A new trend, in what Politico’s Eamon Javers calls “fickleness” among consumers and voters, is causing grief among advertisers and pollsters alike. Javers suggests the American people are now, “less beholden to old attachments and more willing to make dramatic changes in lifestyle and preferences.”

Javers points to a series of examples ranging from switching cell phone providers to the increasing divorce rate among marriages of 50 plus years to the overnight popularity of Barack Obama and his administration. The implications of such trends are unclear, but such a drastic change in the collective social behavior could be threatening to the traditional American political system.

There are indicators that the erratic nature of public thought and opinion has forced those invested in political outcomes to be more creative and innovative, in order to maintain an edge.  This has lead to a push for politicians to create an active presence on social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.  These outlets have allowed politicians to speak directly to their constituents and voters on pressing issues – providing immediate feedback and opinion before they even vote on a piece of legislation.

Javers uses Apple’s destruction of the iPod (with the introduction of the iPhone and iTouch) as an example of a corporate strategy that encourages the death of loyalty to a flagship product for another newer and better product. Political trends often ride in the wake of private sector trends.  If such movement is as rampant as Javers claims, and companies are feeding into this rapid change trend, political behavior and political tactics are sure to follow. Could loyalty to a party or cause become a thing of the past?  Could voters’ never ceasing hunger for new issues and new leaders change the way parties and political movements operate?

The concept of voters looking for the next big thing, could effectively weaken a long-term party or political agenda.  This could make it difficult for legislators to collaborate and make actual progress. A major effect could be the increase in ever-changing interests leading to the decentralizing of coalitions and parties (i.e. the current healthcare debate).  This also raises the question: will today’s issue matter come November?

Politicians’ careers might become endangered if they stick to principles.  They might find longevity by becoming dependent upon keeping up with fast evolving voter opinion. This is in the same vein as obsessing over polls or following the wind.

Be on the lookout for parties rolling out agenda’s as fast Apple operating systems.

 

A recent Nielsen Homescan analysis on the shopping habits of Obama and McCain supporters was reported in a article titled, Retail Politics: Shopping Insights For Obama & McCain Voters

The analysis shows notable differences in the shopping habits and holiday spending expectations of the American voter. The panel’s voting intent (55% Obama / 45% McCain) was similar to the actual nationwide election results (53% / 47%) and mirrored the state-by-state victories in all but three of the 48 contiguous states.

According to Nielsen Homescan, voters who favored Obama, tended to make more frequent trips across all outlets combined and in traditional retail channels.  While McCain voters may have made fewer trips, they visited the retail giant WalMart at a higher rate, and tend to outspend Democratic voters in terms of per-trip dollars.

Interestingly, despite massive electoral losses and concern about the prospect of higher taxes, the report also showed that McCain voters are slightly more optimistic about holiday spending. McCain voters also expressed more optimism about spending on entertainment inside and outside the home.

Nielson has a more in-depth presentation of these findings, with bar charts and all, here