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Selling Mr. President
- By Ikem Okuhu
- Published April 11th, 2011
- BrandWorld
- Unrated
I wonder if anyone has been following the Nigerian election process like me. From indirect attacks to digging of hidden or forgotten dirt to personal and party position and promises, this election really has the makings of something marketer will have to learn from.
When the processes for electing Nigeria’s president began last year, most people were certain it was going t be one-man race as incumbent president, Goodluck Jonathan, having clinched the ticket of his arty, the People’s Democratic Party, looked set for victory.
Today, the story is no longer what people had expected. Even the electoral umpire may have seen the possibility of a close contest and is actually preparing for a run-off, the first in Nigeria, if that eventually takes place. This election is going to be competitive, like none before it. When President Barak Obama was preparing for a shot at the American presidency back in 2007/2008, he knew employed a strategy that none before him had used – demographic mapping and eloquence. Obama had taken a look at the American population and seen that although the youths constituted a majority of the population, they were almost always not engaged in electioneering campaigns. And so, Obama found a means to engage them. He explored the virtual communities where these young people gather and “live” their lives.
At the time, the social networks were gaining popularity and young people were increasingly populating these places in close communities. So Obama campaign strategists, chiefly David Plouffe and his team, deployed engagement activations that won over these young people and eventually most of their parents. Obama was an outsider in the American political echelon but he walked his way up the ladder in so short a time and eventually became president, the first black man to achieve this feat.
But youth engagement was not Obama’s only tactic. Long before anyone knew he was going to run for office, Obama used his eloquence to engage students in American colleges. He never missed to impress at graduation ceremonies where he delivered what in the US, is called Commencement Speeches. And today, he is president of the most powerful nation in the world.
Obama was perhaps the first to properly articulate a thematic political campaign. “Change we can believe in” was how he sold his candidature and did well to tailor his messages to fit into this capsule.
The Nigerian electoral process began last Saturday and although there are over 18 presidential candidates drawn from countless political parties, four have been able to push themselves as front runners. In this report, we examine how these front runners have positioned themselves for the people’s buy-in:
Goodluck Jonathan: Incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan still looks like the man to beat when voting for the country’s number one office takes place next week. Jonathan’s journey to the presidency has been a rough one following the acrimony that attended his emergence from the PDP primaries. Since he became the party’s flag-bearer, Jonathan seems to have been very creative in his campaigns. Not surprisingly, he seems to have the fattest campaign budget of all the front runners, although this seems to be coming from several NGOs and groups purporting to be rooting for him.
Jonathan first won over the Nigerian entertainment market and nearly all the musicians, actors and actresses have been sponsoring political messages for him. In addition to this, there are the Door2Door Projects, the Fresh Air Nigeria Group and the Neighbour2Neighbour NGO.
When Jonathan began his campaign, the first strategy adopted was to play on his name, Goodluck and sell to Nigerians that being someone whose emergence to power and influence was a result of certain streaks of “luck”, same lucky fortune would transfer to the country when and if he is voted president. It appears this did not bite with Nigerians, especially the educated class who reasoned that luck is not enough selling point for a country that has been so badly managed since its history.
Since criticisms greeted this gambit, the Presidents managers have quietly dropped this and are now selling a president that is humble, listening and ready to transform Nigeria. It was at this point that the messages from the president changed to those displaying his achievements in his short spell on the seat of power.
Jonathan has also emulated Obama’s social network approach by deploying Facebook messaging so early in his campaign. On his facebook page, the President sends out messages regularly reeling out what his presidency would benefit Nigerians. As noted earlier, Jonathan seems to have the fattest marketing budget of all the front runners. His adverts in print and electronic media have been the heaviest. A good number of the exposures appear as sponsored by individuals and groups that seem to be doing so without the president’s prompting.
Jonathan’s message still speaks of change and it remains to be seen whether this change will be a departure from what his political party has been knows for in the past or a different kind of change.
Mohammadu Buhari: This former military president must have read about Abraham Lincoln quite a lot. Apart from Mrs Sarah Jubril, Buhari seems to be a tireless presidential candidate. He has been there since 1999 and from the look of things, seems just to be finding listening ears to his cries. Buhari is not know to be as wealthy as most people that have sat anywhere near the country’s corridor of power before. In fact, what Buhari reminds Nigerians is a man so disciplined he cannot be tempted to dip hands into the national till when he is trusted with the country’s number one seat.
