We all know that the most important objective of a political party or a political campaign is to win maximum votes. Political advertising companies across the world will start with the formulation of a cohesive marketing strategy as the foundation for such victorious outcomes.
There can never be a one-size-fits-all kind of an election campaign strategy that ensures success. For example, some political candidates might need an image correction exercise, one that cleanses their own public perception and successfully re-brands them as a high potential visionary leader.
Some candidates on the other hand might be more established political figures who want to highlight their stand on introducing change related to certain key policies while painting a true-to-life personal narrative. Whatever the need be, it all starts with devising an effective political campaign strategy, one that is managed and executed by a streamlined professional political campaign management agency.
The fact is that only candidates marketed with a potent strategy - ensuring on-ground connect as well as a dynamic use of digital and traditional media - stand a chance of putting themselves out in front of the voters.
In politics, the product to be marketed is either the candidate or an ideological platform and its set of policy proposals. Take the honorable Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji for example, his winning campaigns in both 2014 and 2019 utilized huge staffs of marketing experts from multiple globally recognized advertising agencies who projected brand Modi as the only true option for Indian voters and sowed the seeds of a phenomenal never before seen nationwide electoral success.
Traditionally in India, political parties utilized newspapers, rallies, public meetings, and door to door canvassing to clearly communicate information about their party, their manifesto, and their stand on key issues. However, with the changing times, some of these traditional methods of election advertising have also evolved, more so with the rise of modern media technologies and social media platforms. Marketing and politics go hand in hand. Politicians have always used and will continue to use marketing tactics to garner extensive support of the masses. With all this said let’s now take a look at some of the most preferred tactics used in political campaigning in India, especially in the wake of the pandemic.
Direct Mail:
In the post-COVID-19 era when political parties can no longer carry out door to door canvassing or public events in the same manner anymore, direct post/mail promises to reach out to individual voters in the comfort of their own homes. Direct mails from political candidates can include a lot of information about the candidate and the solutions they bring to pressing issues. Direct mails even educate the potential voters on different current policies of the party. The biggest advantage of this approach is in rural areas where internet penetration is not widespread. (This is not correct. The literacy rate in rural India is so low that written communications do not work here)
Out of Home (OOH) + On Ground Activation:
As the popular marketing wisdom goes - “Jo Dikhta Hai Woh Bikta Hai”, voters really need to see a political candidate and their electoral promises. Outdoor hoardings and digital billboards often attract a lot of attention. Out-of-Home (OOH) options allow candidates and their campaign marketing/advertising agencies to leverage outdoor advertising to target voters with relevant and timely messages. OOH political campaign advertising has historically played a critical role and continues to help candidates win in local, state, and national level elections.
Digital & Social Media:
The internet has come to re-define political campaigning altogether and if there is one political marketing approach that cannot be overlooked, it is having an overwhelmingly strong presence on both digital and social media platforms. Starting with a well-managed website that accurately reflects a candidate’s views and an in-depth description of their personal stand on pertinent issues. Social media on the other hand offers itself as a platform for easy and effective content dissemination to specific audiences.
Extensive Public Relations campaigns:
If you remember the viral video of a “non-political” interview of Modiji with actor Akshay Kumar and their proclaimed affinity for mangoes, you already know of a good example of a successful Public Relations campaign. Political PR agencies will guide candidates on how to send across the right message mostly because the perception of the general public especially about how they see a political candidate goes a long way towards how they will vote.
Negative Campaigning:
As the best election advertising agency, our core objective is always finding ways to make a candidate look better than their closest competitors. There are many ways of achieving this however a tried and tested approach is that of Negative Campaigning or bringing people’s attention to the bad things their competitor will do. It is a form of political campaign that primarily focuses on changing the mindsets of voters into not voting for another candidate. (Images of Pappu, blame Nehru, Chowkidar chor hai etc. are examples.)
At Niksun Ad World Inc. we have a proven track record of having worked extensively for successful campaigns for national, state, municipal corporations and local government bodies and government campaigns for some of India’s top political parties. Do get in touch with us in case you wish to know more about Niksun’s extensive range of strategic political marketing and advertising insight-driven services.
About Niksun Ad World Inc.
Niksun Ad. World Inc. is one of the best advertising agencies in ahmedabad that has been connecting more than 200 brands to their customers since 1993. We at Niksun incorporate accurate marketing, branding, creative innovations and experiential advertising history to help power your brand from a thought to the homes and hearts of your customers.
Get in touch for a free consultation on creative@niksun.in or call on +79 26402971 | +79 26407971.
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