The Relevance of Marketing for Libraries in the Not for

The Relevance of Marketing for Libraries in the Not-for-profit Sector. Abstract This review presents an overview of mostly North American and Australian literature related to marketing and libraries. It defines marketing as a systematic process, integrally combined with planning, and focused on the customer and satisfaction of customer needs. Although it illustrates that there has been wide advocacy of marketingÕs relevance for libraries, specific and unresolved problems relating to its use in the not-for-profit sector remain. Despite this, it is suggested that the application of marketing concepts, if used appropriately, can benefit notfor-profit libraries as a management tool which will assist in delivering customer satisfaction and anticipating future change, thus ensuring their continued relevance and survival. Introduction An examination of recent library management literature and particularly that of marketing and libraries, leaves no doubt but that survival is one of the current preoccupations of library managers. Most public and educational libraries rely, directly or indirectly, on a government agency for their funding. Funding is now harder to come by (Kinnell 1994, 63); other providers, such as information agencies, are offering alternative sources for at least some of what libraries have traditionally provided ; and new and cheaper interactive technologies are offering alternatives to the library in its three traditional areas of education, recreation, and information (Martin 1988, 70). There is no doubt that these factors are impacting on publicly funded libraries (Return on investment 1994; Jones 1994; Weingand 1995a) and that they have been accompanied by demands for greater efficiency and improved accountability. Against that backdrop, it has become more necessary than ever before that libraries are able to become, and to demonstrate that they have become, effective and efficient providers of services which people want and which their funding bodies are prepared to fund (Jones 1994). The librariansÕ argument of the inherent and ÔimmeasurableÕ worth of libraries carries little if any weight in todayÕs world and is, in any case, at odds with a sound business orientation (Penniman 1990). Indeed, there are even those who would argue that the library, as we know it, is becoming less and less relevant to the modern age and that other, (electronic) methods of providing information, education, and recreation are supplanting it (Folk 1976; Lancaster 1978). The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 1 1 A number of solutions or at least, partial solutions, have been suggested for tackling these problems. Hamon (1995) explores some practical strategies that can help librarians to achieve success in the political process. ÒPerhaps the greatest weakness in traditional efforts to market library service is the failure to establish a need or even the perception of a need for library products in the minds of those who control political processes." (1995, 435) Eric Wainwright (1988) argues that it is the innovative and creative organisation which inculcates a culture of embracing change which will have the best chance of success and Wehmeyer (1996), and Rowley (1997) advocate the importance of the customer. Martin (1997) suggests that a key element is a lack of professional leaders with the vision to Òboth describe the desired future and make it happenÓ and accordingly argues the need for improved library training geared towards improving information management competencies. Penniman (1990) argues that library benefits must be presented to funding bodies in the financial management language of costs and returns; and Lofgren (1992) and Broadbent (1994) have contributed significantly to the development of performance measures which can demonstrate the effectiveness and value of library services. These solutions which encompass political acumen, organisational culture, strategic planning, improved management skills, cost attribution, and performance measurement, all focused on customer service and satisfaction, would be powerful tools in and of themselves but in combination they comprise the much more powerful paradigm to which this paper is addressed: the process of ÔmarketingÕ. The Marketing literature reviewed The literature of marketing is considerable and extends through at least a forty year period to the present day. That which applies marketing to the ÔnonprofitÕ or Ônot-for-profitÕ sector such as encompasses most of the library world appears to have originated with work by Kotler and Levy (1969) and Kotler and Zaltman (1971). Other significant early contributors to the field were Lazer and Kelley (1973), Luck (1974), Sheth and Wright (1974), and Laczniak, Lusch and Murphy (1979). KotlerÕs 1975 work, Marketing for nonprofit organizations, provides a clear outline of the concepts of marketing, discusses its applicability to the non commercial context, and delineates the various elements of the process as well as providing a number of case studies. This classic work is now in its 4th edition (1991). The period since 1970 has seen the creation of a substantial and increasing body of literature specifically discussing marketing in relation to libraries. This accent on marketing appears to The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 2 2 be a response to the needs of librarians for new solutions to the problems created by ever increasing demand for existing services accompanied by the additional demand to supply new ones; in a climate of increased competition and shrinking resources. (Smith 1995). Significant