Posted June 8, 2017
There have certainly been hiccups for the UK Conservatives in the lead-up to tomorrow’s Election, but before the latest terrorist attack in London, they were using social media well to hammer home their campaign message.
One of the biggest mistakes leaders make in both media interviews and political campaigns is try to get too many points across and go into too much detail. They need a clear and simple message and repeat it again and again.
A former Conservative Party leader knew this many years ago. Winston Churchill said this:”If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.”
This repetition of the basic message is what the Conservatives were doing well, although security obviously become a major focus after the terrorist attack.
For example, here are a few tweets that were all sent out on May 30. This is only a few examples of many.
“Only Theresa May can and will get the best Brexit deal for Britain. The other parties want to frustrate Brexit.”
“Corbyn has no plan to deliver Brexit, and has already admitted he would give control of our borders and control of our laws back to Brussels.”
“Last night's #BattleForNumber10 showed that only Theresa May can negotiate the best Brexit deal for Britain.”
In the coming campaign in New Zealand, all political parties will need to follow this approach on both social and traditional media. It’s the only way to get their messages through. The more points they try to get across and the more detail they use, the more likely it is that the message won’t register with potential voters.
Another relevant quote here is from George Bernard Shaw. “The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
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