Here’s How Companies Faced Their Political Brand Messaging During the 2024 US Election

On November 5th, our friends across the pond set out in their millions to elect a new President of the United States. 

148, 727, 217 votes later, Donald Trump was re-elected for his second term in office. The response to his election has been astounding. Brands and consumers alike have flocked to their social media to mourn (or, in a few cases celebrate) the results. 

The question of political brand messaging and whether brands should be involved in politics is not unique to 2024. 2020 saw record-breaking amounts of political brand messaging. Yet, the 2024 election season saw brands struggle with the decision to speak up or stay silent. 

@glossier

Register to vote, check your registration status, or make a voting plan, all at weall.vote/glossier #glossier

♬ Star Spangled (Bass Boosted) – SNC

The debate concerns one simple question: What do consumers truly want? A brand that stays agnostic, or one that voices its beliefs loudly? 

Is there a solution, or, is this a question that truly has no answer? 

POLITICAL BRAND MESSAGING FROM 2020 to 2024

Each election cycle, brands find themselves placed on a sliding scale of political brand messaging, ranging from ignoring the whole affair, to encouraging people to vote, to announcing support for a specific candidate. 

Beauty and wellness brands have traditionally been quite split on the political brand messaging. Some choose to stay silent, whilst others use the opportunity to encourage votes for their favourite candidate. 

2024 was no different with our favourite brands either taking to social media in political passion or living in ignorance. What sets 2024 apart, however, is its stark decrease from 2020 in involvement from brands. 

This decline in political brand messaging is ultimately due to the unprecedented circumstances of 2020. 

The presence of Donald Trump in the 2020 race urged many brands who have traditionally kept quiet to speak out about the election. On top of this, the world was in a hyper-political environment due to the pandemic and the poor economy that it caused. This, combined with the number of social justice movements taking place at the time, caused many brands to use their platform for the first time. 

@rhode

today is election day 🗳 text RHODE to 26797 to make sure you are ready to vote and to find your polling location. it takes less than two minutes. 🤍

♬ Storytelling – Adriel

In 2024, however, it seems brands were not as fearful of the outcome of the election. 

This is not to say that no brand dipped its toe into the political brand messaging pool. Beauty and wellness brands such as Youth to the People, Rhode, Thirteen Lune, Hero Cosmetics, and Tower 28 all worked with I Am A Voter; an organisation that encourages voting. 

Glossier went even further, releasing a full-page ad in the New York Times that urged readers to vote. 

Needless to say, prior to the election the majority of beauty and wellness brands who were choosing to be involved stayed in the lane of promoting civil engagement; suggesting who they were voting for in subtle ways, but declining to fully pick a side. 

@iamavoter

Hailey Bieber is a voter. Text VOTER to 26797 to join us in making sure you are registered to vote so you are vote ready for all of your elections. #iamavoter #voting #vote #voter #haileybieber #rhode #registertovote

♬ original sound – I am a voter.

Whilst after President Trump was elected many brands took to their stories to blatantly curse the situation, political brand messaging was still on the whole far less intense and widespread than in 2020. 

So, what changed? What happened in the four years between 2020 and 2024 that caused beauty and wellness brands to hit reverse their political brand messaging? Bud Light. 

Whilst the Bud Light incident is not the only reason brands may have shied away from posting so boldly about politics, the importance of the event cannot be understated. 

In 2023 Bud Light released a campaign celebrating March Madness. Customers were able to enter the “Easy Carry Contest”, wherein they had the chance to win $15,000 if they showed off themselves carrying as many cans of beer as possible. 

Dylan Mulvaney, a popular transgender influencer, was brought on to promote the contest, taking to social media with a sponsored video. Bud Light even created a line of Pride-themed beer bottles and a special can of Bud Light for Mulvaney to celebrate her “365 Days of Being a Woman”. 

Perfectly harmless, right? A wonderful show of a brand supporting a major voice online, perfectly executing influencer marketing? 