amongst the works directly discussing marketing and libraries are those of Cronin, Weingand, Wood, and Kinnell. Blaise CroninÕs The Marketing of library and information services (1981) collects the major articles of that first decade and provides an excellent introduction to the topic. In her, Marketing/planning library and information services (1987), Weingand clearly draws the connection between planning and marketing, a theme given similar significance in WoodÕs Strategic marketing for libraries. (1988). KinnellÕs 1994 study of marketing in public libraries and leisure services in the United Kingdom provides one of the few published studies of what is actually happening in practice. Jennings (1984, 17), reporting on a survey of the literature from 1969 - 1982 concluded that: ÒThe extension of techniques to the non-business sector has forced marketers to analyse the nature of marketing.Ò KeaneÕs review produced similar findings and led Keane to conclude that not only was marketing appropriate for libraries but that librarians, in pursuing the concept of the Òright book to the right person at the right timeÓ (1990a, 122), were already practising a marketing approach, although they may not necessarily regard it as such : Òit is the terminology, not the concepts and techniques of marketing, which are unfamiliar to librarians ...Ó (1990a, 124). Smith (1995), using 4 case studies, shows that librarians are already engaged in marketing though without necessarily recognising it as such and argues that marketing, as a ÔstanceÕ or ÔattitudeÕ, is an essential element of good practice aimed at meeting the needs of users. However, of the libraries surveyed in KinnellÕs study of 1994, few were pursuing marketing other than in the relatively narrow sense of promotion. In the survey of 139 United Kingdom libraries it was found that, although approximately 50% of library services had a person or team designated as responsible for marketing, Òlibrary services also showed a clear preference for marketing activities being the responsibility of promotion or publicity personnel, which indicates the blurring of the division between ÔmarketingÕ and Ôpromotion/publicityÕ in the minds of senior managersÓ (Kinnell 1994, 33) A survey of selected corporate and government libraries in Victoria revealed a similar situation, that whilst Ò a majority are in favour of marketing their services ... In practice, though very few libraries undertake formal marketing planning and prepare marketing plans. The most commonly used element of marketing is still promotion. Ò (Kelso 1995, 3) The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 3 3 KeaneÕs review had reported the predominance of American and British literature in the work produced up to the end of the eighties (1990a, 117). Quantitatively, there has been a more substantial Australasian contribution over the last decade or so. However, a continuing confusion about the nature of marketing, and between ÔmarketingÕ and Ôa marketing approachÕ remains, and the range of scholarship represented extends from the superficial or confused (Johnson 1987; Bartholomaeus 1991)), through that of instructive though relatively unquestioning advocacy (Morgan & Noble 1992), to MarkÕs more critical and considered appraisal (1994) of social marketing, which seems to bear out JenningÕs prediction of 1983, to which this review previously referred, that the application of marketing to the non-profit sector will bring about a gradual refinement of the fit of marketing as a tool for management of the non-profit organisation. Significant amongst the Australasian literature is that which advocates that marketing is an appropriate management technique for libraries. Keane (1990a), Pymm (1990), Bartholomaeus (1991), Morgan & Noble (1992), Tuffield (1992), Nicholson (1996); and MarkÕs (1994) cautionary examination of the potential for erosion of organisational mission and dilution of social obligations which might be the results of an uncritical adoption of marketing. Useful, though perhaps of lesser importance, are the contributions dealing with the promotional element of marketing, Evans (1989), (Gawith (1990), Cram (1996), though in some cases there is a continuing, and disturbing tendency of these articles to represent ÔpromotionÕ as marketing. What is marketing? Marketing, say Kotler & Levy in ÒBroadening the concept of marketing Ò in which he first introduced the idea of applying commercial marketing principles and strategies to the non commercial organisation, is: Òcustomer satisfaction engineering.Ó (1969, 10) This simple definition is appealing because it clearly refutes the two most commonly held misapprehensions about marketing held by librarians: that marketing is purely a commercial concept concerned with profit; and that it equates with promotion. This definition is unmistakably focused upon the customer and upon getting it right for the customer. At the same time, ÔengineeringÕ suggests that getting it right is not to be left to chance but will be, instead, the result of a systematic process of planning and implementation based on effective design, measured inputs and defined outputs. The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 4 4 The misconception that marketing is just about selling is to be avoided. Even when marketing is about selling goods for profit, marketing is about not only selling but also the total process of satisfying the customer: ... a truly marketing minded firm tries to create value-satisfying goods and services that consumers will want to buy. What it offers for sale includes not only the generic product or service, but also how it is made available to the customer, in what form, when, under what conditions, and at what terms of trade. Most important, what it offers for sale is determined not by the seller but by the buyer. The seller takes his cues from the buyer in such a way that the product becomes a consequence of the marketing effort, not vice versa.