Sarah Palin: The First Blog-Driven National Campaign

Right now, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska isn’t exactly a household name.  There, I’ve just produced the understatement of the year.  It’s a long way – geographically and politically – from her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, to Washington, DC.  However, it’s a trip a growing number of people believe she will take after Election Day, 2008.

In a little more than a year from now she could be vice-president of the U.S.  She would also be on the fast-track to become our first female President. 

What will take her on that journey?  Of course, the most important thing is her personality, character, and experience as an extremely popular governor of a state that’s small in population, but big in importance, especially as it relates to energy.

Here’s what popular blogger and Palin supporter Sanity102 wrote to me about Sarah:

“Good Lord, Steve!”

Have you SEEN this lady's family? I've just watched a bunch of her campaign for Gov ads; her family is GORGEOUS and her voice practically oozes "trust me." Strong but feminine...today's Donna Reed type mom.
She's a PR dream!
Oh if she runs on the ticket, people are going to compare her with Hil...if that happens and I was running Hil's campaign, I'd cry.
Seriously, BILLIONS are spent on shaping the public's perception. This women doesn't even have to try.
Oh unfair (hehehehe).”

Who exactly is Sarah?  In addition to being Alaska’s governor, she’s a wife, a mother of four, a former basketball star, a fierce political campaigner, a reformer, an economic libertarian, and a populist conservative.  She has the highest approval rating of any governor in the U.S.  – a rating roughly triple that of George W. Bush.

She’s not quite ready for the ultimate “Prime Time,” the presidency.  But she’s close. 

Being a good President derives essentially from being a Good Person – one who's smart, informed, caring and – yes – ambitious.  There’s more than a hint that Sarah may be the long-awaited political prize: a conservative, female version of JFK.  No, she’s not Ronald Reagan.  She’s Sarah Palin, and she’s still a work-in-progress.  So, we won’t reserve a space for her yet on Mt. Rushmore.

How will Sarah become known to the American people?  Her “coming out” party is taking place on this blog – and on a growing number of similar sites. 

As a milestone of how she’s doing, keep an eye on "Elephantman's" blog roll at www.palinforvp.blogspot.com.  If by Labor Day, there are dozens of blogs listed as supporting Sarah, she’ll be doing just fine.  By January 29, 2008, the date of the Florida primary, there should be 100-plus names on palinforvp’s blog roll. 

If blogsters begin to embrace Sarah, and there are signs that’s already happening, shell go far.  It’s a matter of viral marketing, the approach made famous by YouTube.   People start sharing content – visual or words – with their friends, and then the process mushrooms. 

Viral marketing is the electronic version of the old word-of-mouth.  That’s the key to the success of a product, an idea, or a candidate. 

The concept of “viral marketing” took hold nationally when Malcolm Gladwell, an important New York author, described it in his book The Tipping Book.  He talked about the way some products and political candidates spread very rapidly, just as we see with viruses.  Think about it: a child comes to school with the flu virus, gives it to a couple of other children, and soon everyone in the town has it. 

One of Gladwell’s examples of a “good virus” is the way Rudy Giuliani dramatically reduced crime – especially the murder rate – in New York City.  Essentially, Rudy knew he could cut into crime by making a substantial (and expensive) increase in the number of police officers. 

But he opted instead for establishing the conditions that make for law-abiding communities (closing down the porno districts, enforcing laws against public drunkenness, arresting graffiti artists, making people repair broken windows).  He was right.  Crime just didn’t go down; it almost disappeared in many places.  He spread the “virus” of caring communities that led to much less crime. 

His point was this:  crime takes place in certain types of communities.  Revitalize those communities, and the crime goes away.    

Within the past week, there’s been an example of the kind of viral marketing I’m advocating.  CBS cancelled a show, “Jericho,” that had a modest, but dedicated fan base.  The fans revolted and deluged the network with e-mails.  There were agitators – their version of “ElephantMan” with his palinforvip site – who served as agitators, or virus-spreaders.  They encouraged people to encourage others to protest.

Here’s how the AP described what happened.

“[CBS head man Les] Moonves said the network's decision last week to reinstate a canceled show called "Jericho" following an outpouring of viewer e-mails and other protests spoke to the growing influence of the Internet on broadcasters.”

"’It was a campaign that couldn't be ignored,’" Moonves said of the mobilization of "Jericho" fans, saying it was "astonishing and well-organized."

”As part of the campaign, disgruntled viewers delivered thousands of pounds of peanuts to CBS's corporate offices, a reference to a scene in the season finale where a character replies, ‘Nuts!’ to a demand that the town in Kansas, which had been isolated by a nuclear attack, surrender.”

Some individuals – Elephantman, Appletonian, me, Sanity, and many others – can work hard to take this in the direction of the tipping point.  But if we do it right, we supposed “leaders” soon become the followers.  The campaign “takes off on its own.” 

Viral marketing – in the form of spreading the good news about Sarah – can work.  It won’t take off immediately, but it will eventually.  If you want to add your site to the growing list of those supporting Sarah, let us know.  Join us in making history!

To Sarah, we have this to say:  Your life is about to undergo some big changes!

 (The fourth column about Sarah -- what precisely you can do to advance her campaign -- will follow tomorrow.)