Firstly, the restrictive factors of book marketing in China are analyzed.
At present, there are many factors that restrict the book marketing in China. The main factors are that the market positioning of most publishing houses is vague, the organizational mechanism is flawed, they don't understand marketing or they can't establish a perfect and high-quality marketing management system that adapts to the competitive environment.
(A) the organizational structure of the publishing house is not perfect
China's book publishing house has always belonged to the Propaganda Department. Before 1960, it was defined as a "public institution", and everything was borne by the state, regardless of economic profits and losses. After 1980, the publishing house was positioned as "institution, enterprise management" and implemented the system of self-financing. However, because the publishing house has always been a public institution, its organizational construction is administrative, and its organizational structure is set as editorial department, production department and distribution department according to the publishing process, rather than operating around the book market. At the same time, on the basis of this organizational construction, the management mode is administrative management, not a perfect marketing management mode of analysis, planning, implementation and control. Therefore, under the current system and mechanism, publishing houses often lack the overall planning of the book market, the publishing and distribution of books are divided, and there is also a lack of overall coordination and supervision among the various links of the publishing houses themselves. Often after the book is printed, the sales link can't understand the target market of the book topic, which leads to poor circulation of books and poor information.
(B) the publishing house book marketing structure is not perfect
Book marketing is a chain project and a market operation process based on analysis, planning, execution and control. The book marketing system should run through a series of publishing processes such as information, topic selection, soliciting contributions, editing, price, design, paper, plate making, printing, channels, transportation, publicity, sales and promotion. However, there are many gaps in our current publishing elements: as far as the author of a book is concerned, the author has completed his mission after submitting the manuscript to the editor, and the future fate of the book is in the hands of the editor of the publishing house. There are two situations here: first, some excellent authors are familiar to their readers and their works are deeply understood by readers. However, after the manuscript enters the publishing house, because the editor pretends to be himself and is unwilling to further communicate with the author, he can't grasp the reader market advantage of the work, and often the books edited and published lose the desired market feeling, which makes it difficult for readers in this target market to accept; Secondly, the author himself doesn't understand the needs of the book market, and his works often ignore the aesthetic taste and habits of readers, and editors can't feedback the relevant needs in time. In addition, when editing the manuscript, the editor has a strong sense of subject and object, and does not consider or rarely considers the reader's taste. Edited books often have few readers and lack of market.
(3) The propaganda mode in book marketing planning is aging at present.
The biggest drawback of China book industry's current book promotion work is that it is accustomed to internal circulation. For readers, publicity is "unable to find the north" and readers are "looking at flowers in the fog". Publishers generally only promote new books, and most of them play the role of "announcement of new book publication", and do not use these publicity as a tool for book marketing and promotion. At the same time, publishers often think that books have been sent to middlemen and retailers, and marketing should be their business, and they are unwilling to cultivate and create markets with bookstores. In addition, inaccurate propaganda positioning is also an important reason. There is always little research and planning on the choice of propaganda media and the channel selection of receiving groups such as book intermediaries, retailers and readers, and the propaganda method is relatively traditional, which lags behind the contemporary information society and information society.
(D) The book distribution department has a business inertia and a single sense of modern marketing.
Because book distribution departments, especially state-owned bookstores, are highly dependent on the distribution of teaching materials, and influenced by traditional distribution methods, they have not been promoted to real marketing and lack modern marketing awareness. Up to now, there are still many state-owned bookstores in counties and townships, which have a dispensable attitude towards the sales of general books after the task of distributing textbooks to students in two seasons a year is completed and kept. However, there is a lack of understanding of market segmentation, target market selection, market positioning, market services, sales channels, personnel sales and promotion, and public relations marketing. Not to mention designing the marketing strategy and marketing mix of the book market. In the design of bookstore, there is a lack of marketing considerations, even in the classification of books on the shelves of shops, it is an old model that has been used all the time, and there are few marketing methods designed according to readers' maps. At the same time, the book distribution department has a weak sense of innovation in book promotion. It has been playing a leading role in mobile supply, 10% discount on holiday books, etc., and failed to master all the technologies of overall marketing, which can no longer meet the needs of book market competition.
(E) The book market lacks information feedback institutions.
There are few full-time market information departments set up by publishing houses or book distribution departments. Even if they are set up, there are two major problems: First, the management does not pay enough attention to the information department, and only regards the information department as a department that provides relevant information for itself, and does not really realize that information can become productivity after collection and processing; Second, the book market lacks competent information personnel and reasonable fund allocation. Therefore, there is a lack of information institutions in the book market and an information management model that transforms market information into a virtuous circle of topic selection, publishing and market.
