Ad execs sound off why Trump won, his “brand” and what his presidency means for the US
After Donald Trump was named president-elect of the United States, many were quick to voice their opinions on what has been arguably the most historic and contentious presidential elections in US history.
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The Drum asked executives within the industry to give their thoughts on why they think Trump won, how his marketing and advertising strategy may have helped him win, and what his presidency means for both the US and the rest of the world.
Below are some of their comments.
Karen Kaplan, chairman & CEO of Hill Holliday, on why Trump won
It's easier for me to process as a marketer. To me, it's all about people not so much voting for him but voting against the machine.
It all stems from the continuing and deepening lack of trust in institutions - business, organized religion, government, etc. - that we've been seeing for years. It’s the same disruption led by Amazon, Uber, Airbnb in their respective categories. Just like it was time for the disruption of retail, transportation and hospitality in the examples above, it was just time to disrupt politics.
People are sick of the fundraisers, the pop stars, the pollsters and the pundits, the liberties the Clintons (and the rest of the political establishment) felt comfortable taking, right out in the open. And no one was listening so we all missed it. Trump was just the one who grabbed a chair when the music stopped.
Aaron Kwittken, global chairman & CEO of Kwittken, on pre-election polls missing the mark
Clearly, the pollsters got this wrong in part because I don’t think people respond truthfully if at all anymore to polls and fewer than we thought even admitted to wanting to vote for Trump.
I think Trump won in large part as a referendum against the last eight years by American’s who are dissatisfied with the status quo and felt Hillary would just be more of the same. FBI Director Comey’s antics in the final days leading up to the election I am sure did not help Hillary’s case as did the rise in premiums for Obamacare.
Ultimately, I think we all hope (and pray) that Trump can assume a mature mantle of leadership and pick a great team of experienced advisors to help unite us as a nation once in for all and really make us great again, but together.
John Wren, CEO of Omnicom, on what a Trump presidency means for the US
The election supports the idea that the American people want change, and with that change will come a period of uncertainty. Time will tell what the impact will be on the economy. Clearly the middle class has spoken, both in the U.S. and Western Europe, and challenges like immigration, terrorism and trade where key issues that impacted the electorate.
Now that Mr. Trump is president–elect we will have to wait and see how he will govern and who he selects as his cabinet members and advisors. While it is too early to tell what this change will mean for our industry and advertising and media spending, the American people, corporations and its institutions are resilient and we expect they will adapt to the new political landscape.
Meg Asaro, managing director of strategy at The Future Laboratory, on what led to Trump’s win
Since 2000, the world has been moving progressively faster. Technology and innovation has resulted in game changing categories, products and experiences that has toppled people’s views of ‘reality.’ We see more dislocation, distrust, disenfranchisement and disgust than ever before, from income inequality to personal identity. This has resulted in a need for familiarity and comfort. Most organisms will reject too much change. This truth was seen in both the Brexit vote and the US elections. There was too much change, which emotionally translates to uncertainty. As natural optimists, Americans want to believe there is a silver lining. But, according to Patrick Dixon, author of The Future of Almost Everything we can ‘expect to see powerful culture clashes between opposing trends, a world increasingly of extremes over the next 100 years with tendencies to intolerance as groups fight to dominate the future’. So, the future will most probably remain contentious, angry and polarized. Instead of looking for solutions, perhaps the opportunity is in providing escape and coping mechanisms for people as they navigate this new world.
Eric Schiffer, CEO of Patriarch Group & chairman of Reputation Management Consultants, on the Trump “brand” and why it helped him win
Branding was the core of the election. Trump would likely have won with a different strategy because his core essence would still remain the anti-politician.
To have a chance, Hillary needed to brand as the change candidate, distance from Obama in a way that didn’t alienate his base, have bolder plans that represented change, and find a way for that branding to connect to low income and low education white voters. She missed on all of it.
Moving forward, Trump's brand needs to take a consistent, inclusive tone. His brand positioning should be about how he wants to lift up America for all Americans. And, to show that he intends to conduct himself in a controlled, mature, and measured way at the helm and in his international dealings. There is tremendous anxiety right now and he is best to show a calm and measured side of himself to reassure the 50 percent of America that is freaked about the unknown, and the unknown unknown.
Richard Edelman, president & CEO of Edelman, on Trump’s media approach
(words first appeared in a post written by Richard Edelman called Explaining America)
“Trump went direct to the people, mostly through his community of 14 million followers on Twitter. The mainstream media, notably The New York Times, broke stories on Trump’s non-payment of taxes, his failed Trump University and his questionable behavior with women. None of those stories ultimately were enough to change the tide. There was a near-universal set of editorial endorsements of Clinton. Trump used this disparity to his advantage, to claim media bias and unify his base of supporters. Social media coverage captured the angry tone of the country better than mainstream because it relies on a ‘person like me,’ doing away with the hierarchical in favor of the personal.”
Dennis Franczak, CEO, Fuseideas on the future of political communication
It means that political communication is more than spin doctoring. It’s using data, real intelligence and math to win an election. I’ll tell you what it really does. It gives hope for future candidates who are not part of the establishment to have the courage to run for office. Donald Trump played the entire establishment. He knew (using the data and intelligence) what he had to do to win. It mattered very little what he said. He had the support back in August and September. We just didn’t know.
Reporting by Doug Zanger and Minda Smiley.