MJBG: A NDSU PRESS PROPOSAL

McKenzie Herz
Jensi Davis
Book McCullough
Gabe Okins

Understanding the Current Situation

Since 1950, the North Dakota Institute for Regional Studies has been
publishing scholarly and literary works from the Red River Valley, the state of
North Dakota, the Great Plains Region, and comparable regions from other
continents. They specialize in publishing scholarly works that have a regional
focus. Works published by the institute include history or knowledge of the
region, information, interpretations, or experiences of the region, and
textbooks, monologues, reference books, and so on. The press also publishes
poetry and fiction. The company was started based on four principles
focused on publishing stimulating research with the main emphasis being on
the regional area[JJ1] . The four principles aim to stimulate research in the
regions culture, to provide a center for research, to encourage artistic
expression of the region, and to assist in spreading knowledge and scholarly
research of the region.
Suzzanne Kelley was hired by North Dakota Institute for Regional
Studies because of her major success with grant writing and as the editor of
New Rivers Press in Moorhead, MN. As of January 1st, 2016, the name of the
press was changed to NDSU Press to change their branding in a positive way.
The name associated with North Dakota State University hopes to give the
press a more scholarly name and an upgraded status. Currently, the press is
in a transition state. With hopes of preserving the four principles, NDSU press
hopes to gain more recognition.
Another goal of the name change is to attract more clients seeking out a
publisher. We understand you hope to increase promotion of the press and
inform people that the press exists. Your press is the only publishing
company in the region, so there are no outside competing companies. This
grants you ample opportunity to widen your client base. Before the hire of
Suzzanne Kelley, the press was averaging around 1.2 books per year. Kelley
has already made a significant change in the Press itself, as they will be
publishing eight books this year. But NDSU Press is lacking in certain aspects
of marketing. This includes marketing of the press itself, and also marketing
of new books. Currently one marketing strategy you have is attending
conferences with the new name and letting audience members know that
you desire to publish more works. NDSU Press has the intention of getting
out to more communities and marketing the press further. This creates a
need for more staff members.
Current Issues
After speaking with you and reviewing the history and current situation
of NDSU press, our consulting team has identified three key issues. Although
they may seem diverse, each issue will together play a part in limiting the
potential of NDSU Press. These issues are identified as:

A lack of staff members to accomplish all of NDSU Presss current goals

A lack in social media outlets to communicate to the public about the

Press

A need for increased visibility in the community

After identifying and researching our areas of concern, MJBG Consulting

has come up with an approach to solving these problems that is effective
and efficient. MJBG Consulting hopes to maximize visibility and aid the Press
in achieving the reputation it desires.
NDSU Press Needs
Currently, NDSU Press does not yet have the reputation that they
desire, partly because they lack employees to take on necessary work. With
a new editor and a new name, there is an opportunity to better meet these
needs. With the expansion that NDSU Press desires, Suzanne Kelley needs
new ideas and new approaches to marketing. Although the number of
published works will increase this year, NDSU Press is lacking in quantity of
the number of books published because of their lack of staff. There is not
enough time or resources in order to expand the way that the Press hopes to.
Production alone could increase greatly in size just by hiring a few staff
members. The higher the production, the more likely that people are going to
hear about and recognize the press. They are also in need of staff for social
media design and management, staff to attend more conferences and gain a
wider audience and interaction, and staff to allow the publishing of more
books. Although the name is spread at conferences now, with increased staff,
NDSU Press could get out to more communities and allow for further
marketing in less time.
NDSU Press needs a new approach to marketing with a strong emphasis on
social media. One of the dominating markets in todays society is the social
media outlet. This is where the majority of the population obtains their news
and is how word is spread. Social media brings brand exposure to
companies, making them more recognizable to consumers. Just by searching
online, many statistics on social media shows its importance. One article
online stated [JJ2] that 46% of people born from the 1980s to the early
2000s use social media when making a purchase online (Spors 2006). Social
media also increases the opportunity for interaction with potential buyers or
potential clients. This is one advantage of social media versus face-to-face
interaction. You can obtain feedback from clients and find out what people
think about your business by allowing comments, surveys, or other methods
of assessment. You also have access to demographics of your clients. You
can see where the majority of your client base is coming from and you can
use polls and surveys to find out the age groups of people visiting your sites.
Using the internet is not only informational, but it is also convenient to
consumers. People can easily access information about the press with the
click of a button. This is a simple, time-saving approach to marketing. [JJ3]
Some sites will also allow you to direct interested visitors directly to your
businesss page through ads or a Facebook feature. Currently, NDSU Press
has a Facebook page, but it is lacking in content. The press also needs more
social media outlets to get out information. There are many other social