Second, innovation-strategic thinking on book marketing in China
(A) the marketing functions of publishing houses and distribution channels
Positioning and running-in
In order to achieve greater development and breakthrough, the publishing industry in China must first make a revolutionary breakthrough in the system and mechanism, and establish a perfect and high-quality marketing management system, but this requires a time and continuous reform process. Under the existing publishing and distribution system, we can only find the breakthrough point from the running-in between publishing houses and distribution channels. The functions of publishing houses and distribution channels should penetrate each other, and all links of publishing houses should run through the marketing concept. Editorial, printing, distribution and other functional departments should introduce and strengthen marketing awareness and functions, distribution channels should fully tap their potential, give full play to their own market information advantages, and actively participate in publishing topic planning and marketing. There are many forms to explore this running-in. For example, publishers and distribution channels can try to jointly publish and distribute single-variety books with planning, investment and market risks; Publishers and distribution channels can also try to set up joint-stock companies in the form of joint-stock system to plan the publication and distribution of books.
(2) Establish a management mode of publishing, distribution, overall market planning and sound mechanism.
Publishing houses and bookstores can explore the establishment of an overall planning mechanism for publishing and distribution, that is, to conduct an all-round analysis of publishing houses and sales environment, conduct market research and market forecast, and on this basis determine the objectives of marketing planning, and then plan topics, prices, distribution, promotion and other links. Of course, this kind of cooperation can be formally embodied, such as the establishment of the joint-stock company mentioned above, but it is more important to form a mature market operation mechanism and a perfect marketing management system.
(three) to create a publishing planner system, to plan, control and supervise the implementation of the whole process of topic selection, publishing and marketing.
The establishment of publishing planner system mainly refers to the responsibility system of a book publishing project. For example, the planner is responsible for the whole marketing process of a book, and realizes the whole process of book marketing planning from market information-topic selection-publication-publicity-promotion-market organization-sales. Specifically, it includes book selection planning, book positioning planning, book packaging planning, book distribution channel planning, new book listing planning, publicity and advertising planning, market cultivation planning, business promotion planning, and extended topic life cycle planning. At the same time, the planner should also control and supervise the implementation of the whole process plan. Of course, the key to the success of the publishing planner system lies in the "all-round" high-quality publishing planners who are familiar with the publishing science. In addition to planning ability, the most important thing is to have the ability to integrate the technical forces in all aspects of publishing and distribution, and to have the ability to control and supervise the implementation in the whole marketing process.
(D) Learn from contemporary commercial marketing methods to explore a book marketing planning model suitable for China book market.
From the duality of books, books are also commodities, and other product marketing theories and methods can be used for reference in the process of book marketing operation. Learn and analyze marketing management theories such as marketing opportunities, market research and target market selection, designing marketing strategy, planning marketing work plan, organization, implementation and control. At the same time, learn the marketing mix design of marketing, such as market segmentation, product listing strategy, pricing planning, sales channel selection, advertising and promotion tools, as well as public-private relations and personnel sales. In a word, China's book publishing industry should make up the course of marketing, and combine the characteristics of book publishing and book market to explore a set of book marketing planning mode suitable for China book market.
(5) Strengthen the theoretical research of modern book marketing strategy and guide the development of domestic publishing marketing.
1. Give full play to the research capabilities of existing research institutions, set up research departments and topics on book marketing strategy theory as soon as possible, and study China's book marketing theory from a macro perspective to guide book marketing practice.
2. Some professional newspapers and periodicals in the industry should strengthen the publicity and reporting on the study of book marketing strategy, such as press and publication, China Book Business Daily, China Reading Newspaper, China Publishing, China Publishing and Distribution Research, etc. Other newspapers and periodicals should set up special pages to publish research papers. If conditions permit, relevant institutions can also be established to conduct theoretical research on book marketing, so as to promote the development of theoretical research on book marketing.
3. We can establish a book marketing planning agencies, combine theory with practice, and promote the development of publishing marketing in China.
(6) Accelerate the cultivation of modern book marketing talents.
1, set up a professional school of book marketing;
2. Adding system specialty to existing institutions of higher learning, or integrating existing publishing specialty, and paying attention to cultivating practical book marketing talents in teaching materials and teaching methods, we can learn from MBA education methods;
3. Book marketing talents at all levels can be trained through various short training courses, seminars and seminars;
4. Publishing and distribution management departments should attach great importance to marketing talents, formulate relevant incentive policies, cultivate talents, attract talents, and boldly use talents. Through strict recruitment and internal and external training, a professional and localized book marketing team can be brought out.