Online Marketing Strategies and Plans

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Online Marketing Strategiesand Plans

• Society for Scholarly Publishing
• June 7, 2007
• Melanie Schaffner
• Marketing and Sales Manager, Project MUSE

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A Brief History of Project Muse

• 1993 Johns Hopkins University Press and Milton
  S. Eisenhower Library explore options for
  producing 40 JHUP journals electronically, seek
  grant funding to pursue prototypes
• 1995 With grant funding from Mellon and NEH,
  JHUP and MSEL produce Muse pilot project with
  eight journals published online in full text
• 1996 All 40 JHUP journals produced online and
  pilot offer of subscriptions to the MUSE
  collection is offered to libraries in the fall.
  Several consortia (Oberlin Group, VIVA) serve as
  beta testers for interface and consult on
  development of consortium pricing plan
• 1997 First full year that MUSE collection
  subscription is offered, license and usage terms
  set out by MSEL/JHUP governing board
• 1998 Grant funding expires, Muse is
  self-supporting
• 2000 Journals from other university presses are
  added to Muse collection, libraries and consortia
  are offered choice of several packages of
  journals (complete collection, discipline
  collections)

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Project MUSE Today

• MUSE collection now covers nearly 350 full text
  titles from 70 not-for-profit publishers, in the
  humanities, the arts, and the social sciences
• Over 1,300 subscribers worldwide
• 25 of customers are international, more than
  half of new business originating overseas in
  previous two years
• Majority of subscribers are university and
  college libraries, plus community colleges, high
  schools, variety of special libraries
• Global marketing/sales staff of three, one
  full-time customer/technical service
  representative

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Online Marketing Goals

• Promote product awareness
• Generate trials
• Increase sales
• Support current customers
• Increase usage
• Promote customer retention/upselling

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E-Communications

• Administrative email list
• Opt-in e-newsletter
• Journal alerts
• RSS feeds
• Listserv postings
• Be cautious of posting policies
• Seek out specialty/international lists

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Administrative E-List

• One contact at each subscribing institution
  (designated at time of order), others may opt-in
• Variety of informational announcements
• New title launches
• New features/functionality
• Pricing/policy/content updates
• Event announcements (user groups, meetings)
• Scheduled maintenance
• Conservative use, no hard selling

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The MUSE Letter

• Opt-in e-newsletter, geared towards frontline
  librarians
• Currently quarterly, expect to increase frequency
• New titles launched, new features added
• Tips and Tools (search hints, instructional
  tips, etc.)
• New subscribers and consortium partners

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Journal Alerts

• Available via email or RSS
• Individual title
• Subject area
• Collection
• New titles

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For Librarians Resources

• Special section on MUSE web site, downloadable
  materials to help subscribing libraries conduct
  outreach and instruction
• Instructional Guides
• Subject Guides, Subject Postcards
• Logos and web buttons
• Posters
• Signups for email alerts, RSS, e-newsletter
• PowerPoint tutorials (coming soon)
• Subscription management tools (view statistics,
  download holdings list, enable OpenURL)
• Forms for ordering printed materials

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Other Strategies

• Banner advertising
• Often available in package with print
• Send viewers directly where you want them
• Linking
• General/specialized AI services
• Aggregator databases
• GYM
• Foreign language services
• URLs in all print collateral!

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Thank you!

• Melanie Schaffner
• Marketing and Sales Manager, Project MUSE
• melanie_at_muse.jhu.edu
• 410-516-3846