Developing a Marketing Strategy

MARKETING PROGRAM

by John Hammond

Table of Contents

Introduction

Developing a Marketing Strategy

o Mission statement

o Organizational placement of Information Center

o Library products/services/staff of Information Center

o Target market/Internal customers

o Information gathering habits

Marketing Strategy

o Meeting goals and objectives

o Market segments selected & targeted

o Positioning relative to competition

o Product

o Price

o Place

o Promotion

Marketing Action Program

o Surveying population served

o Selecting marketing action tools

o Cost analysis

Marketing Audit

o Evaluation & Review

Introduction

Phillip Kotler has defined marketing in his work, Marketing Management as "the art of identifying and understanding customer needs and finding solutions that satisfy those needs, and at the same time, producing profits for stockholders." It is therefore necessary to understand people's needs, to design services to satisfy those needs and to inform the target market of the value inherent in the use of the product to satisfy their needs. So, we may correlate that special libraries, in general, are organizations that have been established to serve the needs of an identified client base.

Funding sources are dependent upon the type of library. For example, public libraries monies come from taxes, private colleges and universities from fees and special libraries draw from corporate, and research and private sector funding.

Whatever the organization, the purpose of marketing is to achieve that organization's objectives. Wilson in Marketing Tips for Professionals states "The no. 1 rule in the business environment of a special library is: everything relates to the bottom line; profit. The no. 2 rule is you must market your product to be successful." Special libraries have frequently been operated as cost centers.

Through effective marketing of the special library this cost can be turned around. Increasing Information Center usage and cost recovery through client or departmental chargebacks will turn a negative into a positive. Such an Information Center can be turned into a profit center and become essential to the parent organization's success. In today's climate of information center cutbacks and reductions, marketing can help insure an Information Center's survival. Marketing is finding what your customers want and, within reasonable parameters, providing it.

The question now becomes for the library professional "how do I market the Information Center?" The answer?: Through the development and implementation of a marketing program. A marketing program is more than just good public relations and the dissemination of information to the public. It is hoped that the information presented in this chapter will provide a roadmap for successful marketing strategy.

Developing a Marketing Strategy

According to Charlotte Wilson, author of Marketing Tips for Informational Professionals, the development of a marketing strategy is composed of five broad steps:

o Articulating Marketing Objectives

o Developing an Action Plan

o Choosing Action Tools

o Evaluating & Reviewing the Marketing Strategy: It is essential to take stock and analyze the current situation. This effort will provide an overview and help define a plan of attack.

o Mission statement: The identification of the basic purpose of the organization and the Information Center. Examine the mission statement of the parent organization and use this as a guide to create a specific mission statement for the Information Center. If you have one in place, make sure that it reflects the mission and objectives of the parent organization.

o Organizational placement of Information Center: To whom