© Aline Soules, 2001 Librarians, Marketing, and Relationship Management: Aline Soules, Scholarly Communication Librarian University of Michigan Business School June 27, 2001 Setting the Stage

© Aline Soules, 2001 Terminology Marketing and Customers vs. Patrons and Users

© Aline Soules, 2001 What It’s All About: Mission and Core Value Connecting Content and Customers Through Access and Service

© Aline Soules, 2001 Who We Are Librarian profile? Stereotype confirmation Personality testing: yes or no? Emotional intelligence Personal development and change

© Aline Soules, 2001 Our Environments and Defining Our Profession Mission and core values Variety of what we do in a typical day –librarian school, academic, public, corporate –information specialist –library school student

© Aline Soules, 2001 What It’s All About: Mission and Core Value Connecting Content and Customers Through Access and Service

© Aline Soules, 2001 Who We Serve (at the University of Michigan Business School) Primary –faculty, students, staff at UMBS Secondary –faculty, students, staff at UM Tertiary –anyone who walks in the door

© Aline Soules, 2001 Skill Set for Future Students and Hires Communication Relationship Diversity Risk taking Creativity Multi-disciplinary Work at e-speed Intellectual capability Caring for others Leadership--Innate not hierarchical Team player

© Aline Soules, 2001 Data Gathering Current state of data gathering in libraries Standards Quality Indicator process at UMBS sources used to foster ideas

© Aline Soules, 2001 Marketing and Relationship Management At its most basic level, every member transaction, every interaction, every connection … --positive or negative--is marketing. In a strategic context, marketing drives the entire decision-making process and requires research that is objective, comprehensive and continuous. Marketing is strategic on one hand, the responsibility of everyone on the other. It is a philosophy, not a job--a way of thinking, not a department. Goldman, Neil. “All for One Survival Marketing.” Credit Union Management. Nov., 1999.

© Aline Soules, 2001 “Seeing” the Library Physical –entrance –signs –visible staff activity –telephone Virtual –home page –navigation –help availability –

© Aline Soules, 2001 Brand Identity Coca Cola logo name and name usage goal: imbed the name and the mission

© Aline Soules, 2001 What It’s All About: Mission and Core Value Connecting Content and Customers Through Access and Service

© Aline Soules, 2001 Data Gathering Quality, objective research is what allows marketing to be so effective. Without it--without knowing what member perceptions are and why--any strategic decision executed in the name of “marketing” is a pure gamble. As the old adage says, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” Similarly, you can’t fix what you don’t know is broken. Without objective, quantifiable data to guide it, true marketing is impossible, and the organization as a whole is blind. Goldman, Neil. “All for One Survival Marketing.” Credit Union Management. Nov., 1999.

© Aline Soules, 2001 Relationship Management at UMBS “liaison” relationship remote relationship suggestion board and constituent consultation faculty document delivery time and issues responding to questions and analysis

© Aline Soules, 2001 Library Relationships Customer markets internal markets supplier and alliance markets referral markets recruitment markets influence markets

© Aline Soules, 2001 What We Should Do Start with ourselves and the list of skills take risks read widely and beyond librarianship gather meaningful output data communicate be timely provide what is truly wanted

© Aline Soules, 2001 What We Should Do Develop relationships and partnerships that are just as substantive as the resources and services we have spent so long developing Nurture those relationships to create the loyal customer base that will do some of our marketing for us

© Aline Soules, 2001 Marketing The key to our success or failure

© Aline Soules, 2001 Aline Soules, Scholarly Communication Librarian University of Michigan Business School 701 Tappan Street Ann Arbor, MI tel fax UMBS web site: