Landor Associates (branding firm) and Penn, Schoen and Berland (research firm) released a joint study comparing the attributes of both George Bush and John Kerry to well-known brands.
According to Landor’s Managing Director Allen Adamson,
“Mapping Bush and Kerry to well-known product and corporate brands reveals how each candidate is viewed and suggests brand strategies each can employ to potentially sway the critical undecided voter group.”
The study reveals Bush supporters associate the brand called Bush with brands that evoke attributes such as … “reliable, humble, heritage, and solid.” [SEE CHART BELOW]
Kerry supporters associate the brand called Kerry with brands that convey attributes of “high-quality, high-performance, hip, and young.” [SEE CHART BELOW]
Undecided voters associate more trendy and upscale brands with Kerry and attach more common and mainstay brands with Bush. [SEE CHART BELOW]
To win over the undecided voters, Landor’s Managing Director Allen Adamson recommends the candidates do the following,
“… Kerry must prove that he has substance, that he’s not all flash and marketing. Bush, on the other hand, must focus on emphasizing that his strengths – stability and reliability – are more important than being ultra-modern or progressive.”
Noticeably absent from this blog is any Brand Autopsy commentary. I’ll leave the HMOs (hot marketing opinions) and HPOs (hot political opinions) to your MO (modus operandi). Dig?