Monday, July 19, 2010

Abstract--How Barack Obama's Social Media Policy Paved the Way to The White House

Recent advances in technology have impacted all aspects of life in America, from how we run businesses to how we shop to how we entertain ourselves. These advances had a significant impact on the 2008 Presidential election. In 2008 Barack Obama won the presidential election by defeating John McCain. A large part of his victory can be attributed to his campaigns use of social media. They were able to engage potential voters through the use of social network websites, email, text messaging, online video and Barack Obama’s own website.

In previous elections other politicians have used social media as a means to fundraise and communicate with potential voters. However President Obama used social media more effectively than anyone in the past. President Obama embraced social media from the inception of his campaign while his opponent failed to do so.

As businesses evolve into the future the lesson’s of Barack Obama’s social media philosophy can teach us many things. This philosophy can be a roadmap for businesses to successfully integrate social media into their day to day operations.

2 comments:

  1. That's an interesting take Dave. I did not know the depths to which President Obama utilized social media during his '08 campaign. As you point out, it certainly proved effective. And I agree that businesses, regardless of industry, can take a page from the Obama team's playbook to help manage their customers in a more transparent way. I am guessing the research you conducted for this project, in correlation with what we learned in class will only serve to bolster your views on the business use of social media.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds like a very interesting paper. I would be curious as to what parts of the social media campaign that Obama really controlled. Did he have a staff who controlled his facebook account, or a PR mananger who wrote his tweets?

    I have to admit, I wasn't that involved with the presidential campaign, so I am a liitle bit out of the loop. But I wonder if Obama was able to get more young people to vote based on his social media campaign.

    ReplyDelete