The race to the White House is on — and also online!

Presidential candidates are turning to social media because that’s where many potential voters are. For publishers, these social media users are your potential site visitors, so it’s good to know how the candidates are reaching them.

Augmenting their traditional media efforts, candidates for the 2008 Presidential election are also using various forms of social media, from blogs, message boards, podcasts, user-generated videos, photo-sharing sites and more. Barack Obama, John McCain and Hillary Clinton each have YouTube, Facebook and MySpace pages, which are updated frequently. This doesn’t count the scores of Facebook groups and MySpace pages maintained by their supporters.

Senator John McCain’s Facebook page is a good example of connecting and interacting with online users. The McCain campaign makes good use of online video and posts frequent updates on that site. The “Wall” section of Facebook allows folks to post their comments while the calendar section shows upcoming campaign events. the McCain campaign engages with the online user through different media: online video, comments section, sharing photos and an events calendar. McCain’s daughter, Meghan, has been drumming up interest in her father’s campaign with behind-the-scenes photos and video posts from the campaign trail.

Given the success of grassroots video for Senator Barack Obama’s campaign, it’s no surprise that part of his social media effort is a channel on YouTube. The channel also features a subscribe link, which is a great “pull” tactic. If you’re going to use online social media, consider the media as a pull tactic which draws interested persons to you and your site.

Senator Hillary Clinton’s Friendster site is a good example of establishing an online community.  On this social networking page, the Clinton campaign connects supporters to each other and becomes a centralized place for them to congregate online. Senator Clinton uses her blog to speak directly to her supporters, giving her message more of a personalized voice. If you’re an online publisher considering a way to personalize your company, blogs can provide such a path.

Social media can help the candidates—and you, too—but only if you follow some ground rules. Consider these guidelines laid out by the Social Media blog, and our interpretation of them:

1. Communication is conversation, not a monologue. Social media implies that you facilitate a two-way discussion, rather than a one-way bombardment of marketing messages. In short, this means that you stay engaged and in a discussion with visitors. Sometimes this dialogue will open you up for attacks, but that’s the part of the freedom that this discourse involves.

2. Participants are people, not organizations. Don’t hide behind a mask of anonymity; let readers know who you are and speak to them on the same level.

3. Honesty and transparency are vital. Folks know when you are enhancing the conversation with a sales pitch, and they’ll gladly ignore you if carry on this way. The more honest and transparent you are, the more readers will trust you. So don’t try to spin or manipulate the conversation; keep it honest and simple.

4. It’s pull, not push. Don’t try to force your message on folks in social media, because in this world, users are in control. Respect the ebb and flow in your dialogue.

It’s easy to see how these principles are applicable to political discourse. But they also can serve as the winning ticket for those of you considering casting a vote for online social media.

— Roger Park, Manager, Marketing Communications

Stay updated on the Election 2008 with the Yahoo! Political Dashboard