Children's book publisher Scholastic Inc. has tapped the Crossbow Group for an assignment focused on acquiring new subscribers for its educational magazines.
A combination of inhouse and outsourced resources previously was used to handle such prospecting for Scholastic magazines. Names of those shops were not disclosed, nor was the size of the business.
“We were selected after an initial meeting and the submission of acquisition concepts,” said Jay Bower, president/CEO of Crossbow, Westport, CT.
The 17-year-old agency, formerly known as Mirbach Associates, will offer services like strategy, concept development and creative.
First will come the push for the Scholastic News magazine. The marketing initially involves direct mail aimed at teachers. The first two pieces are in the release stage, with a stage under preparation.
A $2 billion company based in New York, Scholastic has interests in publishing, education and entertainment. It is the largest publisher and distributor of children's books, including “Harry Potter,” “Dear America” and “Clifford the Red Dog.”
Through school and community distribution channels such as book clubs and book fairs, Scholastic claims to reach 32 million children, 45 million parents and almost every elementary school nationwide. But a slowing economy has turned the publisher to direct marketing.
Crossbow's challenge is twofold: persuade teachers to use funding to subscribe to Scholastic publications for classroom use and find ways to have teachers persuade students to subscribe to the magazines on their own for home and classroom use.
