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Machina Polina Sergeevna

1st year master’s degree student

Faculty of Marketing

Plekhanov Russian University of Economics

Scientific Suprvisor

Fominykh Nataliia Iurievna

Professor

Foreign Languages Department #1

Plekhanov Russian University of Economics

Abstract

The article considers the election campaign of Vladimir Alexandrovich Zelensky using the AIDA model. The author analyzes the steps of building communications in order to strengthen and slightly adjust the image of the candidate in the eyes of Ukrainian citizens in a situation of unstable economic and social situation.

Keywords: election campaign Of V. A. Zelensky, politics, image.

In early 2019, it was officially announced that Vladimir Zelensky intended to lead the country as President for the next few years. This was a complete surprise for many political observers, not to mention ordinary citizens of Ukraine. Despite the skepticism of experts about this decision and the result of well-structured steps and innovative solutions in the construction of the campaign, the candidate managed to defeat established rivals with Grand results in the result of two rounds of elections.

In a number of post-Soviet countries, the political sphere is considered too complex and inaccessible for ordinary citizens to understand. But in fact, these processes are subject to the same marketing mechanisms as the rest. The voter evaluates their past experience of interacting with the product, estimates its need for themselves in the current moment, or simply gives in to emotions in the “checkout area”. Zelensky’s rapid growth in politics does not fit into the usual framework for us. Many believe that the main role in the acclaimed Ukrainian TV series “Servant of the people"became fundamental for him. But this is refuted by the arguments of experts and data from opinion polls.

The campaign to promote this candidate was based on the classic AIDA model (attention, interest, desire, action). Zelensky began to win the audience’s sympathy as a student, taking part in the famous Comedy program of KVN. Later, he started producing his shows on the leading TV channels of Ukraine, leading the creative team “Kvartal 95”. Since 2012, they have signed a contract with channel 1+1, headed by oligarch Igor Kolomoisky. In their shows, the artists make fun of Russian and Ukrainian politicians of the highest rank in an acutely humorous manner, which can not fail to appeal to the audience. In this way, they to some extent sublimate popular discontent, translating into a joke difficult events for the country and criticizing the decisions of the current government. Nevertheless, even in spite of the humorous intonation, the electorate seems to be aware of the political situation. Thus, even before the release of the famous series, Vladimir Zelensky has a powerful media resource base. And the popularity in the entertainment sphere, designed to evoke positive emotions, helped him form it. His image was not overshadowed by participation in scandals, numerous love scrapes or conflicts with “colleagues in the shop”. On the contrary, he is an exemplary family man, a loyal friend and an effective leader of a large team for many years.

Zelensky managed to attract interest in his persona in 2015 with the release of the above-mentioned series. In the Comedy, the main claims of the people to power, uncompromising decisions were heard from his lips. Vladimir Alexandrovich became subconsciously associated with the image of his character in the electorate. Then the interest had to be translated into desire.

The candidate does not announce his desire to run immediately, but creates intrigue by launching information campaigns. So the first mention is his interview with the famous journalist Gordonov, which is several hours long. In it, the host talks about the comedian’s potential to become President of the country as a reliable fact. Also, in the process of dialogue, Zelensky is assigned the image of a"man of the people”. The viewer learns about his character traits, life principles, and the emotional side of his personality.

A long intrigue on the most significant night of the year for any post-Soviet person ends with a denouement. Zelensky’s native channel 1+1 broadcasts his speech, not the address of the then-current President Poroshenko at the turn of 2019 and 2020. With this action, the channel’s management increased the candidate’s credibility and importance in the eyes of voters.

Due to the reliance of opponents on old-fashioned methods of campaigning and easily disputed slurs on the candidate, the rating of the future President grew steadily throughout the election campaign. The final step was to hold a debate at the main sports stadium of the capital. This place was chosen because of the opportunity to invite real representatives of the people who can show a genuine reaction to the appeals of the candidates. Of course, all this was broadcast by the main TV channels to a huge audience.

In his addresses, Zelensky voiced an urgent and much-desired agenda by the main part of the population: he raised the issue of social justice, the corruption of the highest echelons of power, the trajectory of the digital economy, and the prospect of the state dissolving into a classless society. Zelensky also closes such an acute need of the population for new faces in politics. The global trend shows that showmen are becoming popular today, who appeal mainly to the part of the population that is not visible to the residents of the capitals. This determines the victory of Trump, Macron, Johnson, and now Zelensky. They talk and sympathize rather than with the residents of the capitals, but with the residents of the hinterland.

Citizens do not feel the necessary protection from representative immigrants near military structures that previously held high positions. “The people against the nomenclature” – emphasizes the political expert of the portal “Word and deed” Valentin Gladkikh. In addition, Zelensky and his party are often accused of abusing populist slogans and promises in the spirit of “For all good, against all bad”.

Zelensky’s strategy is based on the principle of “centering on singularity”. This implies a focus on isolated from the context of the candidate’s personality. People are invited to pay attention to a person who obviously does not have the necessary competencies, but has an interesting biography, the right origin and a successful position.

Needless to say, in a situation of global digitalization, the future President also focused on social networks. In addition to constantly flashing on his native TV channel, he actively maintained his Instagram page, which is worth noting to this day. This allows them to instantly respond to any information occasion, talk to the people in the same language, and break down such an established and traditional barrier between the population and representatives of high ranks. In their posts and videos, Zelensky’s team constantly emphasizes the desire to be closer to ordinary citizens and the willingness to take actions to restore peace in the warring regions and stabilize the common Ukrainian agenda.

Zelensky’s team has official accounts on Facebook, Instagram (9.2 million subscribers), Telegram (a total of 69 thousand subscribers), Twitter and two YouTube channels (See! President with 725 thousand subscribers).

“In every country where there is active attention to the political situation in Ukraine, curators were found (in Israel, America, Australia, Japan, Canada, and so on). Each of them created their own community. For them, the headquarters has allocated lawyers who answer questions – how to vote, how to become an observer in this country, and so on”, – said Mikhail Fedorov, one of the leaders of the digital promotion of the candidate.In addition, in most social networks there are regional pages of the Zelensky team – in each area, and in some several.

The main legitimate claim to the comedian was just his professional failure as a politician. He was not involved in state structures, never worked in the specialty of “Lawyer”, received at the end of the last century. History has known cases when a person of a creative profession was elected to govern the country. However, most often they were people who had just started their life in the entertainment industry, but later changed their professional sphere to get the necessary experience. The most famous representative of this kind of professional transformation was the 40th President of the United States, Ronald Wilson Reagan. He began his political career as Governor of the state of California, and when he became President, he was remembered for economic reforms to reduce taxes and state intervention in business processes. In a recent poll, Reagan was chosen as the best President by an audience of self-identified baby boomers. Interestingly, he ran for the Republican party, as did Arnold Schwarzenegger, Donald trump, and Clint Eastwood later.

Also, the events of recent years demonstrate that the traditional elites of European States are in a systemic crisis. The broad masses of the people are losing confidence in politicians who communicate with the population by clerical means, and who have been in front of the eyes of voters for many years.

In the case of the Ukrainian situation, Vladimir Zelensky chose absolute transparency as the main weapon in the political struggle.