Take a look at the online connection stats of the six remaining presidential candidates:
I got the above graph from a post on the Bivings Report from Hosam el-Aker.
While a lot can be derived from it, I’m going to make a quick observation on Ron Paul’s campaign. As you can see, he’s one of the most visited, connected, and friended online presences of all the candidates. Yet he lags far behind in the polls. Some will then question the power of the internet because of this.
I say that view is shortsighted and mistaken.
I bet that if you gauge they percentage of Ron Paul supporters who are involved with his campaign in some way online, said percentage would be astronomic as compared to the other candidates. The point there is that the other candidates have support both online and offline.
This likely means the demographics of his supporters are both internet savvy but not very influential. And his message, while unique and compelling, doesn’t resonate beyond his base. Digital strategies aren’t going to change that.
So I’d suggest that the Paul situation is not indicative of the power of or the weakness of a candidate, it just merely reflects the way support flows and ebbs in the offline arena as well.
The seemingly out-of-whack stats here are about passionate followers of a unique candidate who has a limited appeal.
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Fair, balanced, and rational, your analysis seems to fit the facts and illuminates both the power and limit of a passionate online political campaign.
Thanks for sharing both the rare data and your concise commentary. You convinced me.