Ó (Levitt 1960) Coote (1994, 6) refers us to the more complex definition of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, which does introduce the notion of profitability. Marketing is, it says, is: Òthe management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitablyÕ. This is a useful definition because it adequately encompasses those elements of marketing which are commonly stressed in the literature: a) that marketing is a management process, b) that marketing involves planning (anticipating), c) that marketing requires analysis of customer needs and ways of satisfying those needs, and d) that marketing is not just about giving customers what they want but that it is about giving customers that which is both what customers want and that which it benefits the organisation to provide. In other words, ÔprofitabilityÕ really refers here, not so much to achievement of financial gain for a supplier (though that may be a legitimate result of the process), as to Ômutual benefitÕ or the notion of a voluntary exchange which each party sees as worthwhile and personally beneficial, and which may or may not involve the exchange of currency. Marketing, then, is about ensuring the viability of the organisation through a match of organisational resources and capabilities with customer needs through provision of products and services developed to meet those needs and within those capabilities. In a library sense, profitability may be equated with the extent to which the host organisationÕs goals and objectives are met and continued support and funding ensured, as well as by the extent to which client needs are effectively satisfied. The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 5 5 Planning the future - marketingÕs relevance for libraries Morgan & Noble (1992) advise that library survival is dependent on the Òacceptance of marketing as a fundamental management philosophy.Ó Weingand (1995b) points to the social & technological changes of our age as reasons for the need to focus on the customer and argues that marketing and planning are a natural partnership. Kotler (1994) argues, that marketing is about selling solutions or Òthe creation of a standard of livingÓ (1994, 6) and that its customer focus is a natural progression from the various management theories, such as theory-x / theory-y; strategic planning; and quality, which have preceded it over the last forty years. ÒThe marketing concept, he says, Òholds that the main task of the company is to determine needs, wants, and preferences of a target group of customers and to deliver the desired satisfactions.Ó (1994, 32) Strategic direction and planning for the future are presented as key elements of the marketing process in WeingandÕs, Marketing / planning, library and information services (1987) and WoodÕs, Strategic marketing for libraries: a handbook (1988). Both represent planning as paramount for library survival and set out clear and detailed strategies for implementing this approach. Weingand argues that such an approach is necessary not only for present success but also for future survival but Wood does caution that the strategic planning process must be modified to suit the not-for-profit situation. Jo Bryson (1990), in a brief but useful chapter, provides the practitioner with practical techniques and also places marketing firmly into the strategic planning context asserting that: ÒStrategic marketing strategies ensure viable market positions and programmes for the survival and success of the library and information centre.Ó (1990, 12) Nichols (1995) also provides a connection between planning and survival and offers a practical explanation of how future trends can be integrated into the marketing process through the techniques of environmental scanning and scenario building. Powers (1995), relating marketing planning to special libraries, contends that it can no longer be assumed that library services are valued but rather that they must be able to demonstrate that information can add value and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the organisation. (1995, 490) She suggests that, Òthe marketing plan orients the organization toward a path of future growth and opportunity.Ó (1995, 479). Nicholson expresses a similar view, and while asserting that the significance of marketing has long been recognised by the library profession, suggest that, nevertheless, a Òpositive approach to changeÓ is required (1996, 127), remarking that the findings of a recent study of 19 special libraries indicated that Òmost of the marketing activities undertaken by these libraries were in the promotion area.Ó (1996, 128). The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 6 6 This contradiction, between assertions that librarians understand and already utilise the marketing and planning processes and survey evidence to the contrary, is not uncommon. If KinnellÕs study is taken as representative of the reality in the field, it is disturbing because she reports (1994, 55) that although, Òthe value of a planning document was emphasised by all of the managers ... more than three quarters of library services had no planÓ (1994, 64). Where such plans did exist, ÒMarketing was mentioned ... in only 35% [of them]Ó and ÒStrategy was mentioned in only 19% [of them].