The Marketing Concept in Political Marketing

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and definitions from the lecture notes on political marketing and the marketing concept.

Marketing concept

A philosophy that customer (or voter) needs are primary and should be identified and satisfied; activities are customer-oriented and coordinated across the organization to achieve profit (or political success); applicable to both for-profit and non-profit contexts.

Political marketing

The application of marketing concepts, tools, and thinking to political processes, campaigns, and electorate behavior; candidates and parties viewed through a marketing lens.

Generic concept of marketing

Broad idea that marketing extends beyond private business to non-profit and public sectors, and that exchanges involve more than just economic transactions.

Marketing domain

The scope of marketing as applicable to all organizations and their relationships with any public, not limited to commercial customers.

Market orientation

An organization-wide focus on generating, disseminating, and acting on market (voter) intelligence to meet needs and create value.

Market intelligence

Information about voters’ needs, wants, and market conditions gathered to inform decision making.

Customer-centered orientation

A marketing culture that prioritizes the needs and wants of customers (voters) in planning and actions.

Organization-centered orientation

A focus on internal objectives and processes, which can hinder the integration of marketing concepts.

Political product

The party’s offerings (policies, leadership, candidates) designed to satisfy voters’ needs and wants.

Voter orientation

Approach where political activity aims to determine and satisfy voters’ needs and preferences.

Semantic redefinition

Expressing the marketing concept in terms tailored to politics to improve relevance and acceptance.

Marketing mix in politics

An integrated set of political actions: product development/design, distribution, pricing (costs), and promotion to meet voter needs.

Public sector adaptation

Extending marketing principles to government and non-profit contexts, recognizing differences from private sector."

Barriers to adoption

Problems such as incomplete understanding, internal conflicts between voter needs and objectives, management values, and short-term focus.

Flight to the middle

Tendency to appeal to broad middle-ground voters, potentially compromising core principles.

Lip service

Speaking superficially about the marketing concept without meaningful adoption or impact.

Exchange in politics

Vote-for-services transaction: voters exchange their vote for promised governance or policy benefits.

Integrated marketing concept

A cohesive approach where product development, distribution, pricing, and promotion are aligned to meet needs and organizational goals.

Market orientation findings (political party)

In the studied party, market orientation was low (low voter focus and limited research), with little dissemination or responsiveness to market intelligence.

Nimmo’s view (1970)

Candidates dispense information to influence voter behavior and maintain support.

Kotler & Levy (1969, 1973)

Broadened marketing to include non-profit and public contexts and to extend beyond just economic exchanges.

Shama (1973)

Argued that many marketing concepts and tools apply to political candidate marketing.

Kotler (1975)

Overview of political candidate marketing and its application to campaigns.

O’Shaughnessy (1990)

Proposed that political marketing is a phenomenon requiring marketing orientation in politics.