Trump 
Data source: Reportbrain
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Facebook.
Donald Trump's page on Facebook has over 14 million followers compared to Hillary Clinton's page of over 9 million followers. Notice how Trump's Facebook page has also a prominent "Shop Now" button which points page followers to donate to his campaign and/or shop for apparel and other items. Clinton's Facebook page also had a clear call-to-action but a softer one where she prompted her page followers to sign up to join the official campaign. From a marketer's perspective, having solid call-to-action is a great way to convert your page visitors into potential customers. Kudos to both nominees for following digital marketing best practices.
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Twitter.
Trump's Twitter account (@realdonaldtrump) has over 14 million followers with 34 thousand tweets.
Clinton's account (@hillaryclinton) has over 10 million followers. With under ten thousand tweets, it was far less active in the twittersphere compared to Trump's Twitter account.
What we can learn about digital marketing from the US elections.
First, that in order to have a shot at succeeding you have to have a well thought-out marketing strategy in place which is based on the principles that define marketing. Smart marketing starts with a strong foundation which relies on identifying the characteristics of your best customers, the people who might buy your products and services, and in the case of the US elections, the voters.
It is important to understand what makes a product unique and articulate the value it brings to the market compared to its closest competitors. From personal branding to public policies, for example, Clinton and Trump, who one can see them both as a product and a brand, stood for things very differently in their attempt to convince the public that they were the best candidate for the job.
Entrepreneurs and marketers need to understand who their target audience is, what influences their buying decisions, which topics they are interested in, where and how to find them. As the first female presidential nominee, Clinton understood that women and minorities were a crucial audience and she fought very hard to get the support of female voters.
Having a solid marketing strategy in place is all about focusing marketing efforts on the right people, at the right marketing channels, and with relevant content.
It is important to understand what makes a product unique and articulate the value it brings to the market compared to its closest competitors. From personal branding to public policies, for example, Clinton and Trump, who one can see them both as a product and a brand, stood for things very differently in their attempt to convince the public that they were the best candidate for the job.
Entrepreneurs and marketers need to understand who their target audience is, what influences their buying decisions, which topics they are interested in, where and how to find them. As the first female presidential nominee, Clinton understood that women and minorities were a crucial audience and she fought very hard to get the support of female voters.
Having a solid marketing strategy in place is all about focusing marketing efforts on the right people, at the right marketing channels, and with relevant content.
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