What Sarah Palin's Leather Jacket Says to Voters

I don’t blame Sarah Palin for wanting to wear those fancy, go-to-meetin’ duds she’s been sporting on the campaign trail since her VP nomination.  Hell, if I had someone who offered to drop $150,000 on me at places like Saks Fifth Avenue, I’d give it serious consideration as well.

But not if I were running for Vice-President of these here United States (even if campaign headquarters insisted), and especially not if my whole persona had been built on the foundation of being “a simple Hockey Mom, toughing it out every day just like you.”

Those female supporters who saw themselves reflected in Palin’s eyes assumed that when she said, “Hockey Mom,” it meant that she ascribed to a particular set of values.  Whether or not those values exist in reality doesn’t matter - they exist in the minds of the voters.

Toughing it out.  Keeping it together.  Making ends meet.

Kind of hard to keep saying that when you’ve been dressed by Neiman Marcus on the donations of GOP voters, many of whom live in rural, wholesome blue-collar regions and lie in bed at night praying that they’ll have a job to go to tomorrow.

Words are powerful motivators.  But in the end, it’s the deeds that are the measure of anyone, male or female.

I’m just sayin’.

Comments

[Jennifer]

Puleeez. Like Obama's campaign did not spend money on his Hollywood image. One does not get to be the "top Marketer" according to Advertising Age without some serious image consulting dollars. How do Obamas supporters even begin to see themselves in his eyes? I resent that you haved used a blog I enjoyed for objective information to unfairly cover this aspect of Sarah Palin's campaign. I have a hard time believing your company would not invest in your clothing if you were to hit a state to state tour. Puleez.

[sondra]

Sheepishly, I kind of agree with Jennifer's comment. But I also want to add that I'm fascinated by the conversation at all. This is certainly a female thing, one of our pettiest and least attractive traits - to comment on other women's clothing. Palin DOES represent. WHO she represents is of no matter because I've rarely witnessed (other than maybe Lieberman) a more human-like politician - red pumps and all.

[Jeff]

I find it disappointing that you used your blog to comment on the cost of Sarah Palins’ clothing:

•Did you look into how the Obama campaign is spending its money?
•How much do Senator Obama’s suits cost?
•Will you check to see if the $447.39 Michelle Obama spent at the Waldorf on October 15th for a lobster and champagne dinner for two was funded by campaign money.
•How about a breakdown of the $550,232 listed by the Obama campaign as “Unknown Insufficient Info”

And if she looked frumpy, what would the comment be?

[Michele Miller]

Jennifer, Sondra, and Jeff:

Thank you for your insightful and passionate comments on this post. I really do appreciate you taking the time to add your thoughts.

In reading over my original post, I see that my error was that I was not clear enough in my intention. In essence, nearly all political campaigns are about branding. I was not commenting about Governor Palin's clothing; rather that the GOP campaign has potentially made a big blunder by purchasing this high-end wardrobe for her when, at the same time, they have been positioning Sarah Palin as the "average Hockey Mom." (Their words, not mine.) When there is such a conflict of messages, it's my belief that it can drive voters away. And yes, there are voters out there who are persuaded by non-issues like this.

I would come down hard on any candidate - or business - that falls into the same trap, just as I did when John Edwards built his multi-million dollar compound while advocating for the poor, and many of the companies I have lambasted in this blog over the last four years, particularly when they proclaimed they were reaching out to female consumers.

Branding is branding - it's the same for politics and for companies. If you say one thing but do another, you lose customers.

What I wish is that Sarah Palin had had more time...and more freedom... to do what she's been doing in the last few days - speaking to the press on the fly without aides standing by to direct the message or the mainstream media there to manipulate her intent. This is the Sarah Palin that I think really exists, and I know we'll be hearing from her in years to come. Her dynamic presence is not to be denied.

In closing, I'd just ask you to take care in quoting the stories that are in the press without validation - the original news item about Michelle Obama and the Waldorf has since been found to be false and has been retracted by the New York Post.

And if you do find out that Obama's suits - or Joe Biden's - cost a boatload of money, be sure to email me right away. I'll be the first to bust them, right here on this blog.

Thanks again for commenting - hope you'll continue to do so on other posts in the future.

All the best,
Michele

[Chas]

Jeff,
Michelle Obama was not at the Waldorf on October 15th. The story was retracted and the Reporter has stated they will NEVER trust that source again. The story was corrected the very next on October 16th and they confirmed that Michelle Obama was not even in town that day, did not stay at the Waldorf, and NO did not buy a Lobster champagne room service order.
I suggest you read the Post form the very next day when the story was retracted. You might also check the Republican schedule to see which Republican women was in New York on October 15th.
It's called projecting and lying.
There has been a lie from the start and was disproved so quick, because it was so easy. Now if he reporter and I use that term very loosely would have taken the minutes of time to check a widely published candidates schedule, they would have discovered they were being force fed ANOTHER Republican Lie. But that is the way it has been, McCain's campaign manipulates the media AGAIN and the media broadcast another Republican Talking Point. McCain has gamed the refs since the very beginning and it is just recently the media has covered his campaign mistakes, gaffs but there are still Republican water carrying reporters that still report Lie after lie just to benefit McCain,

Verify before you make a claim, that way you don't prove what you are, instead some people will just think you are what you are they will just suspect it.

[Joi]

Great points. I think when you said, "And if you do find out that Obama's suits - or Joe Biden's - cost a boatload of money, be sure to email me right away..." you hit the sexist nail on the head.

We don't know, and I doubt we ever will. Same way no one ever worried about how much Bush, McCain, Clinton, Gore, etc spent on their clothes.

When the world is watching, I think our politicians should look their best. After all, they represent us. It doesn't take that much money to look nice though!

I'm actually just as blown away by the amount of money spent on website banners, print and tv ads, etc.

The mind boggles when you realize how much good that money could actually do - how many people it could feed, clothe, and heal.

Great blog, by the way! I could read your writings all day and never check the clock once.

[Holly Buchanan]

Michele,

As another marketing to women specialist trying to write about politics from a marketing stand pint, I know how tough a road it is to try to blog about this subject matter. There's poop everywhere and it's almost impossible not to step in it.

George Stephonopoulos commented that "voting for president is the most personal decision a person can make."

I couldn't agree more. Because it is so personal, it's an absolutely loaded subject.

But shying away from talking about it isn't the solution. Politics IS marketing. It provides instant feedback. There is SO MUCH to be learned about marketing to women in this current political season.

Your point about "authenticity" being Sarah Palin's number one brand point is absolutley correct. Anything that takes away from that brand attribute is a negative.

One final note - at the risk of sounding like some kind of Kumbaya freak - I really do think we all have much more political common ground than differences.

one example - I was recently in Georgia and was speaking with a group of self-proclaimed "good old boys". Normally, you wouldn't think we would have anything in common policially, but I have to tell you, we had a great conversation.

So - I hope you'll keep the conversation going here as well.

Holly