Ad Age: What Brands Can Learn from the Current Political Moment

The 2024 election told a story far bigger than politics—one that demands the attention of brands everywhere. When Donald Trump improved his vote share across nearly every demographic, including core elements of the Democratic base, and won 93% of US counties, it wasn't just a political victory. It was a powerful signal that Americans demand fundamental change in how institutions engage with them.

It's not just Americans: In 2024, "every governing party facing election in a developed country ... lost vote share, the first time ... in almost 120 years of record keeping," according to the Financial Times.

With Justin Trudeau's resignation on Jan. 6, the streak continues. It is a clear trend that not just political leaders but global brands—themselves powerful symbols of incumbency—must address in some way if they want to stay healthy and relevant in 2025 and beyond.

People aren't merely angry, they're enraged—at the establishment, at disconnected leaders, at institutional paralysis and at the other half of the population. Look no further than some reactions to the murder of United Healthcare's CEO.

We know why: Except for the wealthy, real incomes haven't risen in more than 40 years. Everyday problems persist, including unaffordable housing, sky-high college costs, climate change disasters, gun violence, exorbitant insurance rates, loss of personal freedoms once guaranteed, harmful social media, degradation of norms and more.

The failure is systemic. Inequality is at record levels. Capitalism works well for many of us, but no longer for our country's greatest asset, its middle class. Democracy itself feels like a luxury good to people struggling to get by.

The parallels between political and commercial brand dynamics are striking. Despite Kamala Harris's efforts, she struggled to position herself as an agent of change while remaining loyal to an unpopular president.

Established brands face a similar dilemma. They must balance their institutional strengths with the need to show they understand, and can quickly adapt, to the head-snapping changes in consumer sentiment.

For these incumbent brands, the path forward requires a reevaluation. Yesterday's successes matter less than today's actions. People want solutions. Brands must prove they "get it" in real time. When consumers demand change, the only viable response is to deliver it—both emotionally through brand messaging and tangibly through value delivery.

Authenticity is critical. The Democratic brand's association with coastal elites hurt the party. After winning reelection to the U.S. House in a red district, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) said "condescension" is the fundamental mistake leaders make. The fact that Trump improved the most from 2020 to 2024 with Latino and Black working-class voters highlights how quickly Americans will shift support.

David Axelrod has said Trump has a "feral genius" for framing issues. Trump's direct communication style—however dangerous and often inaccurate—resonates with voters who want straightforward language. To use a phrase coined by Anat Shenker-Osorio, host of the podcast "Words to Win By," Trump "Sells the brownie, not the recipe."

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a two-term winner in the hotly contested swing state of Michigan, follows this lesson. She has adopted a line a voter told her—"Fix the damn roads!"—as her own.

Connecting through shared values and communicating clearly about what you stand for is also essential. This is where many brands stumble. Do you scrap DEI programs like Walmart, or keep them intact like Costco?

Those who have kept DEI believe it is good for their business because it responds to that very desire for a transparent, forceful statement of values. In plain English, these companies state that they place customers and employees first, above the temporary whims of corporate convenience.

Ideally, a brand must demonstrate its values through action rather than just words, and no value is more important than fairness. NYU's Jonathan Haidt's moral foundations theory finds that fairness is deeply ingrained in both progressives and conservatives alike.

Americans think it's unjust, for example, that small businesses and taxpayers should pay for extreme weather disasters when oil and gas companies heated the planet (and denied doing so for years).

The brave new world ushered in by the American election wasn't a sudden change but a culmination of long-building frustrations. People are at their breaking point. Kristen Soltis Anderson, a Republican pollster, was asked what this election was all about. She said voters believe the country's not working, and what's worse, that they don't have a voice anymore.

For incumbent brands, the message is clear: Listen up, or else. Success does not look the same for every brand. What it demands is a deep understanding of Americans' emotional reality in 2025, a rethinking of how to engage with consumers, and a careful balance of values and responsiveness.

This article was originally published on Ad Age.