Ó (1994, 56) Also, it seems that some library managers only see marketing as relevant if services are not being utilised, as this quote from a respondent to Kinnell indicates: ÒAs the service is swamped by the present level of demand, marketing is not a priority.Ó (Kinnell 1994, 66) As Kinnell so aptly states, ÒPlanning is futile if there is no action ... Ò (1994, 70). This is also the theme of Martin (1988) who whilst supporting the client-centred approach, also argues that, if they are to remain relevant, librarians must take a proactive approach and embrace technological change by redefining their services. ÒMarketing is all about peopleÓ he says, (1988, 62) and identifies key techniques which can be applied by librarians in order to better service their clients. Martin contends that what is important is for librarians to focus on the environmental context in which their library operates, not simply on their product or service. Libraries, he asserts, Òare fundamentally inefficient in meeting the needs of their clienteleÓ (1988, 65). MartinÕs argument is that books or other containers of information do not effectively satisfy client needs and that, as alternatives such as the interactive media become more available, the clientÕs tolerance for the inefficient forms to which they are currently accustomed, will diminish. To address this problem, Martin suggests the use of detailed market segmentation and that librarians must engage with new media such as interactive technologies in a ÒbraveÓ rather than tentative way. The ÔbraveryÕ referred to by Martin reflects the talk of ÔentrepreneurialismÕ which infuses the literature and the growing recognition that, in an ever more rapidly changing world, libraries must not only embrace change but anticipate it. Kotler (1982), discusses the application of commercial ideas to the development & commercialisation (launching) of new services or programs and suggests that it is not enough for an organization simply to be willing to adapt it must be proactive in seeking to understand the need for and implement change: ÒAn entrepreneurial organization goes one step further than a responsive and adaptive organization. It is not only willing but eager to change with the times. (1982, 113) The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 7 7 ÔUneasy bedfellowsÕ - what are the problems? Not least because they were written a decade apart, titles such as: Marketing and the information professional: odd couple or meaningful relationship? (Shapiro 1980) and Marketing and librarianship: yin and yang, or uneasy bedfellows? (Keane 1990a) alert us to the growing pains that librarianship is experiencing as it attempts to embrace marketing, Although both Shapiro and Keane conclude that marketing is appropriate for librarians, it is worth considering the reasons for the unease exhibited by librarians about it. Whilst it is likely that many factors contribute to this discomfort some major causes that can be identified are the fears generated by challenge to the relative monopoly on information provision which libraries have enjoyed throughout their history; the genuine confusion which exists, even after forty years, about just what it is that marketing means; the suspicion or even hostility which many librarians show for profit orientated activities; and the conflict some feel between the desire to offer services based on sound professional principles and experience and what they see as slavish pandering to (often uninformed) user demand. Library, or ÔedfortainmentÕ industry? In 1960, LevittÕs seminal paper, Marketing Myopia, made the point that Òthere is no such thing as a growth industryÓ (1960, 14) because, he said, all industries will progress through a cycle of growth, stability and eventual decline. Most eventually fail, he claims, because they define their businesses too narrowly and are focused on their products rather than their markets and potential markets (read: Ôusers of their productsÕ.) Although, at that time Levitt was referring in the main to large commercial businesses and particularly manufacturing industries, the lesson is an apt one for libraries because of the parallels which can be drawn. LevittÕs point was that industries fail because global and technological change leaves them behind. What is in demand today, regardless of how good it is, is likely to be obsolete and no longer wanted tomorrow. However, by defining themselves in broad terms, industries will be better placed to anticipate such changes and to reorientate themselves around new products and markets. Levitt cites the rail industry as an example of one which was left behind as the world took to the motor car, because it did not recognise that it was in the transport industry, rather than the rail business. The failure of the large cinema chains who failed to see the importance of television because they saw themselves in the cinema business rather than the entertainment business, is another example. It is not hard to draw parallels between LevittÕs examples and the situation in which libraries find themselves today. In an unprecedented way, new media and technologies are The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 8 8 introducing competition with traditional library products and for what have traditionally been library customers. The library preoccupation with collection development and its extension (a product and mass production focus); the emphasis on promoting the collection to the public (advertising) in order to increase usage (sales) and generate statistics (profits), comprises a stance not dissimilar to the myopic one which Levitt suggests as responsible for the ills of business. The point is that librarians must recognise that