nP IN THE MARKETING ACTIVITIES OF PUBLIC LIBRARY Nguyen Huu Nghia

"nP" IN THE MARKETING ACTIVITIES OF PUBLIC LIBRARY
Journal of Cultural Studies, 2011-ISSN 0886-7667
Hanoi University of Culture
NGUYEN HUU NGHIA
Summary:
Marketing 4P is based on these factors: Product; Price; Place; Promotion. That is
the basic lesson for the students specialized in marketing. To date, many areas, industries
have flexible used marketing activities in operation including field of information library.
That some public libraries around the world have applied marketing shows the flexible
application of marketing will bring success for serving the diverse readers. From
marketing 4P we can use skillfully one or more other "P" to bring success for the
operation of the public library. Within the scope of the article, the author introduces and
shares some personal comments in the expanding "P" in marketing public library.
Data from "the Conference proceedings of the 5-year operation of the public library
system (2006-2010)" in Phu Yen shows that: "Our public library net has grown quite
widely, from the central to the provincial, city, district, township, ward, including: 63
provincial libraries, 626 district-level libraries, more than 2000 communal libraries up to
standard, near 10,000 bookcases/reading rooms in the base (not to mention the pattern of
library, book having the nature of public monitored by agencies, organizations)" (1, p. 163167). These figures show that public library system has spread across the country and is
becoming the fastest and the most timely focal point of cultural and information
transmission to all classes of people.
The functions and duties of the public library as business units are storing and
rotating books, magazines ... serving readers, as well as giving professional guidance for
library facilities and sharing experience with other libraries in the same system. These
activities are geared to serve the readers for the benefit of each individual, the benefits of
the collective and national in order to actively support for education and training, selftraining, improving intellectual level of people and leisure.
To promote the inherent strengths and create the appeal to readers, many public
libraries have actively implemented numerous activities in order to attract readers to
exploit and use products and services; at the same time, actively learn information needs to
have plans adding reasonable document to meet the diverse information needs of the
readers.

However, according to the ASSOC. DR. Tran Thi Minh Nguyet "... Many recent
researches relating to information needs at the public library show the percentage of
workers, farmers, technicians in library is quite modest, while children, pupils, students
and pensioners account for a very high rate. This phenomenon can be seen in two aspects:
libraries do not have enough attraction, appealing the people directly involved in the
work, or their information needs is still too low " (1, p. 163-167).
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To overcome this limitation, in addition to the current efforts, Vietnam public
library needs much more attention to the reference of marketing application process of a
number of public libraries in the region and over the world to soon formed and built their
own marketing strategies.
The English-Vietnamese explanation dictionary for school libraries and informatics
has given the understanding "Marketing: A group of activities that aim to promote the
exchange of a building between the service provider of library and communication with
people who are using or will be able to use these services. These activities concern to
products, prices, delivery methods, and product promoting methods “(2).
We cannot deny the role and the positive influence on the use of flexible marketing
in all areas, industries. Since before the 1975 application, the businesses in Southern of
Vietnam had sought marketing application in their activities. When there is a transition of
economy to market mechanism, in Vietnam, marketing is further researched and taught at
the universities of economics, commercial ... (3) To date, a number of "non-profit"
organizations research, approach and try to apply the reasonable marketing methods and
strategies in their operations to enhance service quality, contributing to promote the
common development for social progress.
According to Philip Kotler, "Marketing is a process of social management,
whereby collectives and individuals get what they need and desire through creation, sale
and exchange of valuable products with others" (4). This concept is based on factors:
Product; Price; Place; Promotion. That is the basic lesson: Marketing 4P is for students

majoring in marketing.
Within the scope of this article, the author does not reintroduce the basic detail 4P
of marketing but only introduces some extra "P" with the very own definition can be
referred to use flexibly in action programs marketing information library.
Packaging
In addition to creating products and perfect services, the public libraries need to
create the good initial impression to readers by the art of introducing their own products.
Many libraries have skillfully implemented to replace the soft cover of the rare books by
the hardcover, which remains the original book's cover page. This work creates initial
impression to the user when accessing the document; at the same time ensure the book to
have a long-time use, stores rare documents as the cultural heritage of the nation and
mankind.
In addition, libraries may have more attention to creating the slogan, printing logo
on their products, even as the "slogans" containing the search results, providing
information upon request, printing on envelope gift boxes, bags, Conference folders ... It
was short but very effective messages to users.

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( />By the welcome to users before they select the information reference-lookup
service, Ho Chi Minh City Library has made "quiet, boring" lookup page become
livelier: Ho Chi Minh City Library welcomes you to Reference Services.

