Preparing for the New Millenium: The Case for Using Marketing Strategies

THENEW MILLENNIUM IS APPROACHING and libraries must develop creative problem-solving strategies if they are not only to survive but also to thrive. Societal change, technological development, and economic retrenchment all pose significant challenges for libraries. This article proposes that the former positive and comfortable attitude toward libraries no longer holds, and that marketing must be added to the managerial toolbox so that libraries can become client-centered and client-focused institutions. As an overview to this Library Trends theme issue on marketing, this article presents marketing components in the context of a customer orientation. INTRODUCTION How can the use of marketing principles improve the management of libraries? How can marketing help library staff to serve their clients more effectively? Is marketing a trend in a long series of trends that may be popular today but fade into history tomorrow? What is the point of expending staff time and energy on yet another learning endeavor? These are serious questions-questions that will be addressed by this article and by those that follow in this issue of Library Trends. When considering a group of questions, the underlying question is always the one that begins with why. In this case, why marketing? This is the philosophical underpinning that must be answered if other questions are to have meaning. It is important that this question Darlene E. Weingand, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 600 North Park Street, Madison, WI 53706 LIBRARY TRENDS, Vol. 43, No. 3, Winter 1995, pp. 295-317 @ 1995 The Board of Trustees, University of Illinois 296 LIBRARY TRENDS/WINTER 1995 be asked, particularly in the light of current writing in the popular press. Verity (1994)states that “the Information Revolution is reaching critical mass. At its core is the accelerating shift from material information media-including paper, photographic film, videotape, and modeling clay-to computer-based simulations of those media. By no means are paper or books or libraries going to disappear completely. But their traditional presence and significance in our culture, and the degree to which they’ve informed our concepts of self, identity, and consciousness, seem poised to fade as seemingly cheaper, less polluting, more flexible, and more attention-grabbing digital media come to the fore” (p. 12). If the library is not only to survive but thrive as the twenty-first century dawns, the “why” question is of paramount importance. WHYMARKETING? Historically, the library-whether public, academic, school, or special-has been regarded as a “good thing.” From the early days of subscription libraries, when people joined into collaborative groups that could afford in common what individuals could not, libraries have enjoyed a positive and comfortable relationship with users. However, such a relaxed interaction is difficult to sustain in a time of economic retrenchment, social change, and technological innovation. When these forces are tugging at financial stability and the social fabric, funders learn quickly to analyze where monies are being spent and what types of expenditures will provide the most perceived benefit. Yesterday’s library support falters in the cold light of today’s fiscal pragmatism. How can today’s library successfully rethink its position and adapt its operations to function effectively in this new environment? The answer lies in effective use of marketing strategies. Marketing can be viewed as a process of exchange and a way to foster the partnership between the library and its community. Kotler (1988) states that, “[flor exchange to take place, [there are] five conditions [that] must be satisfied 1. There are at least two parties. 2. Each party has something that might be of value to the other party. 3. Each party is capable of communication and delivery. 4. Each party is free to accept or reject the offer. 5. Each party believes i t is appropriate or desirable to deal with the other party. (p. 6) If a partnership is to be successful, both partners must believe that the relationship has balance and equity. Therefore, if the library and its community are to be partners, both need to perceive that they are WEINGAND/CASE FOR USING MARKETING STRATEGIES 297 deriving a benefit from the exchange of goods and services. Crompton and Lamb (1986) assert that: “Citizens don’t buy programs or services; they buy the expectation of benefits” (p. 10). This perception of mutual benefit is essential to sustaining the partnership for the long term. If it is absent, or the balance is regarded as unequal, then the partnership is in jeopardy. The consequences can range anywhere from declining support to outright termination of the relationship. In order to nurture the partnership between the library and its community, marketing strategies can be an effective tool. Marketing comprises a series of activities that begin with identifying the needs of the community (those individuals and groups that form the library’s service area) and end with communication back to the community about the library’s response to those needs. In between, a spectrum of planning and marketing efforts carries the entire process forward. However, Kotler and Andreasen (1987) contend that: “A first requirement for effective, successful marketing in any organization is that the organization have a clear, deeply ingrained appreciation for what marketing is and what it can do for the organization” (p. 35). In the following discussion, the spectrum of efforts will be introduced in an effort to foster that sense of appreciation. Other articles in this issue will explore them in more detail. THECONVERGENCE AND PLANNING OF MARKETING One of the essential components to the overall marketing process is planning. Weingand (1987) states that: “There is an appropriateness about the convergence of the marketing and planning processes....Either of these two processes, while having intrinsic value, is incomplete without the other in the sense that each amplifies the power of the other and provides a wholeness of purpose and application” (p. 16). An assumption must undergird the overall operation-all decisions are written in sand and not stone. This assumption also must be applied to the library’s mission statement, for analysis of the library’s external and internal environments may indicate that different roles-and hence, a different mission-may be appropriate. The rationale for incorporating formal planning into the marketing process lies in the need for making decisions within an organized frame that has been developed logically over a period of time with input from stakeholders-“as opposed to reactive coping with existing and emerging crises” (Area Library Service Authorities and Indiana State Library, 1989-90, p. 12). As the rate of change accelerates, the insistent clamor of problem situations can become deafening, desensitizing management to any activity beyond the immediate. Demand and urgency combine to postpone any thought 298 LIBRARY TRENDWWINTER 1995 of tomorrow. However, i t is this very existence of crisis that presents a dramatic reason for infusing the planning process into managerial responsibility. In addition to being a powerful managerial tool in the event of impending crisis, this blending of planning and other managerial functions can be a strong deterrent to the evolution of a crisis. When advance thought and analysis is routine, problems are less likely to grow to crisis proportions. Planning and marketing, in this merged form, can be considered a framework upon which to hang thoughts, ideas, and decisions. The complementary and systematic processes of marketing and planning, when merged, provide a strong and comprehensive structure with which to support the various decision and implementation activities. The schematic for this structure can be found in Figure 1. This schematic provides further explication of how the two systems fit together in practical terms. The clear areas represent elements of the planning process; the shaded areas represent elements of the marketing process. To follow this diagram through, i t should be noted that the processes move sometimes in a single direction and, at times, in several directions. The following sequence is illustrated in the diagram: A community analysis of the library’s external environment is conducted. 0 An assessment of the library’s strengths and weaknesses (internal environment) is made. (The data from these two assessments become the marketing audit.) Following the marketing audit, the organizational mission is determined. Once the mission (and appropriate roles) are determined, the goals for the time period are established (e.g., one year for the shortrange or operational plan; five years for the long-rangeistrategic plan). 0 An analysis of trends is made (a futures screen). 0 Measurable objectives are developed that will move the library toward its goals. 0 Products (collection, services, programs) are designed in conjunction with the objectives. 0 Analysis of price (cost to produce each product) is made to determine product priorities. 0 Action plans for each objective are designed. 0 Distribution channels (place) are designed in conjunction with the planned actions. 0 The actions are implemented. Promotion/communication techniques are designed to implement the actions. WEINGAND/CASE FOR USING MARKETING STRATEGIES 299