The other day I watched an Old Navy spot. They have used those spots to get a jingle inside your head with dancers, moving cameras, vibrant colors and of course driving home what they are selling. They completely understand the relationship between visual and hearing.

Then I looked at the marketing dollars that are spent on this election year. How can politician marketing not change the standard mud slinging commercials and re-invent themselves in a positive light with a killer sound track? Why have political commercials stayed the same for over 40 years? The “brand” of each candidate seems to be fighting for their life. It is believed that the consumer only wants the sensationalism of individuals fighting each other and whoever has the better argument typically wins.

But what if….each commercial was a competitive advantage for that candidate? That its truth and inventiveness would go viral and be viewed on YouTube, posted on Twitter and Facebook and Americans wanted to get involved again? Wait a minute. I just described every product commercial on television today. This is nothing new. Over three million people “like” Old Navy on Facebook. It’s a clothing store, but that many people like the image of what it represents. So if there is one simple lesson out of this, why can’t human beings have that feel-good brand and make watching political commercials worth watching? It’s not hard and to me, you have a better chance to win.

In 2010, researches believe approximately $4 Billion was spent on the midterm election. 2008′s Presidential Election cost over $1.7 Billion not including other elections, and likely topped over $5 Billion. The off years such as 2009 tend to lag significantly behind at around $2 Billion. This is a marketing lesson of what it takes to be “liked.”

”Three words: Vice President Oprah.”
—the #1 item from Barack Obama’s Top Ten Campaign Promises, which he presented on the Letterman show