The cover of Library Magazine
before

The cover of Vietnam Library Journal
after

With the upgrade to Journal from the cover, Vietnam Library Journal has intrigued
readers from appearance (the cover) and lured readers with rich and diverse contents
assessed by the editorial board who are prestige experts. Form of magazine is designed
with modern style but retains its own identity. Text form and page layout are flexible with
professional style and the price is very suitable.
Positioning
Positioning the design of products, services of the library agency is done for the
user to understand and appreciate highly the efforts of the information library agency when
creating these products and services. At the same time, good positioning is based on the
results of the serious investigation about the needs of the target clients as well as the choice
of the individual, groups of officers introducing products, services and image of library.
With the results of this investigation, library officials need to discover the diverse
needs of every reader in order to design and create products and services suitable for each
reading object. At the same time the product design team needs to set out the minimum
standards for each product and service with each reader group. After that, there will be plan
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of tracking and reviewing the use of the products and services of the library from readers.
The reviews from readers will help library officers to positioning the level of their products
and services and flexibly change the level of standards for products and services of the
library. In particular, the library must have the positive promotion of information resources,
products and information services for users of the library to be "encircled" among the best
and the most friendly product and service having competitive capacity with other sources
of information out of the library.
Even, the librarians have to seen and review themselves, their work which shown in
eyes and thoughts of readers. How readers review about products and services of the
library, how they describe the library? Even which words, attitude, and action they use for
the staff and library.
Product positioning plan will help library to implement the next step in building a

marketing strategy.
People
"The Conference proceedings of the 5-year operation of the public library system
(2006-2010)" in Phu Yen shows that: "Provincial library: in the past 5 years, provincial
library network has 177 officers employed with long-term contract, making the total
number of officers increase from 1,394 up to 1,604; District level library: district-level
library network has been added 1775 officers, making the total number of officers increase
from 694 up 869 " (5) in which the number of officers with over university-level and the
university level have increased to 3.3 % and 68%, respectively.
It can be said that the number of library officers is more and more, professional
level of librarians is more raised, which is a good signal when information needs of
readers is more diversified, requiring high-quality search results. However, creating the
differences about the images the hardworking librarian should be added other elements to
create a distinct impression on the librarians of the 21th century. That is making differences
about personnel.
-

Competency: Librarians should have the necessary knowledge and skills of
profession; update new information about the profession through conferences
and workshops and share knowledge in the profession through the forums in
and out of the library.

-

Courtesy: Librarians need to have warm, affable, thoughtful attitude
according to the motto: "Let the customer enjoy from the begin to the end.".
Need to clear the image "the fastidious librarian" which is not friendly to
readers. Replaced by the image of the professional librarians, with knowledge
and enthusiasm to the job who are always ready to help readers to thoroughly
exploit information resources of the library in any aspect readers have not yet

been equipped with the knowledge, skills of searching information.

-

Trust: A library works well when there are good leaders. A good library
leader needs to have staffs equipped with good knowledge, sense of
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responsibility to the work. A library officer is good only when he or she is
received good comments from readers. This represents the stable and
sustainable development of the library.
-

Reliability: Librarians need to ensure quality of products and services evenly
and precisely. With their own mission, the librarians are the bridge between the
readers with the information they need. Specifically, after analyzing the
information requirements and finding out readers needs, the professional library
staff will capture the quality information matching readers’ needs. Then, readers
can absolutely feel assured that the received information is accurate, updated
and guaranteed.

-

Enthusiasm: Librarians need to quickly resolve the issue and request of
readers, the library's customers.

-

Communication skill: Librarians need to have skills to ask questions, clarify

issues and grasp the needs of readers in order to provide clear and accurate
information. At the same time, friendly communication skill will make readers
feel more comfortable when using the services and products in the library.

