Of course, one party is better at it than the other. And it is not always with the best intentions that a politician tries to get a group of people on his side. But the time when you could crawl out of your bubble in The Hague once every 4 years to send your positions to 'the citizen', is really over. We want involvement, movement and inspiration. We want to believe in something that is bigger than ourselves.
The textbook examples come from America. Obama's campaign in 2008 was a huge effort with the central message: we change the country together. It was about the candidate. But it was also about you. You could contribute. You could participate. The best part came out in this speech.
During the previous elections, we saw Bernie Sanders' brazil whatsapp number list grassroots campaign form a movement of people who continue to fight together for a common goal to this day. Donald Trump also managed to gather a movement of people around him. In the Netherlands, GroenLinks tried to pull the same trick around Jesse Klaver, using Sanders as an example. Forum voor Democratie uses the same tactics as Trump .
What makes these parties successful?
They seek what they share with people – hope for change or anger about the status quo – give people the feeling that they can do something about it, and fight together to achieve the common goal.
That is exactly what companies can learn from these types of campaigns. By fighting together for a common goal, a bond is created that goes beyond a sales campaign, a savings card or funny webcare. It creates understanding and a shared experience. It ensures that you come closer together. Companies with people. And people with companies. It ensures that you become allies.
People want to be involved these days and are no longer satisfied with a place on the sidelines. They are more outspoken than ever and are looking for companies to have an opinion as well. Everyone in the Netherlands has an opinion about what should happen to our country. From grand visions about sustainability to the paving stones in the street. Not only people have that opinion, companies, NGOs and other organisations also have interests and visions. Some have already succeeded in involving people and fighting together for the same goal: such as Vandebron .