cre8Buzz Blog

Isn’t that an oxymoron? Absolutely. But the electorate’s tastes are evolving. Check out this great interview and the preview quote below:

“This is the first cycle where authenticity is really in the fore, both in how people view the candidates and how pundits describe the race. You can have hardly any article out there today that doesn’t talk about the level of perceived authenticity of this or another candidate. I daresay that in the end, whoever wins is going to be the one whom more voters perceive as authentic.”

Right or wrong we put tremendous value on a candidate being genuine. We like our cowboys and workboots and rolled up sleeves and straight talk and flag pins other “Real American” traits. On the other hand, being primped, a la John Edwards’ famous video is the kiss of death. As is being seen as untruthful or a flip-flopper. In fact, it’s so important that we’ve boiled down our electoral decisions to silly questions like “Who would you rather have a beer with” polls from previous elections.

Earlier this year I spent some time talking about how people want Authentic connections and how it can make for a better online experience when a site is “real” Well, politics, by nature are pretty contrived. However, some see the importance of Authenticity being at an all time high. Interestingly enough, I believe that they way we judge authenticity has changed and is growing more sophisticated. Kissing babies and
evoking the name of the town you are speaking dozens of times was once the way to connect but we now see it as pandering and fake.

For you Simpsons fans:

Spinal Tap is playing in the Simpson’s home town of Springfield (with reference to neighboring rival town of Shelbyville)

Nigel Tufnel: [addressing the crowd] We were told they knew how to rock in Shelbyville.
[the crowd 'boos']
Derek Smalls: But nobody rocks like…
[looks on the back of his guitar where he has placed a reminder of the name of the town they're playing in]
Derek Smalls: Springfield!

Ok, I think the same thing is happening with our online communities. Users are growing more sophisticated and some are demanding more. It’s no longer enough to be able to connect with friends, share a couple of pictures and catch up. Some want more. We at the ‘Buzz sure think so.