Billions of people across the world were left stunned on Wednesday 9th November as Donald Trump swept to a shock election victory! The 45th president of America shook the world as not many of us expected it!
Some celebrities have wished him well whilst many others have announced their disbelief and fear. One newspaper headline even stated, “Dear God, America What Have You Done?” However, whether you love him or hate him there are a few marketing lessons we can learn from his presidential campaign.
1. Pick Something And Go For It
One thing in particular that really stood out during Trump's presidential campaign was the fact that he picked an issue to target and really nailed it home. ‘Make America Great Again’ was his slogan throughout the campaign and he made sure he repeated it whenever he had the chance. Another issue he focussed on a lot was immigration. He hammered it home and home again during speeches and he did it well. Although he may have also said some outlandish things, he clearly got plenty of people on his side!
Marketing Lesson To Learn: From a marketing perspective, get your messaging right! Know who your target audience is and deliver a clear and concise message that is consistent with what you plan to deliver. Repeat your message wherever you can to really get the marketing message clear to your prospects. Know who you are talking to. Your ideal prospect will fit a specific buyer persona. They will have similar needs, fears and objections. When you are clear about your target audience, you will be able to define your clear marketing message. Find out more about the importance of defining your ideal customer by reading this blog article: Why Defining Your Buyer Persona Is Fundamental To Your Inbound Marketing Campaign
2. Go Against The Grain
During his campaign, Donald Trump really stood out because he went against the grain constantly. He did the opposite of what every politician was doing and has done before, but it clearly worked! A few things that he did against the grain include taking a firm stance on illegal immigration. Donald Trump did what no one dared do like talking openly about extreme policies for example banning all Muslims from entering America! This stance was designed to divide public opinion and this tactic was used to repel a section of voters and, on the other hand, draw a whole section of society closer to him.
Marketing Lesson To Learn: Why be like everyone else in your industry. Stop following your competitors and trying to mimic what they do. Try something different! You never know it might pay off! It is a competitive place out there and you need to stand out, be outlandish and dare to be different. Establish your USP’s and make sure you plaster them all over your marketing. A great book on this topic is Differentiate or Die by Jack Trout, I highly recommend the read!
3. Go Where No One Else Will Go
Since Donald Trump's presidential campaign started, he has been renowned for daring to go where no one else will. He has thrown out endless insults and disrespect to fellow politicians, world leaders, huge brands and much more. Although I don't agree with his insults he definitely went where no politician has gone before. Again, this tactic worked! It is one of the things that helped him become president.
Marketing Lesson To Learn: Similar to the lesson before really, don't just follow your competitors. As Trump did, go where no one else will. Try and spark a reaction in your industry. Whether you do this by offering something that no one else in your industry is offering, as an example, or by simply being controversial, it will get people's attention. If you do it in the right way, you will attract the attention of prospects and this will hopefully increase your leads, enquiries and sales!
4. Create A Network You Can Rely On
Having a strong network in business and in life is extremely important. This point is actually something that has cost Donald Trump a lot of money. Over the years he has made a fair amount of enemies. A few of these, including his ex-wives have cost him millions of pounds in settlement fees!
Marketing Lesson To Learn: Don't create enemies in your industry. Be good to others and they'll be good back! It is important to create a strong network of like-minded individuals that you can rely on to help your business grow and prosper. Surround yourself with positive people who will help you with referrals, valuable links, advice and much more. You can grow your business network through Social Media, blogging and by attending industry related events. If you have a good business network of people like yourself it will only help towards your business success.
5. Paying A Price Can Result In Winning So Why Be Afraid?
We all know Donald Trump is a billionaire and he has an almost endless pocket to rely upon. During his campaign, he must have forked out a lot of money on marketing and more. Donald Trump certainly hasn't been afraid to pay for marketing or power and it has resulted in success.
Marketing Lesson To Learn: You shouldn't be afraid to spend a bit of money on targeted advertising. Yes, don't throw it away on tactics that don't work but it is definitely worth paying for targeted Social Media ads and Google AdWords campaigns to increase your traffic, leads and profits! Find out more about paid advertising by reading the below articles:
How To Use Google AdWords To Generate Business Leads
B2B Facebook Advertising: Should We Pay For Facebook Ads
Conclusion
Love him or hate him, Donald Trump is the new President of the USA. He ran a targeted campaign to get there and wasn’t afraid to put everything he had behind it! There is clearly a lot we can learn from him when it comes to business and marketing. If you take away just a couple of the points in this article today and implement them in your business you are sure to benefit from more leads and sales.
