--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Campaigns fail if they waste resources…" description: "\"Campaigns fail if they waste resources courting voters who are unpersuadable or already persuaded. Their most urgent task is to find and persuade the f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/639/james-surowiecki-2196_campaigns_campaigns-fail-if-they-waste-resources-c_2794606.jpg" --- # Campaigns fail if they waste resources courting voters who… ![“Campaigns fail if they waste resources courting voters who are unpersuadable or already persuaded. Their most urgent task is to find and persuade the few voters who are genuinely undecided and the larger number who are favorably disposed but need a push to actually vote.” quote by James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/639/james-surowiecki-2196_campaigns_campaigns-fail-if-they-waste-resources-c_2794606.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/639/james-surowiecki-2196_campaigns_campaigns-fail-if-they-waste-resources-c_2794606.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/639/james-surowiecki-2196_campaigns_campaigns-fail-if-they-waste-resources-c_2794606.jpg) > “Campaigns fail if they waste resources courting voters who are unpersuadable or already persuaded. Their most urgent task is to find and persuade the few voters who are genuinely undecided and the larger number who are favorably disposed but need a push to actually vote.” [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political campaigns waste resources on voters who are already decided; focus should be on undecided and persuadable voters. **In simple terms:** Target the swing and supportive voters, not the convinced. Key Takeaway Prioritize persuadable voters. Themes politics campaign strategy resource allocation Mood analytical strategic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - election planning - marketing - grassroots organizing Key Concepts behavioral economics public opinion Questions to Reflect On - How can data identify truly persuadable voters? - What messages resonate with the swing electorate? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on undecided may ignore core base. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Campaigns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaigns/) [Vote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vote/) [Voters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voters/) [Waste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waste/) ## Related quotes > [If Trump wants to serve a second term in the Oval Office, he needs to persuade the same voters who denied him a second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamelle-bouie/if-trump-wants-to-serve-a-second-term-in-the-oval-office-he-needs-to/) [Jamelle Bouie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamelle-bouie/) > [“One of the main reasons marketing campaigns fail is because the offer is lazy and poorly thought out. It’s something crappy and unexciting like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-dib/one-of-the-main-reasons-marketing-campaigns-fail-is-because-the-offer/) [Allan Dib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-dib/) > [A library is a good place to go when you feel bewildered or undecided, for there in a book, you may have your question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/a-library-is-a-good-place-to-go-when-you-feel-bewildered-or-undecided/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [It's no exaggeration to say that the undecided's could go one way or another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bush/it-s-no-exaggeration-to-say-that-the-undecided-s-could-go-one-way-or/) [George Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bush/) > [ I'd say, \[writing memoir\] not so much a model, but maybe to provide an insight, here or there, to help somebody come to terms… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/i-d-say-writing-memoir-not-so-much-a-model-but-maybe-to-provide-an/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [That our government should have been maintained in its original form from its establishment until now is not much to be wondered at. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/that-our-government-should-have-been-maintained-in-its-original-form/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [The key to being a good manager is keeping the people who hate me away from those who are still undecided.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-stengel/the-key-to-being-a-good-manager-is-keeping-the-people-who-hate-me/) [Casey Stengel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-stengel/) > [“If you cannot keep a relationship seriously, why even start one?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-torres/if-you-cannot-keep-a-relationship-seriously-why-even-start-one/) Mario Torres > [Often undecided whether to desert a sinking ship for one that might not float, he would make up his mind to sit on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/often-undecided-whether-to-desert-a-sinking-ship-for-one-that-might/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Most people fail at whatever they attempt because of an undecided heart. Should I? Should I not? Go forward? Go back? Success requires the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/most-people-fail-at-whatever-they-attempt-because-of-an-undecided/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) > [“If you have to convince someone to stay with you then they have already left.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/if-you-have-to-convince-someone-to-stay-with-you-then-they-have/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [I’ve been all three. And now I’m undecided.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarryn-fisher/i-ve-been-all-three-and-now-i-m-undecided/) [Tarryn Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarryn-fisher/) > [Obama's major accomplishment is himself. This can be an effective argument to make to undecided voters and something Obama has to artfully address.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-yoffe/obama-s-major-accomplishment-is-himself-this-can-be-an-effective/) [Emily Yoffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-yoffe/) > [The election makes me think of a story of a man who was dying. He had only two minutes to live, so he sent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-election-makes-me-think-of-a-story-of-a-man-who-was-dying-he-had/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“If I say “No decision has been made,” it’s a lie—because I have decided to remain undecided.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/if-i-say-no-decision-has-been-made-it-s-a-lie-because-i-have-decided/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) ## More by James Surowiecki > [Lack of confidence, sometimes alternating with unrealistic dreams of heroic success, often leads to procrastination, and many studies suggest that procrastinators are self-handicappers: rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-surowiecki/lack-of-confidence-sometimes-alternating-with-unrealistic-dreams-of/) [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) > [Downsizing itself is an inevitable part of any creatively destructive economy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-surowiecki/downsizing-itself-is-an-inevitable-part-of-any-creatively-destructive/) [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) > [In the business world, bad news is usually good news - for somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-surowiecki/in-the-business-world-bad-news-is-usually-good-news-for-somebody-else/) [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) > [You might think of consumption as a fairly passive activity, but buying new products and services is actually pretty risky, at least if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-surowiecki/you-might-think-of-consumption-as-a-fairly-passive-activity-but/) [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) > [Corporations hope that the right concept will turn things around overnight. 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People around the word follow our presidential campaigns so closely, trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-need-to-be-more-precise-in-how-we-talk-about-these-issues-people/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I did it once, and National Geographic recruited me. I did it primarily out of curiosity. 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