President’s Report
Making Progress Toward Our
Goals
by Florrie Binford Kichler
Last November in this column,
I told you about the areas your board would be focusing on this year to
encourage and assist you, our members, as you build your publishing companies.
Our goals for the year were to:
· Educate: help you run your
businesses more effectively
· Support: provide innovative
benefits and marketing programs
· Advocate: represent and champion
you in the industry
Following is a midyear summary of
progress in those three areas, and in creating the strategic plan that will
help PMA continue to serve you well through the end of this decade and beyond.
Educate
Publishing
University Online
November
2006:“The plan of action is to
develop a series of at least four to six programs in the general areas of
marketing, production, finance, and technology.”
April
2007: Since the initial webinar in
September entitled “How to Build a Better Book Contract,” we have offered
monthly sessions on special sales marketing, Internet promotion, and
book-launch publicity.
Courses scheduled for later this
year include classes on budgeting basics, selling to the school market,
maximizing your experience at Publishing University in New York, and much more.
Watch for Hotlines with more information, or check the PMA Web site.
We thank the publishing industry
professionals who have generously given of their time to present, including
Jonathan Kirsch, Brian Jud, Peggy Sansevieri, Kate Bandos, Paulette Ensign,
Robin Bartlett, Tom Woll, and Mary Ellen Lepionka.
Regional
“Mini–Publishing Universities”
November
2006:“The goal for
2006–2007 is to continue actively supporting our affiliates by taking
educational programs on the road.”
April
2007: The St. Louis Publishers
Association and your board of directors partnered for a day of education,
insight, and networking in November with “Seven Sessions on Publishing,
Marketing, and Making a Profit,” garnering attendees from 17 states. Plans are
already in the works to go west for another Mini-U in November 2007. Stay tuned
for details.
Midsize
Publisher Initiative
November
2006:“The goal for
2006–2007 is to expand educational programming and benefits to better
serve our midsize and more experienced members.”
April
2007: As I write this in February,
plans are moving full speed ahead for a midsize publisher educational and
networking event running concurrently with Publishing University this May at
BEA in New York City.
Support
Benefits
and Marketing Programs
November
2006:“The goal for 2006–2007
is to continue exploring new opportunities and reviewing current benefits for
renegotiation.”
April
2007: To date, we have added the
following to the roster of close to 30 benefits that you receive as part of
your membership:
· Christian
Science Monitor ad discount
program
· Member discount on access to
Gordon’s Radio database of 1,100-plus radio programs
· Special pricing for members on
Publishers Portal electronic distribution of your title excerpts
And more are in the works as I
write this—watch for announcements in the Hotline.
Marketing
Programs
November
2006:“The goal for
2006–2007 is to improve and refine current offerings, and begin
developing new ones.”
April
2007: For the first time in many
years, your association exhibited at the Guadalajara Book Fair, introducing
many members’ titles to the exploding Spanish-language market. We will continue
to monitor results.
Marketing program evaluation will
begin in conjunction with the strategic plan that will be created in the next
six months, incorporating the vision and direction determined by the Strategic
Planning Committee that met in early February. See more below.
Affiliates
November
2006:“The goals for
2006–2007 are to continue providing counsel, guidance, and education for
our affiliates and to assist in the development of new groups.”
April
2007:The second
annual Affiliate Retreat, created to provide education, training, and
networking for our affiliate leadership, will be held the weekend of April
20–21 in Chicago.
Our newest group in the affiliate
family is the Great Lakes Independent Publishing Association, organized in 2006
and covering the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
Special
Interest Groups
November
2006:“The goal for
2006–2007 is to encourage the formation of new SIGs and provide support
for those in place.”
April
2007: The new African-American
Publisher SIG is now up and running, joining our first SIG, Academic and
Educational Publishers.
Advocate
November
2006:“The goal for
2006–2007 is for PMA to enhance recognition inside and outside the book
publishing industry as the voice of independent publishing and to influence
change for the benefit of our members.”
April
2007: The bankruptcy of
distributor PGW sent shock waves throughout the publishing community, including
our own association, some of whose members were directly affected and many more
of whom began wondering what they can do to protect themselves from a similar
fate.
Your association acted immediately
to answer that question by issuing a public statement from Director Terry
Nathan, offering concrete and specific help to our affected members. As a
result of that statement, Terry received offers of assistance from Amazon,
Ingram, and a host of others in the industry.
We will continue not just to react
and to be proactive, but to speak and act about issues on behalf of our
members.
Strategic
Planning
November
2006:“To build on PMA’s 20-plus
years of strength and ensure that the organization continues supporting
publishers for the next two decades and beyond, a Strategic Planning Committee
has accepted the challenge of creating a five-year strategic plan by August
2007.”
April
2007: I’m writing this a week
after the committee—composed of three past presidents, three current
board members, and Director Terry Nathan—held an all-day meeting in which
we made recommendations for our association’s direction in four key areas.
Those areas are:
· Membership growth and composition
· Programming to support the
membership
· Administrative structure to serve
the membership
· Position in the industry as
advocate for the membership
The committee has begun research
and study and will prepare recommendations for the board’s consideration. Watch
this column for news of its progress.
Meanwhile, please consider this an
interim report—highlights of what your board of directors is currently
working on. Of course, there is much more, and you can count on a full report
at fiscal year-end this fall.
As with all effective plans, ours
is a work in progress—fluid and ongoing.
What doesn’t change is our
commitment to continually improve our association for the benefit of you, our
members.
My virtual door is always
open—I encourage you to share your comments, thoughts, and ideas by
emailing me at fkichler@patriapress.com.
