WorldWide Information Services Marketing Communication – Your Agency Resource August 2018
! Established in 2006 through the purchase of a local subscription agency called Mast, from the ADvTECH Group in South Africa
About us
! In January 2006, the current management team Andre van Tonder, Fiona Bester, Julia Mofokeng, Magaretha Bruwer) bought the company from the listed ADvTECH Group. ! The name, WorldWide Information Services, was selected to better reflect the strategic direction of the company, in its vision and mission to provide worldclass subscription management solutions. ! WWIS has grown rapidly since its inception and now employs 12 staff, 5 of which are directors (Melissa Badenhorst, was appointed in 2016 as the 5th Director) and 6 sales.
Office Locations WWIS has offices in Randburg, Johannesburg and also George, South Africa
Vision WWIS’s vision is to become the dominant managing agent in South, Southern and Central Africa, in the provision of subscription and information services, to academic libraries and research institutions
Mission WWIS’s mission is to innovate in the delivery of subscription and information services, through flexible local pricing, client and partner consideration and seamless, value added technology services. Its primary objective is to provide clients with the best return on their investment in information resources.
From Sales Agent To Agency. SALES AGENT
AGENCY PARTNERS
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Are sales and commission focussed
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Are sustainability focussed
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Opportunistically seek out new business, based on a bottom line
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Seek to develop enduring relationships where they are valued and can make a difference
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Respond to client needs and wants in return for a fee
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Do business with publishers based on the needs of the moment
Help shape publisher and client needs and wants, negotiating fair remuneration for services rendered
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Do business with publishers based on longer term opportunities and deliver many value-added services to both their publishers and clients
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Maximise sustainability for themselves, their publishers and their clients
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Are geared/manned for marketing, sales, sales support, publisher and client services, relationship building, and specialist professional services
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Add little value and deliver few value-added services to their publisher and client organisations
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Maximise short term gain
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Are geared/manned for sales only, with little attention paid to support
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Our Agency Agreements
WWIS currently acts as the sole/preferred agent in Southern Africa for the subscription products and services of a number of eminent publishers and Information Providers. We value these relationships and strive to ensure that we add value wherever we can, on behalf of and as the face of our publishers.
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WWIS Services to Clients and Publishers/Information Providers Publishers/ Information Provides
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Understands publishers’ strategic intent
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Actively markets publisher’s products and services to appropriately targeted audiences and co-produces marketing materials
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Provides local case studies on impact of publisher products and services
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Handles all publisher related queries/problems
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The “face” of the publisher in South Africa
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Recipient of all communication to the publisher
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Reports back to the publisher on performance
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Reports back on sales and marketing pipeline
WWIS
Clients
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Quotations Flexible Invoicing Pre-payment of orders Foreign exchange services Consolidation of print Negotiation of preferential pricing and payment Set-up of trials Training in the use of products and tools Research and author workshops Collection/information resource audits Marketing of information subscription products
WWIS acts as an agent for the following information products and solutions •
Products
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E-subscriptions (individual) E-collection packages E-databases E-archives E-publisher deals Print (including consolidation and doorto-door delivery) Back copies Subscription management support tools Analytic research tools Digital Library Solutions Data & Technology Tools Document Delivery Open Access Solution
WWIS Solutions
Clients The clients of WWIS include 85% of the current academic tertiary educational institutions in South Africa, a number of research establishments, Healthcare organizations, government departments and a number of corporate libraries. As the business has expanded into Southern Africa, new clients in Botswana, Namibia and Ghana have been added to the client base.
Our Sustainability WWIS has paid particular attention to its sustainability. The management buyout which took place in 2006, had sustainability in mind. The organisation desired to be free of external shareholder and investor demands and the onerous burden of debt: ! ! ! ! ! !
We are debt free The company is owned by its management team, who are also directors We invest in the business rather than take money out We have a small operational footprint and expect staff to be flexible All high-cost specialist tasks, are “bought-in” at modest prices Income has increased steadily year-on-year, and will continue to do so as we gain market share ! We carefully debate available funding with our clients with a view to securing base levels of investment and differentiating these from discretionary purchases ! Overdraft provisions to finance growth have remained modest ! A letter from the company’s auditors is available indicating explicitly that WWIS is a going concern and operates profitably