By KWANCHAI RUNGFAPAISARN,
WATCHIRANONT THONGTEP
THE NATION
Published on June 13, 2011
They believe that most parties are offering short-term "promotions" with the main purpose of winning votes from low and middle-income earners who form the majority of the voting public, rather than building long-lasting brand awareness.
"With some progress in the development of brand identity and colour scheme, I still don't see political parties and leaders saying how their 'brands' and 'product' are qualified and how they can be good for people and the country," Dan Zonmani, managing director of Far East DDB, explained.
He added that party leaders, who represent the brand, were only launching short-term promotions instead of the brand itself. The best examples of this are the short-term populist policies designed specifically to attract votes and offer immediate benefits rather than long-term vision in managing the country.
"In my point of view, none of the parties are applying communications and brand-building strategies. They have overlooked many factors such as brand positioning, brand essence and core value," Zonmani said.
Short-term promotions are only attractive to voters in the rural parts of the country. High-income earners, such as business owners, would select parties that have long-term visions and leaders who are capable and able to represent the country at international events and forums.
Kitti Chambundabongse, chairman of Spa-Hakuhodo, said that the upcoming election was simply a battle of two brands, two clones, two personalities, two genders, two classes and two parties singing the same tune, promising voters "I'll do anything for you".
"I've never seen the streets filled with so many hoardings and posters and the social media and newspapers buzzing with gossip and stories about one of the most dramatic elections," Kitti said.
Kitti said that apart from the newly branded parties and new faces, the landscape of communication strategies and media channels remained the same.
"The only difference is that competition on the streets for a piece of the pie is very fierce, active and even brutal in some cases," Kitti said.
Witawat Jayapani, CEO of Creative Juice/G1, said that among political parties offering populist policies, the Pheu Thai Party remained popular among staunch supporters of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, while the Democrat Party was trying its best to reach the grassroots level.
"There is no colour in the ongoing political campaigns in terms of creative marketing ideas because every political party is offering populist policies. Also, the Election Com-|mission does not allow political parties to communicate with voters via the broadcasting media," he said.
Witawat said most political parties were using traditional communications methods to reach their voters, adding that direct marketing or meeting voters would be far more effective.
Danai Chanchaochai, CEO of DC Consul-tants and Marketing Communications, said both Pheu Thai and Democrat parties had given more significance to branding by using the party leader to present its populist strategies.
He explained that one of the very positive short-term outcomes of this relatively corporate and branded election campaign is that it provides an image of stability, something foreign investors will be looking for no matter which party wins.
Also, populist policies and promises from both leading parties of massive investments in infrastructure and job creation further creates an attractive environment for FDI (foreign direct investment), which will give Thailand a competitive advantage over its neighbours like Vietnam and China.
Danai said the Democrat Party was using social media to reach young and first-time voters, as well as those who are still undecided. A recent study showed that there are about 9 million voters who are still undecided.
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