It is said that the leanness of Buhari’s campaign budget has been affecting a lot of planned activations but there seems to be some way this man has been using viral communication to reach more Nigerians than any mediated communication can achieve.
While Jonathan was able to tour all the 36 states capitals, Buhari was not able to achieve this but he seems to be connected via viral means to a number of Nigerians who have been rooting for change and a corruption-free society.
And here, Buhari has an impressive resume. Nigerians have been constantly reminded of Buhari’s stewardship while he ruled the country as a military dictator between 2003 and 2004. His regime is remembered for its hardline posture against corruption, a challenge most blame for the woes that have bedevilled the country since independence. And to reinforce his populist appeal, he seems to be vowing to probe all corrupt politicians when eventually he is elected.
Although Nigerians, especially Southerners and Christians remember Buhari as one that is avidly in support of Sharia legal system being implemented country-wide, the fact that his running mate is a Christian and a pastor seems to have toned this down in the minds of people.
Nuhu Ribadu: This man is one of the most popular person to emerge from the Nigerian Police Force. Mallam Nuhu Ribadu became popular among Nigerians when he was in charge of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. His tenure at EFCC was cut short following his sudden and controversial removal from office by the late Umaru Yar’Adua Administration.
The problems he had with the government of the day led to his fleeing to exile from where he returned following a pardon by President Jonathan. Upon his return, most had thought he was going to pitch tents with the sitting president who facilitated his return home.
But as time wore on, Ribadu moved in with the Bola Tinubu-led Action Congress of Nigeria and eventually beat other contenders to become the party’s flag-bearer. Like Buhari, Ribadu is not known to have a fat campaign purse and most likely relying on the support of his party to trudge on.
When he came on the scene, it was reasoned that most anti-establishment Nigerians were going to root for him given his anti-corruption stance. He still enjoys a lot of following from this group although Buhari seems to be resonating more in this department of late.
Ribadu, unlike other front runners is seeking generational shift in the management of the country. He is young and dynamic and seems, like Buhari, disposed to cleansing the country’s Aegean Stables.
When the processes for electing Nigeria’s president began last year, most people were certain it was going t be one-man race as incumbent president, Goodluck Jonathan, having clinched the ticket of his arty, the People’s Democratic Party, looked set for victory.
Today, the story is no longer what people had expected. Even the electoral umpire may have seen the possibility of a close contest and is actually preparing for a run-off, the first in Nigeria, if that eventually takes place. This election is going to be competitive, like none before it. When President Barak Obama was preparing for a shot at the American presidency back in 2007/2008, he knew employed a strategy that none before him had used – demographic mapping and eloquence. Obama had taken a look at the American population and seen that although the youths constituted a majority of the population, they were almost always not engaged in electioneering campaigns. And so, Obama found a means to engage them. He explored the virtual communities where these young people gather and “live” their lives.
At the time, the social networks were gaining popularity and young people were increasingly populating these places in close communities. So Obama campaign strategists, chiefly David Plouffe and his team, deployed engagement activations that won over these young people and eventually most of their parents. Obama was an outsider in the American political echelon but he walked his way up the ladder in so short a time and eventually became president, the first black man to achieve this feat.
But youth engagement was not Obama’s only tactic. Long before anyone knew he was going to run for office, Obama used his eloquence to engage students in American colleges. He never missed to impress at graduation ceremonies where he delivered what in the US, is called Commencement Speeches. And today, he is president of the most powerful nation in the world.
Obama was perhaps the first to properly articulate a thematic political campaign. “Change we can believe in” was how he sold his candidature and did well to tailor his messages to fit into this capsule.
The Nigerian electoral process began last Saturday and although there are over 18 presidential candidates drawn from countless political parties, four have been able to push themselves as front runners. In this report, we examine how these front runners have positioned themselves for the people’s buy-in:
Goodluck Jonathan: Incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan still looks like the man to beat when voting for the country’s number one office takes place next week. Jonathan’s journey to the presidency has been a rough one following the acrimony that attended his emergence from the PDP primaries. Since he became the party’s flag-bearer, Jonathan seems to have been very creative in his campaigns. Not surprisingly, he seems to have the fattest campaign budget of all the front runners, although this seems to be coming from several NGOs and groups purporting to be rooting for him.