they are not in the library business but rather are in the education industry, or the information industry, or the entertainment industry - or quite probably, within some combination of the three. As such, if they are to survive, let alone flourish, they must be prepared to identify and satisfy the real needs of the customers of those industries. Selling or marketing? To their credit, despite their relatively monopolistic position, libraries have always had a ÔuserÕ orientation in their attempts to provide a good quality product for a range of patrons. This has been reflected in the attention given to collection development, the development of bibliographic tools for accessing those collections, the provision of specialist programs for various groups, and the embracing of new types of media as they have evolved. However, although well intentioned those activities have nevertheless had a predominantly inward focus in that they have really been based on promoting (selling) what libraries have had to offer. Those products and services have not, primarily, been developed so much in response to specifically identified customer needs as that they have evolved from long-standing notions of the library mission and a ÔprofessionalÕ assessment of what would be in the interests of users. This substantial difference between focus on product and focus on customer is one of the key elements which differentiates marketing from the narrow commercial orientation of selling: ÒSelling focuses on the needs of the seller, marketing on the needs of the buyer. Selling is preoccupied with the sellerÕs need to convert his products into cash; marketing with the idea of satisfying the needs of the customer by means of the product and the whole cluster of things associated with creating, delivering, and finally consuming it (Levitt 1970, 18). It makes marketing a much more acceptable tool for those who fear some ÔtaintingÕ of the librariesÕ social mission with commercialism. It is increasingly doubtful, anyway, whether that discomfort with the concept of profit, continues to have any validity. As Kinnell points out, ÒThe most important single issue facing public sector managers at present is how to reconcile the increasing need for their services with a dwindling resource base.Ó (1994, 63) One result of this situation has been that libraries are, themselves, increasingly required to generate at least some portion of their The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 9 9 own funding. In addition, although libraries may not be organised primarily for the purpose of making profit, Òthey are nevertheless engaged in profitable activities of one kind or another.Ó (Kinnell 1994, 29) Few librarians, today, would find fault with charging for photocopying services, for fast-track interlibrary loans or for extending membership to patrons from outside their libraries usual community group. Generating income from profit making activity is thus a common and accepted practice within todayÕs libraries. Professionalism or pandering? - the primacy of customer? A common thread running through the various arguments of marketing is that of focusing on customer needs as the basis for determining services and direction. Indeed, Morgan & Noble, in Marketing library and information services in the 90Õs (1992), seem almost to treat a focus on user needs as synonymous with marketing itself. Tuffield suggests that Òa client-based concept should permeate all organisational functionsÓ and argues that such an orientation is Òessential for the progress and survival of libraries and for the increased professional standing of librarians within society.Ó (1992, 376.) Marks challenges such assertions suggesting that they Òignores the conflict that arises if the service considered desirable or essential from a professional point of view does not coincide with the clientÕs idea of appropriate service.Ó (Marks 1994, 20) Marks presents other cogent and detailed arguments that professionalism is at odds with marketing. The claims of some popular marketing theorists (Kotler & Levy 1969; Graham 1993) are ÔambitiousÕ, she claims, and reinforce the Òmisapprehension that a customer centred approach is synonymous with marketing...Ó (Marks 1994, 24). She comments that although such a view has been widely accepted, as Luck (1993) has pointed out, a key result of the view is that Òif a task is performed, anywhere by anybody, that has some resemblance to a task performed in marketing, that would be marketing.Ó (Luck in Graham 1993, 53) A significant argument is that professional service Òis enacted in the context of a socially defined specialism where the professional has the culturally given right and responsibility to exercise judgment...Ó whereas, Òtrue marketing assumes that the customer is always right.Ó (Marks 1994, 20) Marks asserts that Kotler and Andreason acknowledge this conflict in Strategic marketing for non-profit organizations (1987) and that it is this issue which is at the heart of the old quality versus popularity debate. Marks concludes that there are conflicts and contradictions in the arguments that marketing is appropriate to libraries but, in doing so, seems still to allow room for its contribution by stating that, Òcomplexity, ambiguity and conflict are, in any case, inherent in all social systems.Ó (1994, 25) The distinction between the two types of stakeholders served by libraries: the users of the service, or ÔconsumersÕ and the ÔcustomersÕ - a term which she reserves for any stakeholder The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 10 10 for whom the library provides a service - is drawn by Rowley (1997, 64), when she reminds us of the importance of remembering our internal customers. Kinnell also stresses this point: ÒLibraries ... need to implement policies of dual marketing, not only to meet the needs of the community, but to persuade the Local Authority to provide the funding with which to carry out their aims and objectives.