media outlets that exist and serve to communicate or market information out
to the public. NDSU Press can also increase branding by exposing their
service and their logo, which is the Prairie Rose and represents the regional
aspect of the press.
NDSU Press needs increased visibility in the community. This need could be
addressed with the hire of more staff and by partnership with other presses.
With more exposure in the community, NDSU Press will gain access to more
authors seeking publishers and have a better opportunity of publishing the
breakthrough book that they desire.
General Objectives
1. Interview current and former employees of NDSU press to determine
staffing needs.
2. To better understand how NDSU press is reaching the community create
a survey regarding social media and other public relations tactics.
3. Develop local partnerships with organizations that are similar to NDSU
Press
We believe these objectives will give the NDSU Press the boost it needs to
reach its goals in the coming years.
Our Methods
Our view of the NDSU Press is hopeful, as our firm sees lots of growth
potential in the scope of the recent changes made at NDSU Press. We would
like to use this opportunity to capitalize upon these changes in order to build
NDSU a reputable press for continuing the heritage of NDSU Press on to the
further while keeping a hold to the key virtues from which it received its
start. We will use our tools to help NDSU Press expand their employee base,
create a reputation, expand marketing possibilities, and capture a vision of a
future powerhouse press.
NDSU Press Employee Development
We feel in order to create growth for NDSU Press and improve their
reputation it will require a staff that works as a team to promote the Press.
First we will assess NDSU Press through extensive interviews to determine
whether a salaried staff, voluntary staff, or combination of both will be the
most efficient help for Suzanne to promote and expand NDSU Press. We
would help NDSU Press also discover what kind of staff to hire for which tasks
such as marketing, managerial, and advertising positions. This then
producing an experienced and eager staff for promoting, marketing, and
creating a reputation for NDSU Press that will not only stick to its roots, but
also expanding outreach to the next generation. We will also look into the
creation of NDSU Courses for which the objective of the course will further
students knowledge about the Press and providing hands on training for
students interested in a career in publishing leading to possible opportunities
for further NDSU Press expansion.
Creating A Name For NDSU Press

After a staff has been established, we will use the professional staff
from our consulting firm and proven techniques to evolve NDSU Press staff
for creating outreach programs and events to build credibility and reputation
for NDSU Press. These outreach programs will consist of youth engagement
programs, college student internship programs, and author outreach through
entertainment events. We will use these outreach events and programs to
peak authors and writers interest in the Press. These events and programs
could highlight recent publishing of NDSU Press, create communication
between NDSU Press Staff and writers, and lastly allow for more
opportunities to receive manuscripts for review and publishing. Our goal is
to increase the amount of entries for review in return increasing books
published and likelihood of getting a breakthrough book. The marketing staff
will promote the events and programs through the redesigned website. We
will also introduce the use of social media to NDSU Press as a tool to promote
such events and programs.
Media Use In Marketing NDSU Press
Creating social media platforms for marketing the key to the future of
the NDSU Press and we would use surveys to figure out what will appeal to
our clients. This is vital for getting important information to possible clients.
Our staff in joint cooperation with NDSU Press Staff will create and improve
social media platforms for NDSU Presss benefit. We feel this is the way of
the future and a way to expand outreach. We plan on creating social media
outlets; such as a revamped Facebook page, twitter, instagram as well as a
blog about the processes that take place in printing a book, redesigned
website, and a system of sending event emails for NDSU Presss current
situation updates to students, alumni and interested authors. All of which
keep clients of the NDSU Press in the know of what is happening at the NDSU
Press. It also provides outreach for NDSU Press as social media brings people
to discover and inquire about the press.
Staying With Roots Yet Expanding For The Future
We would like to keep existing genres, but also expand the range of genres
of books published which would help expand business and the vision of
NDSU Press. d, but keep publishing existing genres. This would allow new
material, new clients, and more manuscripts available to publish yet staying
true to where the NDSU Press got its beginnings. This would keep existing
clients and add new ones to the list. The staff we would organize would have
the numbers and diversity to handle the increased clientele. We feel to grow
the press there needs to be changes to further expand NDSU Press outside
the box and this would allow continued contact with existing clients yet
intrigue the next generation in NDSU Press. This then removes the limits of
the NDSU Press on a clientele basis.
Joining Forces with Other Presses
Our firm feels that another way to grow the NDSU Press is to reach out and
have joint collaboration projects with other presses. This allows for outreach
to a wider audience and gives NDSU Press a new perspective as they gather
resources from other presses in which they partner. NDSU Press could also

use this opportunity to endeavor a new prospective on topics which they are
willing to publish. To achieve growth of the NDSU Press, we feel expanding
their view in the publishing world will allow for increased visibility and
improved communication with a clientele base that could end up with a
potential on the national scale.
Regional Growth and National Growth
Our firm believes after creating staff, a reputation, marketing
strategies, and developing the skills for the NDSU Press to endeavor there
regional potential to look into national growth. We would help train the NDSU
Press on different techniques for creating events, which invoke an interest of
authors to bring manuscripts to the NDSU Press. We feel that perfecting the
Regional Growth will allow for NDSU Press to become a Nationally known
press. We believe after this the NDSU Press should not limit their range, but
slowing expand their vision from the region to national by attending
conferences and events across the country. Thus increasing the chance of
publishing a breakthrough book.
Our multi step process allows for controlled growth allowing NDSU Press to
manage the size of their press. It also gives NDSU Press and opportunity for
outreach not only to existing clients, but involve the next generation in order
to continue a strong long lasting press. They can also control the genres of
publishing whether keeping it regional or expanding to a national scale
allowing for a true well-known press. These methods will allow our qualified
staff to work for the NDSU Press in order to grow and improve its reputation
and production.
Timeline:
Gnatt:

