Gore Org Nets GOP.com Al Gore may not have invented the Internet, but his party has proven adept at using online tactics to its advantage.
Shortly after Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush revealed his choice of Richard Cheney as his running mate, the Democratic National Committee gleefully announced it had reserved the corresponding online address (www.bush-cheney.net), and was using it to put a harsh spin on Cheney’s conservative credentials.
The Democrats struck again when, in mid-September, the Bush campaign unveiled its revamped strategy, with the catch phrase “Real plans for real people.”
Gore/Lieberman Inc., the official organization behind Gore’s presidential run, announced that it had reserved www.realplansforrealpeople.com, www.realplansforrealpeople.net and www.realplansforrealpeople.org.
At press time, the site led to a treatise on which campaign held the better “Blueprint for the Middle Class.” Not surprisingly, the GOP plan came in second in a head-to-head comparison.
But the Democrats, while quick on the draw to reserve the sites, seem to have forgotten that constituents may actually view all of them. The dot-net and dot-org sites lead to a bright blue screen with the following words in white type: “For Real Plans for Real People, Vote Democratic and”
Well…nothing else.
While the Gore/Lieberman camp gets kudos for its alertness, it loses points for violating an elementary marketing rule with the unfinished page: Never leave an opening for which some smart aleck can supply an answer.
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