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Hillary Clinton’s Direct Mail Piece

Written by Ricky Breslin in General Marketing  

I live in South Carolina so you know the Democrats are pounding me hard with direct mail pieces.  Check this latest one from Hillary Clinton…

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Notice how they have a picture of Hillary looking directly at you with a warm smile.  And look at the picture they used for Barack Obama.  Hillary’s camp used a picture where he’s looking not at you, but at something far away.  Kind of like he’s “dreaming” or “hopeful”.

I have a feeling the picture they used of Obama and the text under his picture that says “A Record of Hoping for Results” was very well planned.

Get ready for one of the nastiest political seasons in recent memory. 

  • Dear Ricky:

    I think that this direct mail package is a mistake. Whoever is preparing their advertising must take a look at what Rosser Reeves says.

    In this type of "comparative" advertising, they're also advertising Barack Obama, for free.

    If I were spending millions to advertise myself, I'd do my best to focus on myself, on what I have to offer...or better what UNIQUE BENEFITS I can offer.
  • Ricky,

    We talked about political strategies in one of my classes last semester. There's a huge laundry list of what is used for political persuasion.

    For instance, the ads will attribute mythological features that have nothing to do with someone's ability to be president:

    war hero
    man (or woman) of the people
    father
    friend

    You get the picture. They also show pictures of the candidate in a crowd where people are trying to touch him, shake his hand, etc. They use extreme close-ups to show importance, to emphasize evil, and even truthfulness. Music is carefully chosen too. Clothing is also key. Expensive suits show power. Shirt sleeves symbolize hard work and empathy with the people. The list goes on.

    If you dissect these political campaign ads, you'll see that every single element is chosen for a specific reason.

    I haven't been bombarded with political ads in my mailbox, but the phone sure has been ringing off the hook with recorded messages.
  • Nice observation, Ricky. Not sure I would have picked a picture or Obama smiling, though. I'm sure they could have found a video snapshot of him with the same dreamy look, but less flattering.

    But your point is spot on.

    What I find interesting is that Clinton portrays herself as the "experienced" one and Obama as the "inexperienced" one, when all she really has on him is a lousy extra term in the senate. Oh, and being "First Lady."

    And funny how she's jumped on the "change" bandwagon, even though she represents the status quo.

    That's politics for ya!

    Cheers,

    John
  • Lance
    I'm interested in how she selected her list. I also wonder, did she do a mass mailing with health insurance as her sole message? Perhaps the line touting her history of delivering results should come with a bill of lading. I'd like to hear her describe specifically which results she's basing that on.
  • Excellent observations, Ricky.

    Also, something else to note is how the writer used bullet points with some factual content tied in... makes it more convincing than just spouting opinions from the Hillary camp.

    You're absolutely correct in saying this political season is going to get nasty. Even the ol' slickmeister is getting a piece of the action these last few days.

    The biggest problem both Hillary and Obama face right now is the irreversible damage they may do to their own party.
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