Ugh, Politics

I normally like to keep my nose out of politics, especially in a public forum like this however one name has stood out to me since day one of announcing their presidential campaign. That name is Donald Trump. When Donald Trump first announced his candidacy everyone I talked to took it as a joke. As the race for both parties nominations began to heat up, the American people began seeing more and more about Trump. It seemed like overnight Trump began to look like a very real possibility for securing the nomination of the Republican party.

As the race continues to heat up I can't help but wonder, how has Trump gone from complete joke to a "serious" candidate? I took to the Internet to find out and found an article from USA today with several different explanations for Trump's popularity. 

• Candor- So apparently people love it when public figures, especially when that person is a public figure. Trump doesn't care how he comes across and it seems people have taken a liking to that. 
• Leadership- Trump has been a business man for years and that comes across to a lot of people as leadership ability. Although running businesses does not automatically equate to leadership skills, many people believe the two are directly related. 
• The Outsider- It is a huge plus for many people that Trump is not a lifelong politician. 
• The Celebrity- Going along with being the outsider, people who might not be involved in politics know his name from his tv show. 

Even after reading articles explaining why people are jumping on the Trump wagon, I still don't get it. This is a great lesson to me that when you look at someone and think they are being irrational, they might be thinking the same thing about you. Being able to cross that divide and create a commonality is what makes marketing effective.