Jonathan first won over the Nigerian entertainment market and nearly all the musicians, actors and actresses have been sponsoring political messages for him. In addition to this, there are the Door2Door Projects, the Fresh Air Nigeria Group and the Neighbour2Neighbour NGO.
When Jonathan began his campaign, the first strategy adopted was to play on his name, Goodluck and sell to Nigerians that being someone whose emergence to power and influence was a result of certain streaks of “luck”, same lucky fortune would transfer to the country when and if he is voted president. It appears this did not bite with Nigerians, especially the educated class who reasoned that luck is not enough selling point for a country that has been so badly managed since its history.
Since criticisms greeted this gambit, the Presidents managers have quietly dropped this and are now selling a president that is humble, listening and ready to transform Nigeria. It was at this point that the messages from the president changed to those displaying his achievements in his short spell on the seat of power.
Jonathan has also emulated Obama’s social network approach by deploying Facebook messaging so early in his campaign. On his facebook page, the President sends out messages regularly reeling out what his presidency would benefit Nigerians. As noted earlier, Jonathan seems to have the fattest marketing budget of all the front runners. His adverts in print and electronic media have been the heaviest. A good number of the exposures appear as sponsored by individuals and groups that seem to be doing so without the president’s prompting.
Jonathan’s message still speaks of change and it remains to be seen whether this change will be a departure from what his political party has been knows for in the past or a different kind of change.
Mohammadu Buhari: This former military president must have read about Abraham Lincoln quite a lot. Apart from Mrs Sarah Jubril, Buhari seems to be a tireless presidential candidate. He has been there since 1999 and from the look of things, seems just to be finding listening ears to his cries. Buhari is not know to be as wealthy as most people that have sat anywhere near the country’s corridor of power before. In fact, what Buhari reminds Nigerians is a man so disciplined he cannot be tempted to dip hands into the national till when he is trusted with the country’s number one seat.
It is said that the leanness of Buhari’s campaign budget has been affecting a lot of planned activations but there seems to be some way this man has been using viral communication to reach more Nigerians than any mediated communication can achieve.
While Jonathan was able to tour all the 36 states capitals, Buhari was not able to achieve this but he seems to be connected via viral means to a number of Nigerians who have been rooting for change and a corruption-free society.
And here, Buhari has an impressive resume. Nigerians have been constantly reminded of Buhari’s stewardship while he ruled the country as a military dictator between 2003 and 2004. His regime is remembered for its hardline posture against corruption, a challenge most blame for the woes that have bedevilled the country since independence. And to reinforce his populist appeal, he seems to be vowing to probe all corrupt politicians when eventually he is elected.
Although Nigerians, especially Southerners and Christians remember Buhari as one that is avidly in support of Sharia legal system being implemented country-wide, the fact that his running mate is a Christian and a pastor seems to have toned this down in the minds of people.
Nuhu Ribadu: This man is one of the most popular person to emerge from the Nigerian Police Force. Mallam Nuhu Ribadu became popular among Nigerians when he was in charge of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. His tenure at EFCC was cut short following his sudden and controversial removal from office by the late Umaru Yar’Adua Administration.
The problems he had with the government of the day led to his fleeing to exile from where he returned following a pardon by President Jonathan. Upon his return, most had thought he was going to pitch tents with the sitting president who facilitated his return home.
But as time wore on, Ribadu moved in with the Bola Tinubu-led Action Congress of Nigeria and eventually beat other contenders to become the party’s flag-bearer. Like Buhari, Ribadu is not known to have a fat campaign purse and most likely relying on the support of his party to trudge on.
When he came on the scene, it was reasoned that most anti-establishment Nigerians were going to root for him given his anti-corruption stance. He still enjoys a lot of following from this group although Buhari seems to be resonating more in this department of late.
Ribadu, unlike other front runners is seeking generational shift in the management of the country. He is young and dynamic and seems, like Buhari, disposed to cleansing the country’s Aegean Stables.
