Supreme Court Nominee Requires Marketing Judgment, Per Mark Levit

Appointing a Supreme Court Justice is one of the toughest and most enduring decisions a President has to make. He must select a candidate that will appease Democrats and Republicans alike.

“At their inception, the parties differed views regarding the size and responsibilities of government, but those were issues Americans weren’t very interested in. As a result, the 2 major parties are differentiating themselves with branding attributes associated with ‘emotionally-charged attributes’ including abortion and guns,” according to Partners & Levit Advertising’s managing partner, Mark Levit.

So how will John Roberts appeal to both parties with such polarized views? “What he has is a marketing problem,” Levit said. “The Roberts ‘brand’ has to win the favor of two diametrically opposed market segments for his nomination to become an appointment.”

Compared to fifty years ago, the political arena is a marketing challenge. Candidates for elected office or any other high-ranking federal government position must appeal to an array of voters, committees, and decision makers.

“Grassroots campaigns of the early to mid 20th century made it easy for candidates to say one thing to gain the favor a group in one area of the country while pacifying others with different sentiments hundreds of miles away,” added Levit.

Now, technology has turned high profile candidates into specimens under a microscope. Currently both parties are scrutinizing every shred of pertinent information from legal memos and arguments to footage of interviews from years back, making it harder for a candidate to be inconsistent.

Discrepancies in records revealing conflicting opinions on sensitive issues such as abortion could give senators a reason to label Roberts as misguided. “If a marketing professional aired television commercials featuring inconsistent product attributes, customers would receive conflicting messages. You won’t trust the brand too much,” concluded Levit.

Essentially, Roberts will need to convince members of both parties that he can deliver on his brand promise to serve on the Supreme Court with the same case-by-case pragmatism as Sandra Day O’Connor. And, as with all brands, the message must be clear and consistent.

Partners & Levit Inc. is an aggressive New York advertising agency that leverages branding, advertising, sales promotion; direct response, seminar/event selling, the Internet, and other channels to guide prospects along a continuum until they become loyal customers. The agency’s heritage dates from 1981. For more information about Partners & Levit, visit www.partnerslevit.com or call 212-696-1200.