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Applies an established strategic framework of competitive market positioning to political parties, suggesting that political scientists who are currently analysing political marketing without reference to the marketing discipline, could benefit thereby. If the marketing paradigm is to influence another discipline, it must first be tendered in broad, generic terms, and address matters at the strategic level. Presents examples from many electoral contexts (or markets). The analysis requires that political parties in a democratic system be regarded as analogous to commercial organizations in industrial markets. In doing so, it eschews traditional political ascriptions such as left‐ and right‐wing. The labels used to describe the parties are leader, challenger, follower and nicher. This framework offers a competitive positioning map of the market that will inform marketing and campaign decisions, and guide strategic direction. Shows how fundamental issues such as competitive analysis, party/candidate positioning, and relevant strategies are brought to the political marketing context.

With heightened regulations in many nations, increasing political influence, greater emphasis on government-business partnerships, and the rapid development of emerging markets, the notion of nonmarket strategy (NMS) is now widely viewed as a key component of a firm’s overall strategic orientation. The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors associated with strategic political emphasis (SPE), a key part of NMS.

A survey instrument including items related to competitive strategy, environmental uncertainty, strategic capability, performance, and SPE was administered to 275 managers in the USA. Strategy along Porter’s typology, strategic capabilities, uncertainty, and performance were measured via existing scales. Items were created to assess SPE.

Managers in firms with greater SPE also reported greater uncertainty about competition and markets, and lower capabilities with regard to management and technology. Managers in organizations with weaker market orientations (MOs) – including greater uncertainty about competition and markets, and lower capabilities in management and technology – emphasized greater SPE. Managers reporting lower capability levels in their firms were more likely to report higher SPE and to have increased SPE in the last decade. Select uncertainties and capabilities – not competitive strategy per se – appears to have prompted an increase in SPE in these firms.

An effective NMS is vital from the perspectives of both profit maximization for shareholders and the satisfaction of broader, social objectives. However, many executives are trained to excel in the market arena and may not have the skill set and temperament necessary for success in NMS and specifically, the political arena. Moreover, SPE and market strategies are not always consistent, challenging executives to integrate and balance the two orientations.

This article begins by analysing developments in political segmentation over the last decade. Using an appropriate database and statistical approach, segments of the British electorate are identified. Conservative and Liberal Democrat segments are then analysed and issues affecting their likely electoral performance discussed. The Labour segments split into distinctive “old” and “new” Labour camps. As attitudes differ widely across these segments, the two most different segments are targeted for further analysis. The issues which most discriminate between these two Labour segments are highlighted and some suggestions forwarded on how policies might be positioned for these disparate segments. The article concludes by considering the stability of political segments over time. It also discusses the limits of strategic segmentation in politics and identifies further research opportunities.

Amidst rapid development in emerging economies, greater emphasis on public–private partnerships and a more complex regulatory environment, nonmarket strategy (NMS) is now widely viewed as a key component of a firm’s overall strategy. This paper aims to investigate how nonmarket and market strategies are influenced by strategic uncertainties and capabilities and ultimately drive firm performance.

A survey addressing strategic uncertainties, capabilities, NMS and market strategy and firm performance was administered online to 193 practicing managers in the USA. Measures for competitive strategy (i.e. cost leadership and differentiation), NMS, management and marketing capabilities, competitive and technology uncertainties and firm performance were adopted from or based on previous work. Hypotheses were tested via SmartPLS.

Emphasis on NMS was linked to high marketing capability, high competitive uncertainty and high technology uncertainty. Cost leaders were more likely than differentiators to emphasize on NMS, although all three strategies were positive drivers of performance. NMS appears to be viewed as a part of an integrated strategic approach by managers in many organizations.

The sample included mangers in multiple industries. Self-typing scales were used to assess strategic emphasis and firm performance.

Emphasis on NMS can promote firm performance, but the relationship is complex. Strategic managers should align the NMS with organizational capabilities and a market-oriented strategy appropriate for the firm.

This paper provides empirical support for a model linking select strategic uncertainties, capabilities, market strategy and NMS and firm performance. It supports NMS as a key performance driver, but with links to uncertainties and capabilities that differ from those of market strategies.

The purpose of this paper is to examine political marketing with regard to its different conceptualisations and dimensions, and to suggest cognate areas for empirical research efforts, especially in Sub‐Saharan Africa.

