One for the History Books: Social Media Drives Election Results
Still wondering about the ability of social media to sway public sentiment and catalyze meaningful change? Ask newly elected U.S. Senator Scott Brown what it did for him.
Brown was the Republican candidate in the blue state of Massachusetts vying for the late Ted Kennedy’s U.S. Senate seat. Brown initially trailed his opponent, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, by double digits in the polls. That is until the launch of a comprehensive and strategically coordinated social media campaign sky-rocketed Brown to the national stage.
A week before the election, Brown raised more than $1 million — more than he had raised throughout his entire fundraising period — in a 24-hour money bomb promoted almost entirely through the Internet and social networks. Brown also raised a significant amount of money from out-of-state supporters who glommed onto the grassroots movement facilitated by social media.
Granted, Brown’s campaign integrated multiple means of communication in its voter outreach efforts, but what put the candidate over the edge was the campaign’s attention to and strategy surrounding social media.
Oh sure, Coakley did the social media thing as well. But she couldn’t leverage it in the same way. Her message simply would not resonate with a public that was downright disgusted with the goings on in Washington.
Fortunately for Brown, times were ripe for his conservative message. However, his message in and of itself wouldn’t have been enough to propel him ahead of Coakley, who demonstrated strong liberal support, with President Obama himself stumping for her just days before the vote.
Brown had to find a way to sincerely deliver his message hard and fast to a hungry audience. And he did so by figuratively stepping down from his political pulpit and leveling with the conservative grassroots, primarily via tools like Twitter and Facebook, and a range of other viral technologies, including e-mail and texting.
It was like lighting one blade of grass in a field plagued by drought. His message spread like wildfire. Online third-party support from average Joe’s and Jane’s added instant credibility to Brown’s efforts in a mesmerizing public display of the word-of-mouth phenomenon.
We could write a book detailing every factor that played into Brown’s victory (and we’re sure someone will). But in the interest of saving time, here’s our key takeaway:
Armed with the right message (pun intended), Brown’s campaign understood three important facts:
- The Internet is the most influential medium.
- Word-of-mouth is the most impactful method of communication.
- Social media is where the Internet and word-of-mouth intersect.
The rest is history.
Stacey Getz , APR is our director of strategic communications. Read her bio here.
Tags: communications, politics, social media
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