Marketing and distribution plan

The Career Change Guide by Rachel Schofield

Background of the book, and introduction of it’s content?

Many people come to the realization, that they are in need of a career change. Maybe early on in life, or later. This could be problematic, especially if the transition from one career to the next is tough. There can be many obstacles. Rachel Schofield looks into the possible pitfalls, and what you need to address, and most importantly how. In an age of social media, and enormous change, there might be too many role models, or none at all. The book gives clarity on the matter, and easy to follow exercises, that uncover great insight, and ways to move forward. I have used an example of the book, as a guide and theme for the Marketing and distribution plan, which could help with the main zine and flip, gaining contacts and wider promotion.

Goals

As you test the waters, The Career Guide to Change looks at things with insight, and has ideas there and then on how to achieve your next goals and objectives. A excellent way of tackling objectives, in a world where social change is as instant as coffee. This could be used for the marketing and distribution of her book too, and is an excellent marketing plan.

Objectives and scope

Communication?

Monthly meetings

Letters to be posted to all people involved, with an included agenda. All problems and goal setting, will be discussed within meetings.

Incorporating the book’s advice?

The Career Change Guide is an excellent book, that understands the quick changes present at the moment, and although her book concentrates on a career change, many aspects of the advice given can be used within distribution and marketing. I have chosen to do this, in this manner for a reason. The book has a certain amount of genius. Rachel Schofield understands that there is no right or wrong answers working within the media, especially with so much social changes. A good marketing and distribution gimmick too, for penguin, wvould be to use the theme of a book, and use her guidance. Schofield, within the book discusses exercises to test the waters, which you can use to test the market too, learn and gain feedback and insight, and decide how to proceed next. More importantly, this process will give you direct insight, knowledge, information, stats, and figures, anything new you can learn about the market, and giving you a change along the way, to change, adapt, include and incorporate what you have learned before you go to the next stage of the process for marketing and distribution, There are lot’s of ideas within the book, which can be used for the marketing and distribution of any project.

A 5 step plan, would be an excellent marketing and distribution plan, and is easy enough to include most people, and reach huge amounts of people. It is also quick and easy to remember, and can be associated with her book, and adds more marketing.

Adverts, marketing and publicity can be passed on to Rachel Schofield’s contact list too, making awareness easier about her new book, taking in mind her important contacts at the BBC. Important in a time of social media, where inclusivity means flexibility, and being able to work easily and with adaptability.

Distribution would be with Penguin books.

Product?

Print and Digital.

Both would require different methods of marketing and distribution. Digital has more easy access with social media, websites, and much more. Print would be more methodical, and gives less room for creativity in terms of marketing, promotion and distribution.

Most marketing and distribution plans require the following

PRODUCT

PLACE

PROMOTION

PRICE

What is the product, and how do you aim to describe it, brand it, or put into words? What advertising is already available? If it is a book release, or for the entire zine, then press releases will already be ready, with biographies, Amazon pages (most book deals have an Amazon page, and social media campaign at the very least, as well as very recent research into the Author, their background and also their vital statistics. You can speak to their publishing company for all the statistics and figures. What catergorisation does the product have? Is it a zine? Is it a consumer magazine, or a client magazine? How does the market define this market, or product category? Who can define terms?

Where is the placement? Again, is it a client magazine, zine, consumer magazine? You have to know what the product is exactly, and where they are placed within the market. You can speak to many companies and ask if you feel it is their competition, or can be placed in the same market as them? Placement depends on many things, one of the most important being quality, quantity and most importantly sales. In this instance, the zine is targeted to South London, so there should be a target area, and also count of the amount of print copies to distribute, with 50 copies to be given to UAL and another 50 copies for Penguin Michael Joseph, leaving 400 copies to be distributed in the target area which is South London.

Keep in mind demographics, community and lifestyle.

Target a certain type of person that fits into certain demographics. Are they male or female, and what’s their age group? Where do they live in South London? What do they do for a living? What are their interests in South London? Is there anything in the zine that’s relevant?

How will you promote the zine? Is it a zine, web content? It’s important to discuss this with Penguin Michael Joseph, who will have their own way of promoting products.

Price. This is not important as the media is free of charge.

Critical evaluation

Client collaboration 2022/23: Penguin Michael Joseph.

Within this work, I aimed to build upon skills from Year 1 and 2, in order to collaborate successfully on the publication of a print/digital magazine that will be produced for a specific client, which in this instance, is Penguin books, and in particular Michael Joseph, a publishing house within the Penguin publishing sphere and also according to their website, part of nine publishing houses: Penguin books.  

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to create any work for the zine, but did contribute features and work for Penguin’s website, and in doing so, perhaps any work associated with the zine.

Nothing I produced in this unit was completely new. The assignment meant I had to draw upon skills and learning from the previous years, which was Year 1 and 2. During my degree, I have gained important experience creating a print and digital magazine for a specified audience. Although, I wasn’t involved with the zine, as I am taking a Gap Year, it was something I really wanted to undertake and try. I understand the many aspects of the production process (across platforms). I have been busy researching important starting points with magazine and zine work, such as the correct terminology to categorize important parts of the magazine production process, such as defining what is the difference between a client magazine and a consumer magazine. I found that most of the time, only consumer magazines are of importance, especially with my own interests. This was hard to define, and I found that many magazines brand this term themselves, and that even their categorization of what a consumer magazine is, can even change form edition to edition. It means that magazine research is updated nearly every time they release a magazine too, sometimes. This is crucial to understanding research within the media, in particular magazines. Terms too have to be broadened, or defined by an organizing body, such as ABC. You can’t begin a project of producing a magazine, without looking at how to term a magazine, reflecting hw they are presented on a magazine stand too, or within a retail website.

With this in mind, and as part of the process of my own research, I have worked to create my own client brief, to support the release of my book, or aspects within my magazine – both print and digital

I have understanding of market sectors and audiences

YEAR 3 OBJECTIVES

In Year 3, I will be expected to be refining and developing my skill set

The focus is on greater professionalism: producing high-quality content that will go through stringent editorial processes necessary for wider publication.I understand tutors will be looking at each piece to ensure quality control that will also showcase my skills to best effect

I will need to identify story ideas – and articulate clearly why they fit the brief in relation to stated audience(s). I aim to create work which is conceptual, and has a storyline, or a story idea, which will have to kept on file or record. This is a process I am slowly trying to incorporate and adopt as normal working processes. This is important for anything in publishing, or media, where creativity is sometimes not understood properly.

I am very interested in working in a way, that can promote my new book. I have many ideas, and promotional tools, and wanted to use them, and also incorporate that into my work at University, and my degree.

I will need to research story ideas in depth – both via secondary (desk research) and my own ORIGINAL research – interviews, observation, drawing on my own experiences, researching a context/presenting information

I may need to re-edit/rework stories, taking on board feedback and comments from tutors – a key part of the editorial process

I need to create content for different platforms: and ensure they are appropriate: again taking on board tutor feedback