Perspectives from relevant extant literature on meaning and dimensions of political marketing are examined, and empirical examination of these perspectives in developing countries suggested.

It was found that political marketing has many conceptualisations and dimensions, and its practice may be coloured by environmental issues, especially in developing economies with weak democratic infrastructure.

Empirical investigations of political marketing in developing economies, as suggested in this paper, may be constrained by secrecy, lack of secondary data, and aparty on the part of relevant party executives, among others.

Party executives will benefit from the conceptualisations and dimensions documented in this paper. In addition, researchers and students in the areas of marketing and political science will find the research agenda a fertile ground for empirical research effort.

This paper should be of value to political party executives, electoral commissions, educators and students of marketing and political science, in addition to government executives interested in relating beneficially with their citizens and other relevant stakeholders.

A marketing planning framework to aid political parties in improving their image and co‐ordinating election campaigns has been developed to reflect the changing nature of electoral campaigning in the developed world towards the need for more long‐term planning; together with the development and implementation of marketing models in a wider sphere of social situations. The planning model has been developed using both a hypothetico‐deductive and an inductive approach, incorporating recent developments in US and UK political campaign management and depth interviews with political strategists in the UK. Suggests that national political parties need to co‐ordinate their election campaigns more effectively in order to strengthen their image among key citizen and voter groups by determining which target areas are most in need of resources. Further research is needed to determine how to position the party and to select and place advertising in the relevant media. Concludes that local election campaigns are becoming more co‐ordinated by national parties but that such co‐ordination neglects to provide local area research and telemarketing campaigns, and post‐election analysis exercises to monitor strengths and weaknesses in party strategy and campaign plan implementation.

This study aims to examine basic factors that may influence success of political marketing.

Drawing on relevant literature, the author empirically tested the relationship between study variables on a sample of 650 Jordanian respondents.

The findings indicate that market segmentation and targeting, candidate positioning and building strong image (to candidate and party) have a positive and significant effect on the success of political marketing. The study findings indicate that candidate/party image exerted the strongest effect on the success of political marketing. Results showed also that conducting efficient market research and adopting a market‐oriented strategy had no influence on the success of political marketing.

These findings have significant implications for both Jordanian candidates and parties that may be taken into consideration when developing their political campaigns.

The key objective of this research is to investigate the relationship between party member activity‐levels and perceptions of their party's political market orientation. Specifically, it aims to scrutinise the differences in the interplay of attitudinal and behavioural aspects of political market orientation.

Using a wide variety of respondent groups within the party, the research draws on an existing conceptualisation of political market orientation and empirically test its relationship with party member activity levels. Three models, plus a baseline model, are developed and data from 1,156 questionnaires are used to investigate a structural equation model using the partial least square method.

While the baseline model exhibits a robust pattern of positive relationships between the attitudinal and behavioural constructs, the comparative analysis of the different models shows that party activity levels have a significant impact on these relationships. The study identified that less active members perceive a wider range of attitudinal concepts to be of significance, compared to active members, politicians and party professionals.

This is one of a few studies empirically investigating the concept of political market orientation. Especially the focus on a wide range of respondents, in line with recent development in the literature on commercial market orientation, provides a nuanced analysis of the varying perception‐patterns of party stakeholders.

Niccolò Machiavelli is used as a guide to some of the key issues facing modern government and applies his insights into the effective management and development of civic society. Political marketing, good governance, lobbying, ethics and effective communication with the consumer is developed.

The purpose of this paper is to relate manifest market orientation to the achievement of electoral objectives.

The paper presents an analysis of advertising content against a framework of criteria drawn from key marketing concepts using examples from recent New Zealand general elections.

There is a relationship between parties demonstrating a strong voter orientation in their political advertisements and achievement of electoral success. By viewing advertising as a symptom of parties' broader market orientation, the political marketing factors that differentiate the “winner/s” from the others in an election campaign may be uncovered.

The framework has only been applied to New Zealand Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) election campaigns. To make a more concrete connection between demonstration of market orientation and electoral success the framework needs to be tested in more than one electoral system, in more than one country.

The paper reveals a useful way to relate political advertising content to electoral outcome.

This framework has not been used before in the political advertising or political marketing fields. It strengthens the utility of political marketing explanations in relation to voter‐ and media‐generated explanations of election outcomes.