This study focuses on business-to-consumer (B2C) e-marketing in the publishing industry. Random House CEO Dohle suggested a transition from B2B marketing to B2C marketing and Shatzkin, CEO of The Idea Logical Company, added this transition would be a good way to strengthen brands in publishing, and attract loyal individual consumers. Publishers are already making varying use of the internet and social media in 2011. This research first analyzes existing literature on marketing and e-marketing, particularly in the publishing industry. It then focuses on seven publishers’ online presences, and their interaction with individual consumers on the internet and social media, based on the author’s education in computer sciences, management, and publishing. The case study research is exploratory, phenomenological, and framed within an interpretive research paradigm. The findings are recorded in a structured dissertation, with screenshots of the relevant publishers’ websites. The seven publishers are categorized according to Bernoff’s stages in Managing Social Technology, and the research findings are linked back to literature, discussed, and best practices are identified. As there is very little literature on B2C e-marketing in the publishing industry, this dissertation sets out to offer information on publishers’ efforts in B2C e-marketing: a literature review outlines marketing in the publishing industry, and case studies illustrate seven publishers’ B2C e-marketing efforts, thus contributing to closing the gap in literature on publishers’ B2C e-marketing. It also sets a foundation for further research on the transition of marketing in publishing, either in qualitative case studies with publishers or quantitative research that is based on consumers’ perception of publishers’ B2C e-marketing.

Text sample: Chapter 2.5, Traditional B2C Marketing in the Publishing Industry: In publishing, several traditional tools can be used to market directly to the consumer: the brand, the book design itself, media attention, reading initiatives, book prizes, and viral marketing (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 168 et seqq.). All these elements can also be implemented into a publisher’s e-marketing campaign. 2.5.1, Brand: Brands encourage the consumer’s ability to recognize and differentiate a product and increase brand awareness. Increased brand awareness leads to easier promotion of the product (Hollensen 2004, p. 470). In publishing, there are three types of brands: the author or content provider, the literature, and the publisher. To the consumer, the publishers’ brand is not as recognizable and thus not as relevant to their buying decision as other consumer brands may be. Brand names in publishing, however, influence trade intermediaries (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 173). The author’s brand is a strong marketing tool he can help promote the book, as he is most knowledgeable, passionate, and directly involved (Hyatt 2011 Gardner August 2, 2011). The reader would rather connect with the author (Gardner August 16, 2011) than the publisher. The successful self-publisher John Locke has proven that branding and successful communication with the target audience can take place on many platforms, most currently on e-marketing platforms, such as blogs and Facebook (Shatzkin 2011a), and that this can boost sales, and turn readers into loyal fans and followers. These two aspects are the aim of every marketing effort. 2.5.2, Book Design: Book design is closely related to the content provider as a brand, as readers need to be able to quickly identify what type of book by which content creator they are looking at. The book’s design thus helps to position it it often differs in separate markets (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 176 et seqq.). For e-marketing, this can be even more crucial as consumers often browse with less time online than in traditional retail stores. 2.5.3, Media Attention: Sometimes, publishers do not control marketing, as with the recent article on Jon-Jon Goulian’s memoir The Man in the Gray Flannel Skirt (Bertodano 2011). The article is not a review or an excerpt, but rather an interview with the author. The extract Tabasco with Everything (Birnbaum 2011) in The Guardian Weekend is not labeled as an advertisement, nor is it an interview or review rather, it is an edited excerpt from the book Season to Taste by Molly Birnbaum. At the end of the excerpt, the reader finds information on where to obtain the book. These two examples show that marketing can take place without the publisher’s initiative. Publishers do try to influence this by creating a list of potential relevant reviewers to whom they send books, with a request for a review printed in the reviewer’s publication (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 187 et seq.). This too can be utilized for e-marketing, as publishers can enter into relationships with online magazines and bloggers. 2.5.4, Reading Initiatives and Prizes: Publishers are aware of the need to encourage the public’s reading. They encourage and participate in events. Canongate’s CEO Byng, for example, started the World Book Night in 2011, and almost two dozen publishers participate in World Book Day in the UK. Publishers who participate in reading initiatives should integrate their participation into their e-marketing strategies. Richardson (2008) points out that some book prizes and awards attract attention and media coverage. Thus, publishers should integrate awards into their e-marketing strategies and cross-promote, for example, the Man Booker Prize when they get listed. 2.5.5, Viral Marketing: Word-of-mouth marketing, or viral marketing, is very helpful for boosting sales. Although hardly any company can start a successful viral campaign, publishers can foster viral marketing by supporting book clubs and reading groups (Richardson 2008, p. 37). Publishers can also attempt to gain media coverage and prominent placement in bookstores to intensify word-of-mouth campaigns (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 181), but these methods can be costly. Other ways to start viral marketing are content creator tours and appearances at literary festivals (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 181), which can also be costly and time-consuming. The Internet, however, offers great opportunities to advertise, generate attention, and create interest (Clark and Phillips 2008, p. 181) social networking sites are the perfect place to start what Zarella (2011, p. 113) refers to as ‘contagious campaigns’.

• E-marketing

• Publishing Industry

• business-to-consumer

• social media

• Social Technology

• Management

After her first degree in computer sciences, Kim Maya Sutton held various positions in different industries, and thus, she acquired broad practical knowledge. She has furthered her academic education with a Bachelor in International Management and completed a Master of Arts in Publishing in Cambridge. During her time in Cambridge, she started teaching various undergrad and postgrad management classes today, she teaches at Jade University of Applied Sciences in Wilhelmshaven. During her studies, she co-founded an independent publishing house and researched new marketing possibilities and customer loyalty schemes arising through the Internet. Kim Maya Sutton hat nach ihrem ersten Studium der Wirtschaftsinformatik in verschiedenen Industrien sehr unterschiedliche Positionen innegehabt und so ein sehr breit gefächertes Praxiswissen aufgebaut. Sie hat einen Bachelor im Studiengang internationales Management absolviert, darin aktuelle Forschungsergebnisse und Methoden kennengelernt und dann einen Master im Verlagswesen in Cambridge erfolgreich abgeschlossen. Während der Zeit in Cambridge hat sie bereits eine Lehrtätigkeit für betriebswirtschaftliche Fächer aufgenommen, heute lehrt sie an der Jade Hochschule in Wilhelmshaven. Schon während des Studiums gründete sie einen unabhängigen Verlag und erforschte neue Marketingmöglichkeiten und Kundenbindungsmaßnahmen, die sich durch das Internet ergeben.