Online publishing newsletter Publishing Perspectives has released the results of a survey, conducted among publishing and ad execs in the US, discussing the issue of declining marketing budgets. The survey revealed that one stable area of the marketing spend is on ‘co-op,’ or the cash paid to retailers for a premium in-store display, such as on tables, end caps or in windows. The co-op marketing channel can cost tens of thousands of dollars per week, per title, for premium placement within a single national retail chain. However, most publishers vouch for its effectiveness.
It has also been observed that the online medium is a highly effective means of marketing books. Amidst tight budgets, marketing money is largely being directed toward online ads and campaigns, efforts that are becoming increasingly prevalent, even for high profile titles. In particular, publishers are finding online campaigns especially effective at generating pre-pub publicity for titles. Still, for many marketing executives raised on traditional print and television media, online marketing can still be perceived as a compromise. It may be viewed as something done as an inexpensive alternative to more costly print and television campaigns — a perception that remains difficult to change.
A recent study by Kelley Gallagher, Vice President of Publishing Services at RR Bowker, substantiates the need for online marketing in the current scenario. The study’s results were presented in May 2009 at the Book Industry Study Group’s Sixth Annual Making Information Pay conference. Gallagher’s research revealed that of 30,000 consumers who were asked in what medium they were first made aware of a new book, 54.1% cited online/internet advertising, while only 21.2% said TV, radio, and newspaper magazine advertising.
With the recent economic downturn, book advertising is seen to be on the decline. The majority of US publishers have cut their marketing budgets by 50-70 percent over the past year. While some ad prices have been depressed, prices have not dropped far enough to make them a viable way to advertise most books.
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