Joe Biden’s victory over Donald Trump proved that American politics still has some semblance of sanity left.
The Democrat powered through the elections with the promise to “Build Back Better”.
And although the presidential slogan alone did not secure Biden’s victory, it’s a message the world won’t soon forget.
In this post, we’ll talk about why presidential campaigns use slogans and recall some iconic phrases to extract lessons video marketers will find useful.
Why do presidential campaigns use slogans?
The Corinthian: The Journal of Student Research at GC defines a slogan as “a rallying cry; catchphrase; a brief message that crystallizes an idea, defines an issue, the best of which thrill, exhort, and inspire.”
To craft these types of compelling messages, politicians use Aristotle’s three modes of persuasion from the Rhetoric: logos, ethos, and pathos.
What are logos, ethos, and pathos?
Logos – an appeal to logic
Employs facts and reason to persuade the audience.
Ethos – an appeal to ethics
Relies on the speaker’s authority, credibility, experience, or even popularity as a means of persuading the masses.
Pathos – an appeal to emotions
Applied extensively in narrative art, entertainment, film, literature, etc.
Related: Understanding the Role of Pathos in Advertising
An effective slogan relies on at least one of these modes.
The first presidential candidate to embrace this strategy was William Henry Harrison. He was rebranded “Old Tippecanoe” referring to the battle he won in 1811.
Now, let’s take a look at some more iconic presidential slogans and see what video marketing lessons await!
Iconic presidential slogans and lessons for video marketers
1944: Franklin D. Roosevelt — Don’t Swap Horses in Midstream
Rhetoric: logos
“Don’t Swap Horses in Midstream” means don’t alter your course of action in the middle of an ongoing project.
The phrase purely focuses on logos and offers a convincing argument.
Abraham Lincoln first used the slogan and was re-elected in 1864.
Franklin D. Roosevelt revived the catchphrase and secured an unprecedented 4th term.
The lesson:
Sometimes, nothing beats plain logic.
If you’re a business that wants to retain clients or customers, reminding them of the journey you’ve both been on can strengthen your relationship.
Create a personalized video for your clients or stakeholders and thank them for choosing your company time and again.
This will build goodwill and remind your stakeholders of how risky or inconvenient it would be to pick another company.
1952 Dwight E. Eisenhower — I Like Ike
Rhetoric: Ethos
General Dwight E. Eisenhower— nicknamed “Ike” — came from a humble background and was the personification of the American dream.
He leveraged his sterling reputation for his 1952 presidential campaign against Adlai Stevenson with a simple rhyme: “you like Ike, I like Ike, everybody likes Ike.”
“I Like Ike,” is still one of the most celebrated slogans in US history.
Ike owes his success to a Madison Avenue advertising executive who persuaded him to opt for a punchy animated campaign ad on primetime instead of a lengthy speech.
Read more: Top 5 Tips on How to Create Engaging Video Content
The lesson:
When in doubt, keep it simple.
Use brief engaging videos to stay top of mind. Short animated promo videos are a great option if you’d like to do it like Ike, too.
Interested in having a video made? Get in touch with our strategists to brainstorm ideas for your next project.
Schedule a free consultation call with our video strategist
1980: Ronald Reagan — Let’s Make America Great Again
Rhetoric: pathos
Former Hollywood actor Ronald Reagan’s presidential slogan may seem familiar: “Let’s Make America Great Again.”
The sentiment resonated with the American people because confidence in President Carter was eroding due to the Iran crisis.
The demographic shift toward a more conservative and aging population at the time also played a major role in Reagan’s victory.
The lesson:
Consider your audience’s state of mind.
Whatever message you plan to convey via video, first try to understand your audience’s hopes, dreams, fears, and problems.
Think about how you want to position your brand or business in the minds of your clients and craft your message to strike the right chord.
2008: Barack Obama — Change We Can Believe In
Rhetoric: pathos
Due to an economic crisis, polls showed that 80% of likely voters believed that the country was moving in the wrong direction.
The circumstances in America prompted presidential candidates to position themselves as agents of change.
Keeping everything in view, Obama went ahead with the slogan “Change We Can Believe In.”
Notably, his campaign was one of the first to take advantage of social media.
The main slogan became shareable content for supporters and eventually boiled down to one word: “Change.”
There was also a shift in the tone of the political ads. They were more aggressive and were created in a rapid-response fashion.
Most importantly, Obama’s messaging emphasized words such as “values” and “work”.
All of these tactics helped him gain the working-class voters’ trust and he made history as America’s first Black president.
The lesson:
Be mindful of the words you choose and use digital media to build your influence.
As a video marketer, you must make sure that your message is relevant and is distributed properly so it reaches the right audience.
Read more: The Best Video Distribution Platforms and Channels
2016: Donald Trump — Make America Great Again
Rhetoric: pathos
TV personality Donald Trump knocked off one word from Reagan’s slogan and adopted it for his 2016 presidential campaign: “Make America Great Again.”
He learned from Obama’s social media tactics and propagated an abbreviation of the slogan “MAGA,” for use as a social media hashtag.
Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States and “MAGA” became a pressure point in an America divided by his policies.
The lesson:
A short phrase that has the right associations can be powerful.
If you can craft a catchy message for your video that helps your audience make positive associations with your brand, you’ll be able to build a fiercely loyal following.
2020: Joe Biden — Build Back Better
Rhetoric: ethos
After a tense week of vote tallying, Joe Biden won the state of Pennsylvania and spearheaded the race to become the next president of the United States.
Biden’s ethos-centric “Build Back Better” campaign emphasized his character and years of public service.
In a video announcing his presidential run, Biden said, “If we give Donald Trump eight years in the White House, he will forever and fundamentally alter the character of this nation, who we are, and I cannot stand by and watch that happen.”
This year’s election will go down in history as one of the most bizarre.
The coronavirus pandemic forced Biden to adapt with drive-up rallies and digital campaigning.
Prevalent challenges included storms of misinformation and fears surrounding a vote-by-mail system.
Regardless, the 2020 elections shattered boundaries and mobilized people to vote.
The lesson:
Use your reputation to boost your brand.
As a video marketer, identify opportunities to take advantage of ethos.
An example of this would be to create thought leadership content featuring a credible company spokesperson.
Creating testimonial videos is another great way to market your brand based on ethos.
Read more: How to Establish Yourself as a Thought Leader Using Video
The takeaway
Using Aristotle’s modes of persuasion in any kind of communication can result in a more impactful message that sticks. It’s what separates memorable campaigns from passable ones.
To create winning ads and videos, marketers should carefully design their messages, too.
At MotionCue, we’ve helped international brands tell their stories in compelling ways through video content (check out our portfolio here).
If you’d like to experiment with video marketing for your business, then get in touch!
Schedule a free consultation call with our video strategist
Read more: 11 Types of Propaganda Techniques in Advertising (With Examples)