Ó (1994, 95) Wehmeyer, Auchter & Hirshon (1996) discuss ways of empowering staff to serve customer needs in their discussion and articulation of the use of the customer service plan and advocacy for adoption of a Ôcustomer service pledgeÕ. The customer service pledge is ÒA brief document, written from the customerÕs point of view. ... [It] is the most visible part of the customer service plan, with the public promises supported by the service plan foundation.Ó (1996, 175) Essentially, the pledge says in clear terms what the library undertakes to deliver to its clients. It demonstrates to clients the commitment of library staff to serving client needs and provides a measure against which both staff and users can gauge the effectiveness of the service. Whilst recognising the importance of a customer focus, Johnson (1995) is concerned that the enthusiasm for marketing fails to acknowledge that librarians are and always have been customer focused and that much of the information which market analysis is aimed at gathering, already exists. Johnson points out that library clients often, in expressing what they want, donÕt ask for what they really need. He argues that library professionals have developed considerable skill and experience which allows them to interpret client requests such that their needs are expertly satisfied. JohnsonÕs essay, like that of Marks, provides some relief for the disquiet of those who believe that their libraries are pursuing client centred objectives without necessarily having given primacy only to customer needs as expressed by clients. Johnson argues that there are many models for assessing library effectiveness and that an inward focus on library objectives is not necessarily incompatible with a positive client-centred approach if those objectives are ones which, in any case, Òhold the user central in more abstract ways.Ó(1995, 323) JohnsonÕs opinion is that, Òmost libraries have ... a message related to a cause which they would like to see better accepted, and they have services which they would like to see better used.Õ (1995, 324) As a result, the task for librarians in reconciling the overarching objectives of their organisations with focus on the customer is not a simple one. However, if libraries admit this, Òand seek to clarify for themselves and their communities, what they want ... the work that marketing has done to define and operationalize customer focus will be invaluable.Ó (1995, 324) The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 11 11 Who are the customers? - Market segmentation Market segmentation is that part of marketing by which the characteristics of individual users are used to differentiate the total potential and actual client group into relatively homogeneous groups of users which are of serviceable size and who have particular and clearly definable needs. Keane, highlights the benefit of segmentation to the user and suggests that librarians have long had an unstated idea of the significance of market segmentation in their quest to provide Ò...the right book, to the right person, at the right timeÓ (Keane, 1990, 101). When Kinnell argues (1994, 96) that it is particular important for services such as libraries to target their efforts, because it is economically and practically impossible to adequately service a total community; she is only voicing what aware librarians have acknowledged for many years: that libraries cannot be all things to all people. Segmentation, however, turns this knowledge into action; it provides the tool by which librarians can decide who can and should be served and how best that service can be achieved. It is a process, in other words which Òmeans efficient use of resources and the ability to exploit opportunities as soon as they occurÓ (Kinnell 1994, 97) and yet one which is firmly, grounded in the needs of our users. Blaise Cronin, in her, New technology and marketing - the challenge for librarians (1982), provides an excellent example of benefit segmentation as it applies to health libraries. Cronin clearly demonstrates the diversity of clients which can exist in even what appears to be the most homogeneous group and advises librarians to Òanalyse your user population from the point of view of desirable benefitsÓ (Cronin, 379) because it is ÔhelpÕ or benefits which the user is primarily seeking. This concept of providing benefits, rather than packages or products, is crucial to the concept of marketing. Customer satisfaction will derive from the extent to which the needs of the customer are met. Those needs are generally abstractions such as knowledge, shelter, career advancement or passing a test; and that there may be, (and usually are), many varying ways and material products through which those needs can be satisfied. Cronin asserts, therefore, that Òthe first task facing the conscientious librarian is to identify barriers to information uptakeÓ (1982, 382) for the best methods of circumventing those barriers and satisfying the userÕs need can then be found. The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 12 12 Mixing it up - Putting marketing into action The Ômarketing mixÕ is the collective term for the key marketing tools usually referred to as the four ÔpÕsÕ, Product, Price, Place, and Promotion, which are central to marketing strategy. An excellent explanation of these concepts can be found in DimickÕs (1995) discussion of them which, although it is framed in the context of the marketing of youth services, is just as applicable to other areas. Product It is not uncommon to find debate about whether marketing can be applied as readily to an organisation that primarily provides services as to one which primarily provides goods. According to Kinnell, Ò... marketing as a broadly defined set of activities aims to achieve similar objectives whether the organisation is producing goods or services. Facilitating effective exchanges between the organisation and its customers/clients is the main objective.