Process
System factor expresses the basic spirit of modern public library administrators.
Many organizations have invested effort, time and money to build a systematic operating
process in order to standard activities as well as enhance the capacity of officers and the
rhythmic coordination of the unit members. To operate public libraries really effectively,
application of ISO in comprehensive management system must be considered. However,
the implementation of ISO in management system needs convergence of full elements
which are creation, principles, flexibility and good personal role promotion.
Public
Readers of public library are very diverse including workers, farmers, technicians,
students, children, retirees with different needs, requirements, habits and behaviors.
Therefore, the classification of readers in different criteria to help libraries control, manage
and serve readers better.
Based on the reader database, the public library can divide groups of readers - the
library public as follows:
Personal Details:
o Age, sex, qualifications, profession, income, address.
Psychology:
o preferences, personalities, current and future needs.
Behaviors
o frequency of library use, purposes of searching for the information.
- Geographic factors:
o Province, city, population density.
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Classify library users with the support of the reader management software, the
public library will get the information, biographies and history of information mining
activity and readers' need for information. Based on the gathered information, the library
staff easily make a marketing plan, reach and meet the need for information every reader
Besides marketing aimed at serving the public outside the library, the managers of
public library also have to study appropriate internal marketing activities, providing
information, knowledge, marketing skills for library staff, who directly participated in,
supported or conducted marketing activities in public libraries.
If the agencies of the public library have to held collective meetings, work groups
regularly, the leaders will soon capture the staff's psychology, share, encourage and reward
timely from individuals to the work teams. This is not only measures to promote, retain
dedicated, talented people but also evokes working excitement for each library staff,
enables them to maximize their capabilities.
Partnership
The library take responsibilities for preserving national heritages; collecting,
storing, organizing the exploitation and use of common materials in society to spread
knowledge, to provide information to serve the needs of learning, research, and
entertainment of all classes of people; improve people's knowledge, personnel training,
talent cultivation, development of science, technology, economy, culture, serve the
industrialization and modernization of the country (6). However, during operation, the
public library will certainly faces complex social problems and require a lot of
organizations to join, support and raise funding. With their a huge number of readers,
public libraries have attempted to propagate, educate, mobilize people in using, accessing
useful and valuable resources for daily life and enhancing people's knowledge. In fact, the
public library launches a lot of reading movements, organizes many exhibitions of books, a
reading contests ... and show the typical examples of good people but these movements do
not often spread largely and the action programs are unsustainable (7).
Therefore, public libraries have to associate with many different organizations to
make high working performance, particularly with the media. A typical example of social
marketing activities with the participation of the media has created the success for your

events "100 years of the New York public library" as follows:
The New York public library's existence is due to the contributions of individuals,
corporations and funds, as well as of the Federal Government, local governments and the
State. In 1995, the library started to implement 1-year large scale projects to the 100 th
anniversary of its foundation
With the planning including the strategic objectives and the activities in the press;
the other special promoting activities ... the marketing campaign to the 100th anniversary of
the New York public library has achieved the outstanding results with 1,700 articles, at
least in 8 languages (a 50% increase in comparison with 1994); in August had 38 articles
about the library on the New York Times; more than 5 hours of television, which has a 11minute reportage on CBS, NBC's Today ...; 20,000 guests participants in the 100 th
anniversary of the foundation of the library on May 20; more than 200,000 people from all
over the world visited the exhibitions in the library in 1995; the number of people coming
to the library increased by 40%; more than 1 million people visited the library's website
within 2 months; the donated money also reached $10 millions and an anonymous
donation of 15 million for restoration of old buildings' large reading room "... (8, pp. 525542).
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Therefore, the initiative to find and establish relationships with partners inside and
outside the public library system, domestic and foreign partners, the NGOs organizations,
etc ... will help public libraries more convenient deployment of their activities, and
progress to the socialization of activities in public libraries as a job so soon.
Policy
Social marketing programmes can promote the individuals, collective groups in the
community to change their attitudes, behaviors, but it is difficult to maintain those attitudes
if their habitat changes. Therefore, the change of policy is needed to adapt to the exterior
change. For the public library system, which is paid directly by the State budget, the State
policy affected a lot on the operation of the library (9). Therefore, the public library
marketing, lobbying making a positive influence on the appropriate policy changes to
library's activities are important for public libraries in particular or the Vietnam library

system in general. In this time, there should be many activities related to the library
marketing to change policy bringing many advantages and benefits for the library in
general and the public library in particular prior to the Law on library issued.
On January 5, 2011, the library with the Northern University Library Association
organized the Conference for Comments of the library bill in the Library Information
Center of Hanoi National University of Education. The compilation, comments of the
library bill to replace the previous library Ordinance shows the real situation that requires
urgently to enact laws with a higher legality in order to adjust the relationships related to
the library agencies in a systematic and synchronous way.

