Political Marketing Theory and Practice: A Reply to Ormrod's Critique of the Lees-Marshment Market-Oriented Party Model
| Author | Jennifer Lees-Marshment |
| Published date | 01 May 2006 |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1467-9256.2006.00258.x |
| Date | 01 May 2006 |
| Subject Matter | Debate |
Debate
Political Marketing Theory and Practice:
A Reply to Ormrod’s Critique of the
Lees-Marshment Market-Oriented
Party Model
Jennifer Lees-Marshment
University of Auckland
In this article I discuss the ‘Lees-Marshment model’ of a market-oriented party in response to the
criticisms from Robert Ormrod. In doing this I note recent modifications I have made, comment
on its comparative potential and put forward my own evaluation of the areas that need develop-
ment such as communication of delivery, implementation and empirical verification.
Firstly, I must thank Robert Ormrod for this stimulating criticism of my work (2006,
pp. 110–118), which is the first published analysis, enabling me to reply formally.
The model he focuses on was applied to a range of countries in Lilleker and Lees-
Marshment (2005), where many of the points he made were both raised and
responded to by contributors and editors. I will seek to build on this with further
explanation about comparative political marketing and the nature of model devel-
opment. I will also address weaknesses beyond Ormrod’s critique which I think are
the most important as they are the areas where politicians and party staff struggle
most to use marketing effectively in practice.1
Modelling political marketing
Until the 1990s the common view of political marketing was that it was purely
about the use of sales techniques in election campaigns. The Lees-Marshment
model challenged this. It provided a broad and complex framework to discuss how
political parties utilise marketing techniques and concepts from start to finish,
incorporating a range of behaviour and activities throughout a parliamentary term;
considering members, voters, leaders; policy, organisation and ideology. By distin-
guishing between a sales and market orientation, it enabled us to capture a change
in party behaviour that related to a potential change in the relationship between
citizens and government. That it has been applied by scholars to a range of coun-
tries beyond its UK origins is testament to its success. Through its more compre-
hensive and cross-disciplinary approach, it has also helped to broaden political
marketing and enabled a far wider range of issues and questions to be explored.
POLITICS: 2006 VOL 26(2), 119–125
© 2006 The Author. Journal compilation © 2006 Political Studies Association
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