Qualifications:

McKenzie Herz was born and raised in Bismarck, North Dakota. She
maintains that small town ideals Bismarck generated even through the oil
boom. McKenzie graduated from Minot State University with her bachelor's
degree in Social Work, also she earned her bachelor's degree from NDSU in
Human Development and Family Science with a minor in Psychology. With
McKenzies extensive knowledge base about human social interaction she is
the perfect candidate for mediating difficult conversations the Press may
come into contact with at any given time. Also, utilizing the realms of social
work McKenzie can perform needs assessments for specific parts of the press
such as need for more employees, as well as the comfort and support of
those involved with the changes the press can make with MJBG.
Jensina Davis is from Minneapolis, Minnesota and grew up with
Midwestern values. Jensina graduated from the University of Southern
California with an undergraduate degree in public relations and a minor in
business management. Jensina brings her experience with branding and
creating lasting impressions with the public to every project she is involved
with. Jensina focused on social media for the NDSU press due to its
importance in connecting with the community.
Gabe Okins from Willmar, Minnesota was born to a farm family in West
Central Minnesota and grew up knowing how much hard work is needed to
make a business profitable. He is currently finishing bachelors degrees in
AgriBusiness/AgEconomics and Ag Systems Management from North Dakota
State University. Gabe is also in the process of growing and managing his
own farm along with helping MJBG design business plans for other
companies. He also has helped manage Promotional Staffs for outdoor
companies which involved planning events, managing personnel, enrolling in
outdoor expos, and giving seminars on hunting and fishing tactics. Gabe
uses his expertise and knowledge to further MJBG in helping other
businesses grow.
Brooke McCullough was born in Wyoming, Minnesota and currently
attends North Dakota State University. She maintains small town values,
while also bringing much understanding of different cultures and diversity.
After graduating high school, she moved to the much larger town of Duluth,
Minnesota and then after a year there, she moved to Boston, Massachusetts.
Since then, she has lived in Kansas and now North Dakota. She has held a
variety of jobs in different fields and plans on continuing her education after
graduation in the summer.
Benefits:
To sum up we believe that with a few staff and more marketing
specifically on social media the NDSU press will succeed and accomplish
their goals of having a breakthrough book and achieve a University Press
status within three years.
The costs of our plan are the wages of the potential staff to be hired,
which is something that we at MJBG will gladly assist in a conversation with

the human resources department you are associated with to ensure the
smoothest, easiest transition to American University Press Status.
The benefits of our plan are simple, with more staff the stress put on
Dr. Kelley will be greatly reduced, which will give her more time to
incorporate education into the press with a class about publishing or
supervising an internship, practicum or work study at the press. This
therefore gives the press more publicity because of students actually
working for the press, and the ability for them to be putting the presses
name on their resumes, which could potentially give the press more
opportunities for exposure in communities they have not been known. With a
class, internship, practicum or work study the press will stand out from other
University Presses because they are involving actual students in the
processes of the construction of books and the work that goes along with
them in publishing. Students will again be exposed to the inner workings of
the press. If you all decide to create work study positions the students will be
working for NDSU for their education as well as giving the press publicity. The
possibilities for more recognition and exposure is endless when students are
involved in the process.
The amount of interaction on social media sites will greatly improve
sales and submissions to the press. With the new design in progress of the
NDSU press website, the ease of use and overall appeal will increase
opportunities for exposure for sales as well as submissions to the press for
publishing. Along with the ease of use and appealing look, involvement on
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and a blog will incorporate the press into a
different pool of eyes for more exposure. With the potential posts of videos,
pictures and statuses the public and entire world, essentially, will understand
what exactly the press does as well as what the entire press stands for and
looks for. Getting the press involved on a global scale with social media will
open up the doors for more submissions from areas similar to the presses
environment, the great plains. The press could potentially publish works from
other countries, which would also set them apart from other University
Presses.
Tying the newfound social media and new employees, the opportunity
for communication between potential authors increases dramatically. With
the new staff, there will be more opportunities at conferences to speak with
authors Dr. Kelley would not have the chance to on her own. Also, with the
new employees comes their Midwestern ideals, spreading the word about a
great thing. More exposure into rural communities potential staff would be
coming from would create more exposure for the press, producing more
business and an increased reputation.
Lets look into the future if/when you accept our proposal. NDSU press
will achieve the status of being an American University Press within three
years, sales of books will increase as well as submissions from new authors
and the breakthrough book we have all been waiting for will appear, as well
as several other books that will increase the popularity and reputation of the
press.

What is the next step? After listening to our pitch on Thursday, March
10th 2016, you can make a decision to take the next step with MJBG, who will
expand your press in ways you imagine, as well as in ways you would not
have thought of.