Idea of Political Marketing

O'Shaughnessy, Henneberg, and their contributors examine how the theory and practice of marketing has been and can be applied to politics. Particular attention was paid to the theory of political marketing, with conceptual definitions developed to better facilitate communication between marketing professionals and political science researchers.

Political marketing is about the making and unmaking of governments in a democracy. Despite its growing importance, the marketing academic profession has shown very little interest in the political ramificaitons of their discipline, while political scientists often come to political marketing with the view that it is cosmetic, if not trivial. O'Shaughnessy, Henneberg, and their contributors examine how the theory and practice of marketing has been and can be applied to politics.

As they show, elections are a persuasion task writ large, most especially with the demise of inherited class loyalties. Following elections, governments can employ marketing techniques to build support for their actions, while opposition parties can press the government and its supporters through similar marketing approaches. Of particular interest to scholars, researchers, and policy makers involved with politics, political communication, and the making of public policy.

NICHOLAS J. O'SHAUGHNESSY is Professor of Marketing at the University of Keele. Previously he was University Lecturer at Cambridge University and was a Fellow of Hughes Hall. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Among his earlier publications is The Phenomenon of Political Marketing.

STEPHAN C. M. HENNEBERG is a consultant with Mckinsey and Company. Dr. Henneberg organized several annual conferences on political marketing at Cambridge University and published on the topic.