Romney and the Question of Timing For UGC

Posted by: Heather Green on August 29

So Mitt Romney’s online team sent out an email announcing a new program they have, asking supporters to create a TV spot for him. Romney’s team is asking folks to mash together photos, videos and audio clips provided by the campaign or to use their own content. The contest is being held on Romney’s page on Yahoo’s Jumpcut.com editing site.

It’s a good idea and one that, like Clinton’s voting contest that let people pick the campaign’s song, shows how technically web savvy this crop of presidential candidates is.

But is it smart right now? Given the news swirling around his campaign manager, Idaho Senator Larry Craig, and even some GOP leaders call for an ethics investigation, it makes you wonder what kind of ads might come in.

These kind of outreach and inclusion programs, as GM learned, can often tap into a topical issue or scandal that can have them spinning out of control. Timing is just as important, I would argue, with these kinds of strategies as with any other that a campaign does, such as when they will bring up issues in relation to current events. They don’t exist in a bubble.

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