If you’re feeling fed up with the US election, it could be worse. You could be American. I should know; I’m travelling to the USA on business at the end of this month and swinging by my home state of Michigan. This is one election where I don’t want to leave my vote to an absentee ballot.
The analysis of the first debate between the two candidates was overwhelmingly in Clinton’s favour - unless you were reading Trump’s Twitter feed where he was saying the exact opposite. One nice thing about Trump on Twitter – or maybe the only nice thing - is the total lack of grey area. You know exactly what he’s thinking and who he’s hating. It’s a refreshing approach to politics and goes a long way to helping people make an informed decision.
The same can’t be said of Trump’s email marketing. I’ve been victim to both Trump and Clinton’s email tactics since purchasing campaign badges in July. I knew full well I was giving permission to the hardest working email projects of 2016 to harass me. Opting-in held a few surprises.
Trump’s email marketing makes great use of database segmentation, especially as it relates to geography. But that’s about all he’s doing well. All 54 emails I’ve received in the past two and a half months are essentially the same – an appeal to come to an event. The only thing different about them is the place, date and time and a slightly modified subject line. I’m grateful I’m only hearing from him about events in surrounding areas to my voting precinct because I’m bored to tears with the content.
Clinton, by contrast, doesn’t miss a trick or an opportunity to write – sometimes more than once an hour. She’s sent more than four times the number of emails Trump sent in the same period – 233 to his 54. Her letters attempt to engage me with personlisation, details about her policies, infographics, quizzes, contests, appeals for support from her famous friends, and funny photos. She wants to get to know me and she wants me to know where she stands on all the issues. Clinton’s email campaign is fun and friendly and smart and incredibly exhausting.
But where Trump is singularly focused on getting bums on seats, Clinton is all about fundraising. Every single email has a big red ‘Donate’ button in it. Most come right out and ask for money. As Election Day draws closer, many of the letters are laced with paranoia about what happens to all of us if she doesn’t make her fundraising goals. It’s definitely down to me to save the day or be forever responsible for the worst possible outcome imaginable – at least that’s how I’m interpreting the language.
November 8th is a long way off with no end in sight to the campaign circus. I, for one, am glad to give up my ringside seat for the relative comfort of a 12-hour time difference. For as much as we’re all sick of it here in Australia, the Americans are getting hammered with a 24-hour cycle of campaign messaging. With the race too close to call and a constituency deeply divided, the best marketer might just end up being President of the United States. Will name calling and marketing on autopilot win out over too much information and money grubbing? Only time will tell.
Sarah Mitchell is director of content strategy at Lush Digital Media and co-host of the Brand Newsroom podcast.