Obama's Viral Marketing Campaign

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But Trippi knows better than most that while the Internet is uniquely suited to the kind of energy that surrounds an insurgent campaign, a giant splash in cyberspace can turn out to be little more than a ripple against the big interest groups and institutions that surround an Establishment favorite. In 2004, Trippi managed former Vermont Governor Howard Dean's campaign when it too was shattering fund-raising records, only to come crashing to the ground in the Iowa caucuses. While the hundreds of thousands of small donors who are jumping aboard campaigns like Obama's and Edwards' are impressive, Trippi says, "it's a small number in a country of 300 million, and a ridiculously small number compared to the number of adults who will be voting for President." Still, he adds, all that energy--with the leading Democratic candidates raising money at a pace much brisker than that of the Republican contenders--is not likely to be lost, no matter who gets the nomination. "If 200,000 people are willing to give $15 now," he says, "they're likely to give $100 when the opponent is a Republican."