Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump ignored a staple of political (and brand) communications in his announcement of Indiana Governor Mike Pence as his running mate. The news ran on different platforms at different times, and lacked the cohesion that typifies many political campaigns. After the announcement, the seemingly disjointed communications continued in their first interview together in a "60 Minutes" segment aired July 17.
Known to buck established political customs in favor of a more personal approach, Trump remained true to his unconventional tactics as interviewer Lesley Stahl drew attention to the apparent personal and political differences between the two men. Pence also seemed to take a backseat in the interview, allowing Trump’s personality to take center stage. However, the amount of interruptions and exchanged looks between the two men seemed to betray a lack of preparation. The media coverage of the pair’s dynamic in the interview overshadowed their message of party unity.
On July 15, two days before the "60 Minutes" interview aired, the Trump campaign’s announcement of Pence as vice president lacked the kind of cohesion typical of political communications, as discussed in a Mashable piece that cited the work of Politico reporter Shane Goldmacher.
The first announcement came from Trump’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts, but neither his campaign website, nor Pence’s, was updated to reflect this information. Other social media sites like Instagram were left in the dark as well. The resulting mad scramble for information in the wake of the Pence's reveal as VP marked a missed opportunity for the campaign. With the right messaging, ads and execution this announcement could have been a major donation generator for the campaign.
For Republicans, this lack of unified messaging became a story in itself. Luckily for Trump and Pence, it's just another day on the campaign trail. Any other brand (one not named "Trump") would have paid a dear price for a similar lack of alignment and preparation.
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