With clear, detailed contents and general expression, the library bill contributes to
demonstrate policies, the views of the State clear for the public benefit; compulsory
systematic execution; expresses the content of the collective decisions; heredity; decisions
by majority. Article 6 of the library bill has shown the State's progressive policy for the
library.
Purse
Most social marketing programs are often sponsored from corporations,
Government assistance or charities. This is also a noticeable problem that the public library
has enough money for the program.
To cite to raise money from individuals, organizations for the operation of the
public library, I would take the example of the activity tittled "Renovation of the library in
Portland" as follows:
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"Library of Multnomah county, the Central Library, and its fourteen affiliates
represent a wide spectrum of services for 635,000 residents of the County, i.e. accounting
for more than 1/5 of the population of the entire state of Oregon. The Central Library
located in the business center of Portland, has become an integral parts of the city since
the completion of construction of the building in 1913 and it was put in the registration

category of the national historic sites.
In 1993, the increasingly strong seismic activities showed that historic building of
the Central Library was in a risk of collapsing. The Central Library was closed in 2.5
years ... The analysis of the number of books for loan and the number of readers showed
that the number of library users decreased by 30% in that time... In order to revive the
positive and powerful cohesion that the central library created for the local community for
many years, the library has decided to conduct a marketing campaign to appeal to local
people for "Coming back home" ,the place where they know and love "...
With the planning to identify the difficulties; the primary missions; the goals; the
public objects; the cost of the media campaign " Coming back home" attracted more than
40,000 people participating in the activities related to the opening of the library. More than
10,000 people per day came to the Central Library in the first week after the reopening of
the library. In the next three months, the number of readers to the library is an average of
4,750 per day. The number of readers to its branches increased to 3%; Donations from
businesses and partners are more than $ 113,000. 152 news articles were posted in the
national and regional level (an increase of 243% compared to the previous year). The
program is the participations of the representatives of the Executive power and public
opinion. More than 75 commercial and service businesses offered a discount for people
who have a library card in the week "Coming back home". The library fund has donated an
amount of money of more than 4.5 million USD, which is $ 3 millions greater than the
initial target...
Place
Place is a very important factor for the library agencies, particularly public
libraries. The public libraries in Vietnam are built in the Center where is densely populated
but coolest and quietest place. This ideal condition helps the library to become a
knowledge Park which attracts readers to use the product and library service and even
participate in activities organized by the library.
Experience has shown that in recent times, because of some reason, a few public
libraries are currently relocated to new headquarters, which is more spacious but far away
from residential area, the main road and even at the hidden corner. And obviously, the

number of readers decrease significantly. Therefore, the marketing persuasion to attain the
suitable position for public library is indispensable that the public library leaders should
deploy to local leaders.
In addition, in the era of communication technology as convenient as today, the
public library should develop further an ideal place, it is web portal-the website of public
library. With the development of its website, the public library will be actually closer to all
classes of people and remove geographical distance. The latest services, utilities, features
of "online address" will futher support for public library staff to transport products,
information services to readers, extend an access, approach to the information of the
public.
Physical evidence
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Persuasion
...nP...
In summary, the marketing application in operation will certainly benefit and
success for each library, especially public library system with the diversity of reader
classes, needs, information requirements. And also, exploiting certain aspects of those P
next, we will find out and introduce many new ideas for the marketing activity. The nP
creative application in the field of public library will contribute to detect and meet the need
for information, to ensure provides sufficient and useful information for every user
The cited documents
1. Tran Thi Minh Nguyet, (2010). "Meet and develop the needs of all classes of people the primary Missions of the public library//the Proceedings of the Review Conference of
the 5-year operation of the public library system (2006-2010) ", Phu Yen, the Ministry of
Culture, Sports and Tourism, p. 163-167
2. Pham Thi Le Huong, (1996). "The English - Vietnamese interpreting dictionary of
library science and computer ", Tucson, Ariz., Galen Press, 279 p.
3. Nguyen Thi Lan Thanh, (2009). "The culture and art marketing textbook" , Hanoi,
Hanoi National University Publisher, 170 p.

4. Philip Kotler, (2003). "Marketing administration", Hanoi, the Statistics Publisher, 287 p.
5. Library Department, (2010). "The summary report of the 5-year operation of the public
library system 2006-2010 //Proceedings of conference for the 5-year operation of the
public library system (2006-2010) ", Phu Yen, the Ministry of Culure, Sports and Tourism,
176 p.
6. Socialist Republic of Vietnam, (2001). "The library Ordinance ", Hanoi, national
political Publisher, 25 p.
7. Nguyen Khac Vien, (1994). "Social Marketing or media of communication", Ha Noi, the
World Publisher, 151 p.
8. Tran Anh, (2008). "62 outstanding PR campaigns", Hanoi, the Labor Publisher, p. 525542
9. Au Thi Cam Linh (2009). "Organize and manage the work of the library", Hanoi, the
Educational Publisher, 180 p.
10. Nguyen Tien Hien - Nguyen Thi Lan Thanh, (2002). "Library management and
information Center ", Hanoi, Hanoi University of Culture, 237 p.
References
11. Scott G. Dacko (2008). "The advanced dictionary of marketing: putting theory to use
", New York, Oxford University Press, 601 p.

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