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Political marketing in untraditional campaigns: the case of David Cameron's Conservative Party leadership victory
Author(s) -
Ormrod Robert P.,
Henneberg Stephan C.,
Forward Nick,
Miller James,
Tymms Leigh
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of public affairs
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.221
H-Index - 20
eISSN - 1479-1854
pISSN - 1472-3891
DOI - 10.1002/pa.264
Subject(s) - contest , victory , operationalization , politics , context (archaeology) , market orientation , sociology , public relations , marketing , political science , economics , business , law , epistemology , paleontology , philosophy , biology
This study investigates the concept of political market orientation (PMO) in an untraditional setting, namely the 2005 contest for the leadership of the British Conservative Party. Based on a collective case‐study method, a content analysis of candidates' speeches and manifestos is provided. We operationalize four attitudinal constructs of a conceptual PMO model and adapt them to suit the novel campaign context. Our findings show further evidence for the existance of a ‘gravitational centre’ effect hypothesized in earlier studies. Furthermore, we qualify the concept of PMO through a long‐term focus and a context‐specific evaluation of the merits of alternative PMO profiles. Thus, the generic conceptual model of political market orientatation, which previously has only been used in the content of parties contesting a general election campaign, can be adapted to alternative campaign situations without a reduction in its explanatory power. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.