Coming into the race as a virtually unknown senator from Vermont, his biggest hurdle was name recognition and getting on the public radar, in much the same way that fledgling start-ups need to gain traction to attract investors. Ben Cohen said, "When Ben & Jerry's was first starting out, a major way that we got people to find out about us was with bumper stickers. We distributed tens of thousands of bumper stickers! They were available at the counter, and people would take them because they were so moved, not only because they loved the ice cream but because they loved the way the company was doing business."



The Ben & Jerry's founders said the broad message of the Sanders campaign captures societal tensions in the same way that many successful recent brand ad campaigns do. While they did not provide specific examples, Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty resonated by debunking the unattainable and demeaning physical standards women are held to; Chipotle — at least until its recent E. Coli outbreak issues — struck a chord with consumers opposed to big agriculture through its practice of buying ingredients locally and encouraging small businesses.

"An entrepreneur is someone who understands a particular market segment, who can energize that base and who can get it to take action," said Lyneir Richardson, executive director of The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development at Rutgers Business School.