Last night, post election results, I was reading the latest Seth Godin book “Tribes” and was struck by the similarities between what Godin was saying, what some of us have been saying about social media, and how Obama and his team ran their campaign. I believe this was one of the most successful examples of a political social media program in history and there’s a lot to be learned from it.

In Tribes, Godin writes that to turn a group into a tribe you need two things:

• A shared interest
• A way to communicate

Obama presented a consistent message that resonated with people who shared an interest (whether they realized it at the time or not).

The campaign then executed a sophisticated social networking program that is unprecedented in any  marketing campaign – political or not (this is the ‘way to communicate’ part).   This week AdAge named Obama Marketer of the Year, and clearly he (and his team) earned it. From email to online banners, from blogging to Facebook, from Twitter to texting, this campaign used it all. And then the tribe took over.

Godin goes on to say that “a leader can help increase the effectiveness of the tribe and its members by

• transforming the shared interest into a passionate goal and desire for change;
• providing tools to allow member to tighten their communications; and
• leveraging the tribe to allow it to grow and gain new members.”

The Obama website provided just the sort of tools a passionate tribe member would want by first asking how you wanted to get involved and then matching the resources to your desire. Ask yourself what your customers really want and then give it to them. They will reward you with loyalty.

Godin writes: Every Tribe Is a Media Channel.

Never was this more true than watching the Twitter streams and reading the blogs about Obama. The tribe was on its way and sharing their feelings and passion was a daily adventure. People like Erin Kotecki Vest, whose blog is Queen of Spain, spent two years as a passionate media channel. She was a tribal leader, no doubt.

Certainly, with all the challenges our new president will face, there may be some mistakes along the way. Godin has a short chapter called “How to Be Wrong” and it reminded me of something that we at BG have believed for a long time. If you don’t make mistakes, you aren’t taking enough risks. Just be sure that you learn from them. Godin says the secret of being wrong isn’t avoidance, but being willing to be wrong and realizing that wrong isn’t fatal.

And finally, Godin writes about hope. “Leaders…have hope.” If there was one thing that the Obama campaign hammered home month after month, it was the message of hope. It’s a powerful thing and in marketing it’s part of the emotional connection you have to make with your customer.

Our client Vet-Stem sells the hope of a healthier pet. Del Mar Racetrack sells the hope of walking away a winner. And beautyencounter.com sells the dream of a more beautiful you. Thinking about what your brand promises leads to the hope you sell.

Whether or not Obama was your candidate, there are a slew of social media and branding lessons to be learned from this campaign that I think will be studied for years to come.