I must confess to liking books about marketing and I often find myself in airports or train stations buying “the latest” which I hope will give me new ideas or different perspectives about marketing in libraries. And with the introduction of social technology tools into the marketing arena, lots of new titles have appeared on the shelves. So the problem in selecting “the one to read on the plane” has not been about lack of choice, rather that traditional marketing theory has not really changed, and there is no point in re‐hashing the same old same old. One response to this dilemma is, of course, that it is all in the application – how we apply the concepts in our own situations.
Marketing is essentially a practical exercise, encompassing all the activities involved with exchanges of goods and services by “buyers” and “sellers”, translated into the library world as “patrons” or “users” and “suppliers” or “information providers”. Most librarians are already familiar with the basic concepts of marketing and some of the theory, and most would apply some of these concepts in their library work. So the questions for me on opening this book were “do we need another book on marketing libraries”, and “does this one offer anything different?”.
And I am happy to say that this is not a traditional marketing text. It offers a contemporary perspective on what marketing means for libraries now.
The author opens the book by means of his seven key concepts which serve as an introduction to his philosophy of marketing and underpin the rest of the toolkit. The key concepts are somewhat eclectic, and probably give some insight into what the author has learnt about marketing from his past experience. Their value is that they provide what could be called a set of working “rules of thumb” to help in everyday and more tactical decision‐making. These key concepts are then related to the theory of marketing which is covered in a quick overview of the Ps of marketing: Product, Place, Promotion, Price – the original four; plus Participants, Process, and Physical evidence. The rest of the book does contain more of the traditional theory and this is generally integrated quite painlessly with the rest of the text.
Chapters two to 11 cover various topics, the contemporary view is emphasized with three chapters devoted to online marketing, social media and new technologies. Other chapters cover strategic marketing, branding, buildings, people, internal marketing, advocacy, special collections and archives.
Practical application is the major strength of this book – the 27 case studies that are interwoven in the various chapters provide the narrative which bring the text to life. These are the stories which ring true, and give us the ideas and aha! moments which inspire us. The real skill of the author has been in posing the questions to focus the readers' attention on the gems of wisdom, illuminating ideas, unique and clever applications. A “case study matrix” in the introductory chapter sets them out by title, author, sector, chapter, and key themes.
So to go back to my original questions – my answers are “yes we do need another book on marketing libraries” and “yes it does offer something different”. We live in changing times and even if basic marketing theory does not change, the way we market ourselves and our libraries does change. In addition to the need to continually learn about how to apply the many new and constantly evolving social technology tools, the need has never been more critical for libraries to be positioning themselves in the marketspace where our clients are. This is increasingly in the online world of social media, but this is also where our competitors are. So to maintain our competitive edge and manage the perceptions of our clients and funders, we need to make sure that we are using all the relevant tools that we can lay hands on, at the same time demonstrating and communicating our value in terms that are meaningful to our stakeholders.
This book showcases the best of contemporary marketing practices from libraries all over the world. The case studies with the author's illuminating focus on key points of learning are, for me, the added value which differentiates this book from other marketing books.