Ó (1994, 27) In library terms, the product is the services that the library provides - the reference or research collection or the answered ready reference query, for instance. Howver, both Kinnell (1994, 27) and Coote (1994, 20) suggest that there are particular features of services that distinguish them from products, and they identify those features as: intangibility (services cannot be seen, touched, tasted or smelled); inseparability (services are usually ÔconsumedÕ by the user as they are being produced); perishability (services cannot be stored); and heterogeneity (standardisation and quality are difficult to control)Ó. Excellence, should be the primary focus in terms of library product, according to Bushing (1995) who claims that this can be achieved by first clearly defining the libraryÕs role and then translating the identity which results from that role, into library products. BushingÕs argument is that if the whole organization is united around a single approach and search for excellence then it will be better placed to identify and solve customer problems and thereby ensure its own future. Catt (1995), using the strive for Olympic gold as an analogy, places similar importance on staff ÔcommitmentÕ to excellence and also discusses cost recovery within the framework of ÔneededÕ services. That the marketing concept of product is complex and sophisticated should now be apparent those that conceive of it in a narrow, sales orientated, Ôbox on the shelfÕ way fail to appreciate its centrality to organizational purpose and satisfaction of client needs. The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 13 13 Price It is widely accepted that librarians generally have a nonprofit orientation. Indeed, it is not too long ago that an Australian Library Week promotion was based around the theme, ÒThe best things in life are free.Ó However, in todayÕs environment of increased competition for scarcer funds. it is imperative that librarians do understand the concept of price, and can apply it to the various components of their services; for not only are those services not free, but as importantly, there is an old adage which says that people value what they pay for and pay for what they value and so perhaps it is not in the interests of library services that they be considered, free. Here is not the place for explication or discussion of the relative merits of various budgeting methods or of management accounting. Those who need explanation will find useful introductions in the relevant chapters of Stueart and Moran (1993) or Sanders (1995) and more complete treatments can be found in: The Bottom Line Reader (Sellen & Turnock 1990) or WachtÕs Financial Management in nonprofit organizations (1987). What this review will attempt is to highlight what factors are important in determining price within the marketing of a library services and to show that those factors are not confined simply to the more recognisable, financial, costs. Weingand (1995a) asserts that ÒIn the nonprofit sector, price or pricing must be defined as ÔcostÕ - the cost to produce a productÓ (1995a, 401) and she advocates the use of program budgeting as a foundation for cost analysis and cost-finding methodology for libraries. However, Weingand also refers to KotlerÕs 3 dimensional model of pricing which considers not only the financial cost of production on the part of the library but also the psychic, effort, and waiting costs of the user. Weingand (1995a) suggests that these are costs that are rarely considered by library staff and yet all are Òpart of the ÔcostÕ or ÔpriceÕ of linking the customer and the product. The point is, that in determining the value of our library services and how well they are likely to satisfy user requirements, it is necessary to consider the degree to which accessing those services for users is both convenient, pleasurable and satisfying. Again, the focus on user is as prevalent within pricing as it is in other areas of marketing. Place In marketing, ÔplaceÕ refers to the point at which the customer obtains access to the product or, in other words, the distribution of it. In libraries, then, place is about where the client can access our services. But place will be a consideration not only in whether or not there are The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 14 14 outreach services or mobile libraries but also in whether there is internet access to the catalogues or whether the doors are opened on Sundays or public holidays. Place, in the library context, is about access and, as such, includes a range of issues from the languages in which signs are presented, through the level of reading ability necessary to understand library guides and literature, to furnishings and fittings and comfort level. Because of its effect on the degree of ease with which clients can satisfy their needs, aspects of this element of the marketing mix will overlap with cost. Indeed, it is not unlikely that all elements of the marketing mix will at one point or another overlap or