09/09
The Kamala Harris Presidential Campaign - A Classic Brand Challenger Strategy
Let’s face it, we’re a country that loves a challenger. We cheer for Rudy, the 1980 US Olympic hockey team, the 2007 NY Giants, the people or teams who have the odds stacked against them (yes Pio, these are sport examples).
Challenger brands know this, embrace it, and deliver on it. Some of the most famous marketing success stories of all time followed this playbook. Apple vs. IBM, Apple vs. Microsoft, Pepsi vs. Coke, Avis vs. Hertz (Gen Z marketers, look these up, it will be worth it).
Pio and I have done a few of these ourselves through the years - Powerade vs. Gatorade, Droid vs. Apple, PayPal vs. Apple, among others. In short, we love a good challenger brand.
So when we look at Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, we see a classic challenger brand strategy being deployed. The purpose of this article is not to give a political POV, rather it's to show how the Vice President is using, and we’d argue effectively implementing, a challenger brand strategy. We promise to do our very best to withhold any political biases we might have. And yes, we know the polls are neck and neck so you might question if Harris is a challenger. But Harris started behind Trump and immediately deployed a Challenger brand strategy.
When building a challenger brand strategy, the formula is pretty simple.
- Pick your foil.
- Understand the consumer problem to solve.
- Create a tension between what your foil stands for vs. what you stand for.
- Ensure your brand is built to counter the foil - across brand strategy, voice, visual identity, communications, and every touch point.
With that in mind, let’s examine Kamala Harris’s challenger brand strategy.
The Target:
The independent undecided voter
The Foil:
Former President Donald Trump
The Key Problem to Solve:
Many independent voters are undecided voters (although this has changed somewhat over the past few months). When reading the polls, you’ll find many independent voters leaning toward conservative economic policies but don’t align with the style and values of Donald Trump (as well as his views on abortion rights).
However, in Vice President Harris, they either don’t know much about her, or are afraid choosing her is choosing more high inflation and illegal immigration. (Again, we’re not weighing in on the politics here.)
The Opportunity (for the VP):
To offer a strong alternative to the chaos and divisiveness of Donald Trump. One that is stable, strong and capable. A campaign that welcomes all.
The Tension:
Joy vs. Fear
Sub-themes:
Welcoming vs. Divisive
Prosecutor vs. Felon
Young vs. Old
Democratic vs. Dictatorship
Stable vs. Erratic
Brand Personality:
Warm, joyful, strong, feminine vs. strong, alpha male.
Now, let’s examine how the Harris campaign brings their challenger brand to life. Let’s start with the Foil, Donald Trump, and watch one of his early campaign ads.
Early Trump for President Campaign ad:
Strategy: to drive hate of the Democratic party and Biden (pre-Kamala ad). To portray Trump as a hero while discrediting all of the chaos - lawsuits and the 2020 election.
Now, in contrast, let’s watch the Kamala Harris for President launch ad.
Kamala’s launch campaign ad:
Strategy: to be the alternative strong stable leader vs. Donald Trump. To reinforce the perception of Trump representing chaos and hate. And to redefine freedom. Freedom to get ahead, freedom against gun violence, freedom around your own body.
Immediately, you see a dramatic contrast. Scary vs. Positivity. Fear vs. Hope. For Us vs. For All.
Perhaps the biggest contrast you might find is on social media (Gen Z, you might need to break down some of this to your Gen X and Boomer colleagues). The campaign posts are funny and inviting. It reinforces the tensions of joy vs. fear, young vs. old. And they invite others to join in the fun.
“So for everyone watching who remembers what January 6th was, I say we don't have to go back. Let's not go back. We're not going back. It's time to turn the page. And if that was a bridge too far for you, well, there is a place in our campaign for you. To stand for country. To stand for our democracy. To stand for rule of law. And to end the chaos. And to end the approach that is about attacking the foundations of our democracy 'cause you don't like the outcome. And be clear on that point. Donald Trump the candidate has said in this election there will be a bloodbath, if this -- and the outcome of this election is not to his liking. Let's turn the page on this. Let's not go back. Let's chart a course for the future and not go backwards to the past.”
Ultimately, election day will tell us if the VP’s challenger brand strategy is successful. But considering how far she was behind in the polls just two months ago, we think it's working. She clearly has a defined foil, understands the consumer problem to solve, clear tensions and consistent communications against her foil.
