Two weeks ago Barack Obama wanted to get an answer to a question that has been plaguing politicians for years: How can we engage more people in the democratic process? The question isn’t new but the way he sought answers sure is. He didn’t ask this during an appearance on CNN or during an interview with the NY Times. Instead he went to Yahoo! Answers and reached out there:
In the two weeks since he first posed that question there have been nearly 15,000 answers. Seemingly he has already accomplished part of his goal in asking the question – getting people involved. Many of the answers were well-thought out and provide excellent insight into his potential voter’s minds:
The first thing I would suggest is to reestablish the people’s trust in government. Many people have lost trust in the system and this leads to apathy. After all, who wants to participate in a process that is viewed as flawed or biased? I, myself, have become disillusioned with our democratic process (as have many others I know). Many people just no longer believe that the government has their best interest in mind.
Maybe if a party presented a candidate that behaved as if he or she had read the Constitution, and would end all the programs that don’t appear anywhere in it, rather than run candidates that might as well use “Me, too!” and “More of the Same!” as their slogans.
This is a user generated focus group. 15,000 responses to study and use to help shape his image (especially for the online world) by. On top of that, it shows all of the loyal users of Yahoo! Answers that he is “just one of them” and speaking to them at their level and through their medium.
Are you reaching out to your target market through Yahoo! Answers? Are your competitors?
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7 Responses to “Barack Obama effectively using Yahoo Answers”
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Very interesting. I have experimented a little bit with Yahoo Answers but not in this way. I have answered questions (and dropped in the occasional link) when they are in my niche.
OMG- this is a GREAT story and really a wise idea for him to get the edge on votes since his campaign budget is getting so much attention for being “small” compared to Clinton’s. (Maybe he will even motivate people to vote who normally would not have, by showing he is involved and concerned at a grassroots level).
I really hope that this gets more media publicity and I will tell people I know that i heard it first on 10e20.com!
Thanks Erika
John – that’s a great way to use Yahoo! Answers. Just make sure you have a legit profile and spend time answering other questions (that aren’t promoting your business) as you will get a lot more out of it.
First I am not a democrat.
I am not sure if this is the right term to use, but the way he is spinning the internet with his methods really makes someone like me take notice and I will listen to more of what he is saying by his use of grassroots social networking.
Just imagine how many people read his questions and do not post an answer. I am sure his presence will be felt in the following years to come.
As an internet marketer I WILL be following his methods to market my own products and services.
Mark
You could have mentioned as background that Hillary Clinton posted a question about health care on Yahoo Answers back in Jan. of this year.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070124144113AAVmBL1
I LOVE BARRACK HE IS A ROLL MODEL I THINK HE WILL DO GREAT IN THE WHITE HOUSE
MAY GOD BLESS BARACK
Some very nice tips. Even though I practice most of these I didn?t think of the chat box. You have some really nice articles and a very beautiful layout, I wish you the best of luck.