This field-based case follows Andrew Yang, who went from an unknown to a major competitor in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential race. Yang’s initial rise to fame was largely owed to a group of young people who called themselves the Yang Gang. They made memes, GIFs, and music videos, had lengthy discussions about Yang’s campaign platform on Reddit, showed up at rallies, and served as small donors. This success, however, was a double-edged sword. While the Yang Gang brought the candidate name recognition, the marketing strategy that worked for this group of superfans did not work for the more conventional voter base. The case asks students to evaluate the role of digital in Yang’s brand strategy and establish strategic priorities for maximizing his chances of securing the nomination. Students must consider the importance of different voter segments to Yang’s campaign and consider how effectively each media channel (e.g., television, YouTube, email) speaks to each of the voter segments.
This case has been successfully taught in a second-year MBA elective on digital marketing. It was used at the end of the module about integrating—and going beyond—digital channels to grow a brand. The material encourages exploration of managing digital and traditional marketing tools among stakeholders with different objectives. This case can also be used to teach students about market segmentation, brand essence (using brand pyramids as a tool), and the concept of “crossing the chasm.” As such, it could also be used in a broader introductory marketing course.
