So I've been grading the RNC convention, from a PR perspective, as around a D.
Last night was the final night of the convention and included Mitt Romney's keynote.
So let's delve in to the final PR rating.
Mitt Romney's keynote: B
Mitt did a good job in his keynote. Much better than I thought he would.
He personalized himself with stories of his past.
He got the crowd to laugh a couple of times.
He used religion heavily to make his points (something the GOP base will like).
And he laid in to Obama in a 'nice cop' kind of way. He painted Obama as a good guy who got in way over his head and as a result the country suffered.
The reason I didn't give him an A for his keynote is simple, it was all pandering and no substance.
He says he's going to fix everything and create 12 million new jobs, but doesn't explain how he will do this.
In essence, what he gave was a 2008 Obama 'Hope and Change' speech, except he used different words.
Take this simple part of his speech:
"Now is the moment where we can stand up and say, ``I am an American, I make my destiny, we deserve better, my children deserve better, my family deserves better, my country deserves better.''
That's exactly what Obama was saying in 2008... that America deserved better... that they deserved 'Hope and Change'.
So all in all, good speech by Romney, but nothing that will last. In a week from now no one will remember he even gave a speech because there was nothing to take away from the speech.
It's clear that the GOP are going to run on a simple platform - Obama failed. Not that they have the solutions or anything, just that Obama failed so you should fire him.
Clint Eastwood keynote: C
Clint Eastwood was the mysterious guest the other day. His speech was odd to say the least.
Note to PR folks, it's generally not wise to use people in their late 70s and 80s in public speaking forums. Whether its Eastwood or Warren Buffet or George Soros.
The problem is when you get that old the brain slows down and it's very easy to get lost when giving a speech. Giving speeches is difficult at any age, but in your late 70's it must be extremely difficult.
And even if you manage to keep the train of thought going, people in their 70's generally talk slowly and without a lot of energy. They are old after all.
So for the audience listening, unless they love the speaker so much that they don't care about the delivery (and one can argue that's the case with Eastwood), listening to someone in their 70's/80's can be quiet boring.
Regardless of all that though, Eastwood served his purpose, which was to say publicly that he believes Obama should be fired. He even went so far as to use the 'throat cutting' motion to emphasize this guy needs to go.
Overall Rating for the RNC Convention: C
So I was rating the convention a D, but Mitt saved the day somewhat. I don't think he pulled it from the fire, but I do think he established himself as a serious contender to Obama.
While Mitt got a six point bump in the polls from the convention, that lead will likely disappear in the coming weeks (and may even turn negative after the Dem's hold their convention).
So I don't think the RNC convention really gives Romney any momentum, but it didn't hurt him either.
Ultimately, it looks like this election will probably be determined when Romney and Obama face off the presidential debates.
That will be a PR spectacle to behold. It's pretty clear that Romney will paint Obama as someone not ready for the job he took. And Obama will paint Romney as a cut-throat capitalist serving the one per cent.
Both of these things are true, so it will be interesting to see who can pull a Houdini and somehow manage to get people to overlook their serious flaws.
Last night was the final night of the convention and included Mitt Romney's keynote.
So let's delve in to the final PR rating.
Mitt Romney's keynote: B
Mitt did a good job in his keynote. Much better than I thought he would.
He personalized himself with stories of his past.
He got the crowd to laugh a couple of times.
He used religion heavily to make his points (something the GOP base will like).
And he laid in to Obama in a 'nice cop' kind of way. He painted Obama as a good guy who got in way over his head and as a result the country suffered.
The reason I didn't give him an A for his keynote is simple, it was all pandering and no substance.
He says he's going to fix everything and create 12 million new jobs, but doesn't explain how he will do this.
In essence, what he gave was a 2008 Obama 'Hope and Change' speech, except he used different words.
Take this simple part of his speech:
"Now is the moment where we can stand up and say, ``I am an American, I make my destiny, we deserve better, my children deserve better, my family deserves better, my country deserves better.''
That's exactly what Obama was saying in 2008... that America deserved better... that they deserved 'Hope and Change'.
So all in all, good speech by Romney, but nothing that will last. In a week from now no one will remember he even gave a speech because there was nothing to take away from the speech.
It's clear that the GOP are going to run on a simple platform - Obama failed. Not that they have the solutions or anything, just that Obama failed so you should fire him.
Clint Eastwood keynote: C
Clint Eastwood was the mysterious guest the other day. His speech was odd to say the least.
Note to PR folks, it's generally not wise to use people in their late 70s and 80s in public speaking forums. Whether its Eastwood or Warren Buffet or George Soros.
The problem is when you get that old the brain slows down and it's very easy to get lost when giving a speech. Giving speeches is difficult at any age, but in your late 70's it must be extremely difficult.
And even if you manage to keep the train of thought going, people in their 70's generally talk slowly and without a lot of energy. They are old after all.
So for the audience listening, unless they love the speaker so much that they don't care about the delivery (and one can argue that's the case with Eastwood), listening to someone in their 70's/80's can be quiet boring.
Regardless of all that though, Eastwood served his purpose, which was to say publicly that he believes Obama should be fired. He even went so far as to use the 'throat cutting' motion to emphasize this guy needs to go.
Overall Rating for the RNC Convention: C
So I was rating the convention a D, but Mitt saved the day somewhat. I don't think he pulled it from the fire, but I do think he established himself as a serious contender to Obama.
While Mitt got a six point bump in the polls from the convention, that lead will likely disappear in the coming weeks (and may even turn negative after the Dem's hold their convention).
So I don't think the RNC convention really gives Romney any momentum, but it didn't hurt him either.
Ultimately, it looks like this election will probably be determined when Romney and Obama face off the presidential debates.
That will be a PR spectacle to behold. It's pretty clear that Romney will paint Obama as someone not ready for the job he took. And Obama will paint Romney as a cut-throat capitalist serving the one per cent.
Both of these things are true, so it will be interesting to see who can pull a Houdini and somehow manage to get people to overlook their serious flaws.
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