have implications for one another. Promotion In her study of British public libraries Kinnell found that: ÒPromotion is often felt by chief officers to be the most important aspect of marketing. It is the most easily and quickly recognised and understood aspect of marketing but probably in fact the least important (Kinnell 1994, 105). In fact, as has been documented earlier in this paper, it is not unusual for librarians to believe that if they are promoting, they are marketing. Yet clearly this is not the case. Despite that confusion, however, it is perhaps a little harsh to suggest that marketing is Òthe least importantÓ aspect of marketing. Certainly, on a superficial level, promotion could be seen as referring only, for instance, to the production of bookmarks or stickers, to advertisements on community radio, or to book displays in the staffroom. Promotion is more important than that. Gawith (1990), for instance, although concentrating more on what is already done than on marketing per se, does point to the promotionÕs role in demonstrating to stakeholders that libraries are achieving their goals. Evans (1989), in similar vein, but with more attention to the marketing context, also provides an insight into promotion as a means of demonstrating the value of the librarian as a professional - and thus the added value that the library service gains from this. Krieg-Sigman (1995) provides a more incisive discussion of promotion which examines the difference between promotion and communication, outlines the merits of each, and explains where and when each should be used. ÒWhile all promotion is communication, not all communication is promotionÓ she reminds, and goes on to give a provoking definition of promotion as, Òcommunication with an attitude.Ó (1995, 419) Krieg-Sigman recommends the judicious use of promotion, and reminds the reader that there are also times when not to promote is the best option. The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 15 15 A call for caution - unresolved problems There is no doubt that marketing has much to offer librarianship, however enthusiasm for its application does need the tempering of caution. Bloom & Novelli (1981) compare commercial marketing and social marketing and identify 8 problem areas that arise in the translation, likening the relationship to that between football and rugby. ÒThe two marketing games have much in common and require similar training, but each has its own set of rules, constraints and required skills.Ó (1981, 87) Some thirteen years later, Marks, too, has provided an incisive critique which exposes many problems with the uncritical adoption of the marketing concept for the public sector (Marks 1994). Even, Levitt, who seeded the interest in marketing with his Marketing Myopia (1969) almost 30 years ago, in a retrospective look at the subsequent 20 years, identified a negative result of marketingÕs wide adoption. ÒSome companies,Ó he said, Ò have developed what I call Ômarketing maniaÕ - theyÕve become obsessively responsive to every fleeting whim of the customerÓ to the extent that, Ò... in effect, there are now steam shovels for people who havenÕt yet learned to use spades. This problem has happened repeatedly in the so-called service industries.Ó(Levitt 1989, 23) What librarian cannot identify with this situation, particularly in relation to the introduction of Internet? However, that there are unresolved issues are not an argument for turning away from marketing but rather one for ensuring that marketing concepts are properly understood and used appropriately - as a means of problem solving. And few would disagree with WeingandÕs statement that as Òthe new millennium is approaching ... libraries must develop creative problem-solving strategies if they are not only to survive but also to thrive.Ó (1995, 295) Conclusion Librarians no longer have confidence in the survival of their libraries. The changing world; the reduced availability of public funding and its accompanying pressure towards entrepreneurialism; and the competition imposed as a result of new and cheaper electronic technologies; have produced a changed environment in which libraries must operate. It is one in which the intrinsic worth of library services is neither necessarily accepted nor seen as justification for allocation of resources. This changed situation for libraries has necessitated that librarians seek new solutions and one response has been the increasing advocacy, over a The Relevance of marketing for libraries in the not-for-profit sector. R.Hawcroft 16 16 30 year period, of commercial marketing concepts to the public or nonprofit sector within which most libraries operate. Marketing is a planned approach to defining products and services based upon analysis of customer needs and organizational capacities and, as such, appears to be a proactive strategy strongly compatible with the service and user orientation of libraries. However, despite the extent of the literature advocating such an approach, it is clear that considerable confusion remains about exactly what marketing means, which includes a particularly common misconception that ÔpromotionÕ is marketing. There appear to be few published studies which have examined the extent to which marketing is actually practised by libraries however those that there are suggest that the confusion about marketing extends to practice and that there is generally only limited implementation of some aspects of the total process. The literature identifies a number of problems with the application of commercial marketing concepts to the public sector. 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