@pinknews

#Rightwing #snowflakes are incredibly upset about #BudLight giving a personalised can of beer to #trans #influencer #DylanMulvaney – and now the beer company’s facilities across the US have received bomb threats. On Thursday (13 April), the #anheuserbuschbrewery factory in Van Nuys, #LosAngeles was the target of a bomb threat, as anti-trans bigots continue to rage over the beer brand’s collaboration with TikTok star Dylan Mulvaney. According to an Anheuser-Busch employee, this is not the only facility to have a received a recent bomb threat. Patch reported that several Budweiser factories have been targeted in this way, although exactly how many is unclear at the time of reporting. Following the threat, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that a bomb squad unit had conducted a sweep of the Van Nuys factory campus. #LAPD Leiutenant Leticia Ruiz told Patch that an emailed bomb threat was received at around 9am on Thursday, leading to the dispatch of a bomb squad unit. Lt. Ruiz said: “There was a search that was conducted in the premise of the building but there was nothing identified as a threat. We did assist in clearing the perimeter of the building.” What sparked these threats of mass violence? Budweister has been at the centre of a bigoted backlash since 1 April, when Broadway actor and social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney posted an Instagram video revealing a special can of Bud Light with her face on it, in honour of celebrating her 365 days of womanhood. Anti-trans social media users shared photos and videos of themselves pouring away or binning the beer, a self-described ‘Conservative Dad’ is now brewing his own “anti-woke” beer”, and Trump-supporting musician #KidRock filmed himself shooting four large boxes of Bud Light with an assault weapon. Kid Rock’s tantrum attracted criticism from comedian #rosieodonnell and radio and TV personality HowardStern. In the introduction to her Onward podcast on Tuesday (11 April), O’Donnell slammed Kid Rock’s pathetic shooting stunt and confirmed that queer and trans people “drink beer too”. #lgbtq #queernews #queertok #dylanmulvaneyedit #transinfluencer #transrightsarehumanrights #budlightboycott

♬ Suspense, horror, piano and music box – takaya

Not according to the right-wing social media users out there. The simple campaign escalated day by day, with users swearing to boycott the brand, until the conversation somehow found itself seeing Kid Rock shoot a group of Bud Light cans with an AR-15. 

Faced with this situation, Bud Light decided to do… nothing. The brand released a statement online that used far too many words without saying much at all and preceded to pretend Mulvaney did not exist. 

Mulvaney revealed in later posts that she faced death threats, stalking, and more, all the while Bud Light miraculously stayed silent. The act of hiring a transgender influencer only to leave her in the dark when things turned south, was to many worse than simply failing to hire a trans influencer at all. 

As such, Bud Light successfully managed to alienate and disappoint both sides of the debate.  By failing to stand by their campaign and their stance, Bud Light lost the trust of those who initially applauded the brand for working with Mulvaney. 

From the lackluster political performance this year, it seems that brands took the wrong message away from Bud Light’s fumble. Bud Light did not fail because they took a stance politically. They failed because they were not authentic. 

THREADING THE NEEDLE WITH POLITICAL BRAND MESSAGING

In today’s marketing landscape, authenticity has become paramount. Consumers are increasingly able to detect when brands are being disingenuous or engaging in performative actions, often leading to backlash. 

The recent Bud Light incident serves as a cautionary tale, where flip-flopping on an issue alienated both sides of their consumer base. As consumer expectations grow, transparency and accountability need to be foundational, influencing everything from product development to social campaigns.

Research highlights that 85% of consumers want brand values to align with their own, and 75% are willing to stop supporting a brand over conflicting values. This push for alignment has intensified, particularly as activism becomes integral to brand identity, especially in the UK. However, taking a strong stance is a balancing act. 

@pinknews

#DylanMulvaney has broken her silence on the controversy surrounding her partnership with #BudLight earlier this year. For more on this story click the link in bio 🔗 #dylanmulvaney #dylanmulvaneyedit #dylanmulvaneybudlight #budlightboycott #transrightsarehumanrights #protecttranspeople #lgbtq #queernews #queertok

♬ Pieces (Solo Piano Version) – Danilo Stankovic

While consumers desire brands to stand for something, brands must navigate this carefully to avoid alienating parts of their audience.

The case of Bud Light illustrates the risks involved. This incident underscores the delicate position brands face – consumers want brands to have values, but strong political alignment can still be polarising.

Ultimately, for beauty and wellness brands seeking to make it out of the election season alive, the key is being honest. 

Consumers can tell when efforts are for clout and nothing else. If you choose to get involved, stick by your decisions. Be loud and proud about what you support. You may lose some followers, but you will gain more loyal followers at the same time. 

This is what truly matters. 

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@sociallypowerful