If you’re signed up for Barack Obama’s e-mail list, you know what I’m talking about. You get three e-mails a day from his staff members urging you to donate just three dollars. And if you donate at the right time, you’re automatically entered to win a dinner date with the president himself. A clever incentive, seeing as people buy raffle tickets for the same price to win a lot less than dinner with the president. Barack Obama is altering his campaign to make youth voters feel included and realize that they too can make a change.
President Obama has a good point, though. Without the inclusion of the youth vote in 2008, many journalists claim that he would not be the current president. Addressing youth voters and focusing on the job market, the most important issue for most registered voters our age, is proving to currently push President Obama ahead in the polls and in popularity, with students beginning to hashtag #fourmoreyears on Twitter and advertise with signs and bumper stickers for Decision 2012.
But how did Obama get so many youth voters on the e-mail list in the first place? Only in this blog would I tell you my most embarrassing political low-point. I sincerely wish I could tell you that I signed up for President Obama’s e-mail list to receive inside information over the course of the campaign, a step above my usual internet browsing of The New York Times or Huffington Post. But in actuality, I signed up to get a free Barack Obama 2012 bumper sticker. I told you, political low-point, but what college student doesn’t love free stuff? To give you another embarrassing fact, when I signed up to receive the bumper sticker, I didn’t even realize that I was putting myself on the e-mail list long-term, but now that I am on it, I love being informed of Obama’s weekly efforts and plans, but I especially love analyzing his marketing strategies.
His team slyly pulled in the youth vote with the free items (myself included), and offers of winning dinner dates and being part of the first million supporters. When President Obama’s campaign reached 1 million grassroots donors, he stated, “No matter what our opponents do, and however many people end up becoming a part of this campaign—this first million will always be the group that put this movement in the best position possible for the fights ahead.” Barack Obama continues to make the donors feel included and like they made the stride that is currently creating an energetic campaign.
I have to admit, despite my previous research of other candidates (discussed in my last blog), in my head I knew that I would most likely be supporting President Obama in 2012. His marketing strategies worked on me, but that was because I was almost decided. Does he have what it takes to win over the bulk of the youth vote, a percentage of voters that could make or break his election? I will be interested to see how UMich students react to his campaign throughout the year.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Mich chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.