According to The New York Times, Obama teamed up with Marc Andreessen, a Netscape founder and Facebook board member, to help him use social networking in his campaign. Through social networking, Obama was able to raise money, organize locally, and get out the vote. After being elected he came into office with a database of supporters, that could be engaged instantly, an excellent source of support to help him govern.

John C. Havens’ “Tactical Transparency and Organized Authenticity” points out that not only did Obama use social media well, he knew how to connect with people through them. The people following him on Twitter or receiving his text messages felt like they were connecting to him on a personal level. Seeing that you have a text message from Obama can make you feel like you are actually a part of his message and mission.

In order to build trust in his campaign among his audience and voters he relied on authentic communication. For an example, check out this podcast of Obama talking about Father’s Day.

Obama is very open and down to earth when talking about his family, but he still ties it to his political messages. By talking openly about something personal, Obama bridges the gap between politician and regular human being. He does a good job of showing that he is just like us, he just happens to be a powerful politician. CEOs trying to be more transparent and authentic should follow Obama’s example. You can be authentic without giving away your strategies (whether in business or politics). People just want to be able to connect with you in some way.