Billionaire turned celebrity turned two-time US President Donald Trump recently teamed up with bestie and adviser Elon Musk to perform a live-action Tesla ad on the pristine grounds of the White House. In a wholly dystopian display, Mr Trump was seen perusing a number of Tesla models, praising the designs with all the authenticity of a greasy salesman before settling on what he called a "beautiful" red Model S.
While I'll contest that the best adverts are often unexpected, this is the exact opposite of what I mean. In some respects, I'd expect nothing less of Trump, but personal gripes aside it's a prime example of lazy and uninspired advertising – go ahead and slap the presidential seal of approval onto Tesla, but at least try and make it seem authentic next time.
Performing to a team of hungry journalists, the pair perused five shiny Tesla models – Trump riffing with the crowd as Elon hamfistedly chucked in the odd feature or statistic. With candid carelessness, Trump then flashed a sheet of paper – a script of sorts noting each model's price and self-driving capabilities. "I'm not Biden, I don't need notes," Trump declared handing the scribings to Elon as he folded himself into the red Model S. "Everything's a computer, that's beautiful. Wow" he praised. Thus the deed was done. The world's laziest and most tepid product endorsement was complete.
Orchestrated as a favour to Musk, the stunt was presumably made to rekindle Tesla's dwindling sales. Witnessing a presidential figure advertising a commercial product is rare due to ethical constraints, yet Trump's unabashed endorsement proves he's unafraid to toe the line between celebrity and Head of State. While it's arguably rather dystopian to see the White House lawns debased to a glorified car salesroom, the ad redefines the conventions of influencer marketing. With the Senate playing salesman, America's political climate has never been more intertwined with consumerism, transforming the USA from the Land of the Free to a brand steeped in greed.
For more Tesla news, check out why some Tesla owners are covering up the logo. If you're after more political branding take a look at how merch defined the 2024 presidential election.
