HOW a candidate’s image is projected and accepted by the voting public matters a lot in his or her bid for a political position, a consultant on political media said.

“But the image of those around him or linked to him, his sister, brother, spokesperson, is also equally important. A single blemish can raise questions on the candidate’s whole image,” Ma. Cecilia Batalla said.

Batalla, managing director of four-year-old consultancy firm Living Tools Training & Development Corp., spoke to the BusinessMirror on Thursday after talking about “Marrying the Medium and the Message” at the Campaigns 2010 Seminar Series organized by lobby group Publicus Asia Inc.

“Accentuate the positive image you have and make sure that the people closely identified with you are consistent with that image.”

Batalla based her views on past elections and the clients her company has worked with.

“Unfortunately, the focus of most media plans during campaign periods is the message not the medium,” Batalla said, citing intellectual Marshall McLuhan’s famous line.

She told participants, mostly campaign officers, that the focus should be on the candidate, the medium, because “anybody can say they want to end poverty, they’re for the good of the country, blah, blah, blah.”

But what is the character of your candidate? This should be clear as much to him or her as to voters.”

Batalla advises campaign officers to sit down with the candidate to identify what’s important to him, what he specifically wants to do, what she stands for that is negotiable and non-negotiable, and what she is passionate about.

She cited a client who told her that all he wanted to do was just to beat the incumbent. “If that’s his vision, fine. Don’t tell me about something abstract.

At least, he’s clear about what he really wants to happen.”

If, on the other hand, a candidate is an engineer by profession before trying out politics, then expect that his passion would be on infrastructure. “Don’t expect him to be as passionate with women or children’s issues.”

She told the BusinessMirror later that the crucial factor is matching the character of a politician with the need of the constituency. “If the candidate or politician’s character or image is that of a builder, because he’s an engineer, and the community needs infrastructure, then you have a no-brainer media campaign.”

Still, Batalla said the medium, or the candidate, should engage the audience. “There should be a participative, experiential and sensory element between the medium and the voters,” she , because the message would be stronger if the candidate, say, shakes hands with people in the community or promises environmental protection and joins a coastal cleanup.

She also advises candidates to provoke the minds and hearts of voters by asking how they are, for their ideas or views, and engaging them. “Spark their thoughts, hear their voice, and you’ll have an impact.”