Is there a role for marketing in the public sector?

Over the past decade there has been considerable interest within the public sector in marketing, associated with a desire to introduce commercial approaches and thinking to improve management efficiency and effectiveness. However, many non‐traded public sector organizations have found it difficult to assimilate marketing into their organizations. The reasons for this stem from a misunderstanding of when marketing is appropriate. Marketing will only work when a number of basic conditions, as outlined by Kotier (1988), are met: There must be at least two parties and each party must have something of value to the other party and be willing and able to deal with each other. Each party must be capable of communication, and delivery and each party must be free to accept or reject the offer. To establish whether these conditions are met and therefore whether marketing can exist, it is necessary to examine the relationships between the various parties within a public sector ‘market’.