Political Branding: BRAND AMERICA 2012
What do marketing professionals and brand managers have to learn from an examination of the current state of Brand America? Plenty. Interbrand presents a special series scanning the political brandscape of the 2012 US election: strategic positioning, creative campaigns, storytelling, architecture, tone of voice, messaging, and what's at stake in the domestic and international marketplace for the value of Brand America.
Articles
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Brand Obama Sets High Expectations for Second Term
Nora Geiss and David Trahan examine the defining elements of the Obama brand, summarize its evolution from 2008-2012, and explore how the promise of the President defines what we can expect in the years ahead. -
What the GOP Does Next Could Make or Break the Brand
Since the reelection of President Obama, much has been written about the GOP's identity crisis and losing relevance with the American voter. As GOP leaders and party members take a long hard look in the mirror, Michael Leahy takes a look at brands that have faced similar do or die moments and what lessons the GOP should take from them. -
Recapping the Campaign Trail
Rebecca Hellerman tracks insights and indicators of sentiment throughout the presidential campaign, including Election Day.
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5 Steps to Rebranding the Republican Party
The big question from pundits, the media and the public is: What's next for the Republican party? Given the results of Election 2012 in key races, it seems the party is at a crossroads. Can the GOP rebrand itself in a meaningful way?
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Broken Brand Promises
Michael Leahy spotlights candidates' stated promises and the choices voters (consumers) have to make when their expectations are not met.
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Playing to Strengths in Political Ads
Amy Edel-Vaughn builds on David Trahan and Tom Shanahan's analysis of brand messaging, looking at political ads from the competing candidate brands.
Branding in Presidential Campaigns: How Candidates Develop, Deliver, and Reinforce Key Messages - Part 2
David Trahan and Tom Shanahan look at how campaigns package candidate brands, creating narratives, marketing "proof points" and leveraging the brand equity of party celebrities. 
Branding in Presidential Campaigns: How Candidates Develop, Deliver, and Reinforce Key Messages - Part 1
David Trahan and Tom Shanahan look at how campaigns package candidate brands, creating narratives, marketing "proof points" and leveraging the brand equity of party celebrities.
Building the Perfect Candidate
Mudi Diejomaoh shows how Interbrand's Brand Definition Model (BDM) allows a candidate and party to identify the drivers that affect decision-making in their target audience and provides an avenue to define a brand position, which is infused with the personality of the candidate.
The President as a Spokesperson for
Brand
America
David Trahan unpacks the branding of America, and looks at it through the lenses of consumer branding and political strategy.
Branding the Candidates
Forest Young and Jeremy Villano examine the evolution of digital brand strategy in Barack Obama's presidential campaigns, and the challenge of authentically connecting with voters digitally.
Political Activism in a Digital World
Jeremy Villano shares best practices for leveraging digital tools and platforms in campaigns. He recommends creating online experiences that engage supporters using messaging that is authentic to the brand and larger narrative, and digital experiences that either fit current human behavior, or change behavior to create rewarding experiences.
State of the (dis)Union: Brand Architecture, Storytelling, and Election 2012
Peter Cenedella opens our series by exploring the parallels between the corporate brand and Brand America, and spotlights similarities between brand identity and national identity; brand architecture and the corporate nation; brand storytelling and national storytelling.