Eddy Badrina is the co-founder of the digital marketing agency Buzzshift.
Two Internet domain stories about high-profile people came out this week. In one, Sen. Ted Cruz, who had just announced he was running for president, had to face the reality that tedcruz.com is owned by somebody who is using it to support President Barack Obama. (Cruz’s campaign uses tedcruz.org.) In the other, Taylor Swift made news by proactively buying up “TaylorSwift.porn” and “TaylorSwift.adult,” domains that would otherwise become available for anyone to purchase come June 1.
The contrast between the two stories highlights how politicians like Cruz, who are in the business of promoting their personal brands, could learn a few things from the tech-savvy marketing of Swift and other young celebrities. In particular, there are three basic principles that public figures should follow:
Start early: Whether you intend to run for city council or you’re content with being a voting citizen, you should have your own domain name. Think about it: For just the price of three lattes, you can secure insertyourownnamehere.com for one year. Even if you never intend to put a blog or website on it, about $14 a year is a pittance to pay to ensure no one else can own your name online.
Think strategically: If you’re a politician, you shouldn’t limit your URL buying to just one domain. See if you can get your last name .com, if it is available, along with your first name. Buy up the .org, .net, and .info domains as well. Look to claim common political slogans, too, such as yourname2016.com, yournameforamerica.com, etc. With more than 1,000 new top-level domains coming out, the older .coms and .nets are likely going to be even more valuable and authoritative in the eyes of end users. And don’t forget your social outposts. Social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram are already crucial ways of communicating with voters, and they will only get more important as the platforms mature. In addition, these platforms almost always pop up in the first page of search-engine results. As people search for your personal brand, you want to own as much real estate as you can in those search results. Swift has done a great job of the “land grab” game on social media, not only because her fans are on the cutting edge of new platforms, but also because she and her team are actively promoting her there.
Pick your battles: Politicians need to identify the platforms where they want to talk to potential voters and constituents, and where it is an uphill battle that is not worth the effort. For example, one Canadian would-be politician made the mistake of doing a Reddit Ask Me Anything, and it turned into a miserable PR failure. Open forums are essential to public debate, but politicians need to be fully prepared to give honest answers without getting defensive and divisive.By contrast, Taylor Swift says she doesn’t even read articles that she knows will upset her. “Is it important to my life?” she asks. “If the answer is no, then I just don’t click.” As a celebrity or politician, there are going to always be people, news media, or commenters that say things just for attention, or who will never change their minds. And they just aren’t worth engaging.
Politicians need to be thinking strategically about these reputation-management and online-identity issues. For everyone else, it’s never too late, or too trivial a task, to establish your online presence.
PHOTOS: See Taylor Swift Over the Years
Taylor Swift arrives at the 2006 CMT Music Awards at the Curb Event Center at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.John Shearer—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift arrives at the 2007 CMT Music Awards.Kevin Mazur—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs during the 42nd Annual Academy Of Country Music Awards held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2007.Ethan Miller—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs during the Academy of Country Music New Artists' Party for a Cause show at the MGM Grand Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2008.Ethan Miller—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs live on MTV's "TRL" at the MTV Studios in Times Square in New York City in 2008.Gary Gershoff—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift attends the 42nd Annual CMA Awards at the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee in 2008.Ed Rode—WireImage/Getty ImagesSinger Taylor Swift arrives at CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California in 2008.Jon Kopaloff—FilmMagic/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs on Saturday Night Live in 2009.NBC/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift arrives at the Brit Awards 2009 at Earls Court in London, England.Gareth Cattermole—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs during the 44th annual Academy of Country Music Awards All-Star Jam at the MGM Grand Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2009.Ethan Miller—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at Madison Square Garden in New York City in 2009.Theo Wargo—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift arrives to the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Stephen Lovekin—FilmMagic/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the 43rd Annual CMA Awards from the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee in 2009.Katherine Bomboy—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs onstage at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards held at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California in 2010.Michael Caulfield—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift drops one of her awards during the 52nd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California in 2010.Valerie Macon—AFP/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the CMA Music Festival in Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.Rick Diamond—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs during the Grand Ole Opry 85th birthday bash at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.Tony R. Phipps—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs "Back to December" at the 44th Annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.Rick Diamond—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift attends the 'Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty' Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2011.TIMOTHY A. CLARY—AFP/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.Jason LaVeris—FilmMagic/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the Radio One Teen Awards at Wembley Arena in London, England in 2012.Mike Marsland—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the Radio One Teen Awards at Wembley Arena in London, England in 2012.Mike Marsland—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift switches on the Christmas lights and performs for fans and shoppers at Westfield London in London, England in 2012.Mike Marsland—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift arrives at the 26th Annual ARIA Awards 2012 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia. Don Arnold—WireImage/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs on stage during the 26th Annual ARIA Awards 2012 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia.Brendon Thorne—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs during night 1 of the 2012 KIIS FM Jingle Ball at Nokia Theatre LA Live in Los Angeles, California.C Flanigan—FilmMagic/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift in concert at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts in 2013.Barry Chin—Boston Globe/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs while Candice Swanepoel walks the runway at the 2013 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at the Lexington Avenue Armory in New York City.Jamie McCarthy—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the Mercedes-Benz Arena on May 30, 2014 in Shanghai, China.ChinaFotoPress/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs onstage during the 2014 American Music Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on Nov. 23, 2014 in Los Angeles, Ca.Michael Tran—FilmMagic/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs at the 2014 American Music Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on Nov. 23, 2014 in Los Angeles, Ca.Christopher Polk—Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs on The Voice in 2014.NBC/Getty ImagesTaylor Swift performs during the 2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at Earl's Court exhibition centre on Dec. 2, 2014 in London, England.Dimitrios Kambouris—Getty Images for Victoria's SecrTaylor Swift performs onstage during KIIS FM's Jingle Ball 2014 at Staples Center on December 5, 2014 in Los Angeles, Ca.Christopher Polk—Getty Images
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