What can the Trumpism phenomenon teach us about creating disruptive advertising that will get consumer attention?

What the United States experienced over the past four years has taught us something about marketing and messaging. With half the country voting for him again, it seems that something Trump has done resonated with millions of people. But how can we apply these strategies with selling products and services to consumers?

Trump has made it feasible to sell a product to millions of people without a track record, substantiation, vetting of claims, clinical results or any known price points. It is almost beyond any marketer’s fantasy. But it happened. And what can we learn from it as direct to consumer ad professionals selling through DRTV, Digital and Social vehicles?

Whether you like or hate the guy, he managed to tap into an emotion felt by many and was able to quantify it and we have seen that people came back for more. 

The group he largely appealed to was the disenfranchised. Folks that felt left behind. Folks that felt marginalized. Folks that felt misunderstood. Folks that felt as though no one was listening to them. They needed a hero, no matter how misguided or off the rails that hero might be. They didn’t fact check. They believed. They took a leap of faith.

So, how would someone launching or selling a product or service use this knowledge to ignite sales from a direct to consumer standpoint?

While not simplistic, one could glean small suggestions to keep an audience engaged and interested using some of the same strategies.

• Use populist themes. Don’t be too intellectual. Keep it simple. Don’t be above them. Be on their level.
• Use emotion. Sometimes emotion and the hope of a solution can resonate more than an over explanation of facts and figures. 
• Use simple themes or tag lines. They don’t have to be super creative, but they need to inspire promise and hope.
• Be repetitive.
• Be a bit pushy. And even outrageous. 

Since Trump was able to engage fully half of America, the tactics and strategies used to market himself should not go unnoticed from a marketing standpoint. He accomplished the impossible as a modern day P.T. Barnum, who not only entertained but closed the sale. How many marketers long for the same?