Dr. DigiPol

This question has been used as the benchmark for the arrival of the internet in electoral politics. Those viewing the world this way often point to Howard Dean’s 2004 campaign and say, “Close, but no cigar.” But a much better question is, “Will a candidate without an internet strategy ever win the presidency again?” And the answer to that is a resounding, “No!”

Viewed from this angle, the internet has clearly arrived in electoral politics. Sure, the candidate with the best internet strategy won’t always win, but the winner will have one, for sure.

But digging deeper, the days of an internet-only strategy winning any type of campaign, either electoral or issue, is long past. These days, successful campaigns require an integrated strategy that seamlessly melds online and offline strategies and tactics into a robust campaign.

And don’t forget the message and the messenger. Even in the early days, when people made the outrageous claim that Jesse Ventura became Governor of Minnesota because of his internet campaign, the real story was that the internet played a big role in delivering a charismatic candidate with a compelling message to the voters of Minnesota. Jesse won the election, not the internet.

Campaigns will find more success as they employ more effective internet strategies. But the core of this strategy will be a recognition that instead of having an internet strategy and an offline strategy, the internet (and mobile) will need to be part and parcel of the whole campaign.

For example, the volunteer strategy will have integrated online and offline components. The fundraising strategy will have integrated online and offline components. And the same will be true for advertising, opposition research, earned media, and message development. Campaigns that embrace this approach instead of looking at the internet as a stand alone seat at the table and a separate section of the budget will have the upper hand in future elections.

So it is time for the short view to give way to the long view. And it is time to accept the fact that the long view has arrived. The internet is already an indispensable component of any successful campaign for President, indeed for any federal or statewide office. The future is not about when it will arrive, but when it will mature.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 8th, 2007 at 3:32 pm and is filed under Digital Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.