Customer acquisition costs: the costs of growing business in public libraries

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the associated customer acquisition costs of public libraries. The intention of the paper is to develop awareness of the hidden costs associated with customer acquisition, and develop assessment tools or models to effectively manage the resources associated with customer acquisition to aid library administrators in strategic budgeting and planning.Design methodology approach - The paper is prepared through review of the library and business literature associated with customer acquisitions. No definitive data on customer turnover rates or models of assessing customer acquisitions cost are identified in the review of the literature.Findings - While not identified or managed systematically, the calculation of customer acquisition costs, customer turnover rates, and the effective management of associated customer acquisition cost is strategically imperative for public libraries. Public libraries generally do not track customer turnover or the associated costs of acquiring new or replacement customers that come about due to this turnover. There is not a definitive estimate of customer turnover in public libraries, so exact costs determination will vary by public library system. Public libraries can reduce their customer acquisition costs through the retention of current customers with high quality service and in effectively managing the customer acquisition process in the strategic budgeting and planning processes of the library.Originality value - Libraries that can effectively acquire new or replacement customers and manage the costs of this process will more effectively utilize resources and maximize customer value for the library. This paper proposes several cost assessment calculations to help guide library administrators in making strategic decisions.