No, I’m not planning on running for Governor, but I have had the privilege of interviewing Maine Gubernatorial Candidates, Rosa Scarcelli (D) & Matt Jacobson (R), on The Brand New TV Show.

What I found most interesting in talking to the candidates, is that both Rosa & Matt understand that importance of Social Media. Essentially the gubernatorial race is a numbers game, you do not have to beat your opponent, you just need to have more supporters. The viral nature of social media lends itself to that very well. Did you know that there are over 350k Mainers on Facebook? Securing even a fraction of that number would bode very well for either candidate.

Particularly fascinating is that Matt Jacobson is doing all of his own tweeting and Facebooking at this time. Although that might change, Jacobson states that he only wants to put out what he finds interesting and will be interesting to others rather than using social media as a broadcast channel.

One cool concept that Rosa Scarcelli implemented was a community feedback system entitled, “Ideas for Maine” where Mainers have the opportunity to send her their own personal ideas and thoughts of how Maine should be run.

I walked away from both Rosa & Matt, thinking these two get it. But as Jacobson put it, ‘there is no blueprint for this stuff’. He is correct. So, I thought I’d put together a couple strategies I would use if I were running for Governor:

Event Photos: I’d bring a photographer with me or have my campaign manager take photos at every offline event I did. Photos with locals, photos with other politicians, business owners….everyone. After every picture I would hand the person in the photo a business card with my Facebook Address on it that says, “Tag yourself” in this photo.
Bonus: I’d also upload these photos to Flickr and use Animoto to create a slideshow, which I would upload to YouTube and Facebook.

Video Series: I’d create a weekly video series where I answered questions from the street, or in studio interview session or even just a personal branding piece, when they watched me with my children sledding down the eastern prom, eating at Local 188 or talking to Maine business owners.
Bonus: I’d use TubeMogul to upload the video to over a dozen video sharing sites.

Mobile: Because I’m a mobile freak. I’d have an iPhone application which gave supporters information about my upcoming events, access to my videos, blogs and even the ability to send me a question.
Bonus: I’d also have supporters sign up to get text alerts from me. <--This is effective the week and especially the day of voting.

Once again I want to thank Rosa Scarcelli & Matt Jacobson for allowing me to interview them and pick their brain on how Social Media will be playing a role in their campaigns. Good luck to you both!