Political Marketing:-
Political marketing is a new industry that emerged in the political arena. The successful presidential bid of a junior senator Barack Obama into the White House has showcased how political marketing can catapult one’s political career. Politicians are in the marketing sense salesmen, people as the customers, political party / government as the brand, the politician’s promises, policy, philosophy, project or program as the product and the flyers, buttons, bumper stickers, TV debates, rallies, advertising and other campaign activities as the promotion plan. Political marketing, however, is not just about wearing buttons, pasting posters and bumper stickers, electoral speeches and political advertising. It is not only confined to Political Communication or Advertising, but also involve market intelligence research and other marketing methodologies. When the government or a politician is pushing for a certain political product or policy to the people, market intelligence research is used to identify the public’s reaction or preference. The research findings become the blue print for the strategy and help the government or the politician to devise strategies that will help achieve its goal.
SIGNIFICANCE OF POLITICAL MARKETING FOR PAKISTAN
Modern politics is intertwined with the media; advances in media technology have streamlined the process, giving candidates more options to reach even larger groups of constituents with very little physical effort; therefore Political marketing from being a set of theoretical and practical tools for the successful conduct of election campaigns has expanded to a permanent strategic element of governance. Thus, from being a subset of a party’s electoral communication or just a short-term tactical devise in the run up to elections, it is a longer-term permanent process which has grown so much that it has ‘annexed’ political communication as one of its components and applicable to the whole behaviour of a political organization that includes the leaderships; members; symbols; images; policies and almost everything that falls under the definition of political activities. The rise of political marketing is the response to the emergence of politics in the grammar of social life that resonates with diffused rationality and the response to ceasing of thinking and acting to be articles of faith and becoming the instrument of intentions. In Pakistan; the failure of advertising industry to expand its horizon through political marketing is the failure of society to break with feudalism and thus democratize itself. But the transition from agrarian to industrial society is harbinger for change as relocation spells disintegration of traditional-bound form of focus and catalyst as well because character change that is the transmutation of the basic self-imagery is regarded as the correlate of urbanization. Social structure is the function of personality therefore this redefinition of oneself must reflect in sensibility to incorporate new requirements that emerged outside of the familiar experience and in adjustment to consequent variety of stimulation intrinsic to urban life and in capability of embracing an ‘as if’ standpoint in relation to new life-forms. Advertising industry can explore the potentialities resultant of changes in psycho-social complex of norms in the constitution of contemporary political and social life. Political marketing has enormous potential because political marketing is to become an essential tool for all political parties not because they know it will deliver but because they do not know for sure it will not.
When and when not Political Marketing is needed
-
Pre and During election period
- Political marketing doesn’t work in Pre and During election period, if constituency is traditional or votes can be obtained through rigging or arm twisting.
- Political marketing is required if a traditional constituency has swing votes
- P.M is needed in non-traditional constituencies
-
Post Election Period
- Political marketing is required by winner and loser in post election period because both have their own concerns:
| WINNER | LOSER |
|---|---|
| Major concern | Major concern |
| Maintain his popularity | Strategy to discredit opponents / GOVT |
| Implement his election promises | Find fault in implementation |
| To give rational justification for failure to do so | Find arguments to reject rational justification |
Significance of Political Marketing for advertising companies in Pakistan
Political Marketing consultant is just like chartered account. Company is owned by the owner and he approves strategy having consulted with all stake holders. Company informs chartered accounts of its objectives and he devises means to achieve them. Means are the strategy. Every political party is a company and it has its CEO and other leaders are stake holders; and Political Marketing consultant is its chartered accountant. Parties hire political marketing consultants for running election campaigns and managing political communication.