Abstract

This case is about Barack Obama, the 44th President of the US, and how he used integrated marketing communications (IMC) to win the 2008 US Presidential elections. For the first time in the history of the US Presidential Elections, the Internet was used widely and effectively for both campaigning and fund raising purposes. Obama also used the traditional methods of marketing which accounted for 50% of his fund raising. The case shows how Obama carefully tailored his campaign by targeting people of different age groups, communities, and professionals systematically to achieve success in the elections. Obama tapped the growing community of people who preferred the Internet and mobile phones to television. Other G7 countries had in the past tried to use the Internet as a tool for campaigning but it was not used as effectively and consistently in the past, according to experts.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Analyze how Barack Obama used the new media effectively in his election campaign Understand how integrated marketing communications can be used effectively Appreciate how new media such as the Internet and social media can be used effectively and economic

Keywords

Integrate marketing communication, campaign, New media, Communication, Marketing communication, Market segmentation, Targeting, Social media, Barack Obama