The Republican Party of Arkansas launched a new Web site today which embraces many social media tools including a blog, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube. The design of the site is clean and the navigation is straightforward. What’s more interesting is that the RPA seems to have developed a social media strategy. They used a video message from the chairman Doyle Webb to launch the site. And in the media release Mr. Webb notes, “The use of Facebook and Twitter will help us build online activits, and in turn, generate on-the-ground outreach for the party.” The RPA also gave a sneek peak of the site to local Republican bloggers David Kinkade and Jason Tolbert. It should drive a lot of traffic their way today.
Compare that to the clunky Web site of the Arkansas Democratic Party. It’s set up like a blog, which is a good way to manage content, but the upper and sidebar navigation is terrible. And if you click through the upper navigation links you’ll only find text, and very small text at that. Apparently the DPA is on Flickr and YouTube, but you’d never know it unless you peeled back layers of the site. Also, the DPA embraces external blogs, Robbie Wills and Steve Harrelson’s Under the Dome, but you only know that after two clickthroughs. Finally, why are Todd Turner’s messages in text only format?
Barack Obama’s online efforts re-shaped the way we understand online communications and politics. Republicans in Arkansas seem to get it. I’m stunned that the Democrats don’t.