Search

Super Library Marketing: Practical Tips and Ideas for Library Promotion

Open Search
Category

Expert Advice

How To Use ChatGPT To Build Target Personas and Hit the Mark 🎯Every Time With Your Library Promotions

Photo courtesy Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library

Terrance is a senior in high school, with a bright future ahead of him.

He’s gregarious, curious, and extroverted. He lives with his dad and two younger siblings. His dad is managing to make ends meet, but there isn’t a lot of money left over for things like vacations or extra-curricular activities.

Terrance doesn’t have a car, but he’s been using public transportation all his life. He really wants to go to college. He’d be the first in this family to go. But the application, the financial aid paperwork, interviewing, and essay writing required for admission feels overwhelming to him.

Terrance isn’t a real kid… not exactly. He was a target persona I built when I worked at a library.

Terrance was based on real teens who used our library. And when I read that description, I could clearly see Terrance in my mind. (I still can–can you?) More importantly, I could find the words I needed to say in library promotions that would reach Terrance.

Terrance helped me figure out how to create effective library promotions.

What is a target persona and why do we need them?

A target persona is a fictional profile of a person who represents one of your key target audience groups, based on the characteristics of your community members.

Target personas help us get granular about our target audience. Getting granular helps us create promotions that let our community members know that we see and hear them.

Simply put, we can use target personas to create marketing that convinces those community members to use the library. 

A target persona is not supposed to detail one specific person. It should never be based on one specific individual. It’s a composite sketch, like Terrance, that should reflect most people it is supposed to represent.

How to build target personas for your library

Your community members can be broken down into core segments, or groups, based on their wants, motivations, and the problems they need your library’s help to solve. Those are your target personas.

The number of target personas your library will need will depend entirely on your library’s strategic goals and your marketing goals. Some libraries only need 2 or 3 target personas. Some will need more.

The first thing your library will do is gather demographic information about the community or target group for which you are building a persona. You may do this by researching census data or other data available from your city or town government. Settle on a general answer to these questions:

  • Age range
  • Income
  • Education level
  • Living situation (Married, single, living with multiple generations in one house, living in an apartment, unhoused, etc.)
  • Transportation situation (Do they have their own car or do they use public transit?)
  • Current library usage

Then you want to add depth to your persona. Write down answers to these questions:

  • Their motivations.  Are they career or money-motivated? Are they family-focused?
  • Their attitudes. Can you identify their perspective on social issues like environmental welfare, human rights, or intellectual freedom?
  • Their pain points: What problems are they looking to solve?
  • Their aspirations for the future.
  • The activities they participate in, both inside and outside of the library.
  • Their religious and political affiliation.   

Using ChatGPT to create target personas

Once you have gathered as much information as you can on your target audience by answering the questions above, it’s time to create your target persona. ChatGPT can help you get started.

Let’s say you want to build a target persona for someone who might use your library’s small business center.

Put all the information you have on your target persona together in a description and feed it into ChatGPT like this:

“Pretend you are a marketer. Build me a target audience persona for a person who is in their mid-50s, who was laid off from the job they held for more than 20 years. This person has always wanted to start their own business, and they figure now is the time. But they do not have a business or marketing degree, and they have very little money. They are single and are living off savings now. They do have a bachelor’s degree in English. They have their own car. They use the library to check out books about once a month. They could use library resources to help them start their small business.”

ChatGPT generated a target persona for “John Anderson, a resilient midlife entrepreneur on a mission!” ChatGPT assigned characteristics that I hadn’t considered, like tech savviness and media consumption.

Here’s the rest of the ChatGPT-generated target persona for John Anderson.

Goals and Motivations

  • Fulfilling a lifelong dream of starting his own business.
  • Achieving financial stability and independence.
  • Creating a legacy and finding personal fulfillment through his work.

Challenges

  • Limited budget and financial resources.
  • Lack of formal education in business and marketing.
  • Navigating the challenges of entrepreneurship later in life.

 Hobbies and Interests

  • Enjoys reading, especially classic literature and business-related books.
  • Values community engagement and local events.
  • Appreciates the arts and cultural activities.

 Media Consumption

  • Relies on traditional media like newspapers and local community bulletins.
  • Limited online presence and social media usage.
  • Listens to podcasts or watches videos for learning and entertainment.

 Tech Savviness

  • Basic computer skills but may need assistance with advanced online tools.
  • Open to learning and adapting to technology for business purposes.

 Values

  • Values hard work, perseverance, and integrity.
  • Desires to make a positive impact on the local community.
  • Values practical and actionable advice.

 How the Library Can Help

  • Access to beginner-friendly business books and resources to guide him through the basics of entrepreneurship.
  • Workshops and one-on-one assistance on creating a business plan, marketing on a budget, and utilizing digital tools.
  • Free or low-cost online courses for building essential business skills.
  • Networking events to connect with local entrepreneurs and mentors.

ChatGPT also said, “Understanding John’s unique situation and tailoring library resources to cater to his specific needs will be crucial. Marketing messages should focus on the practicality, accessibility, and community support the library provides for someone like John as he takes the leap into entrepreneurship.”

If I worked at a library, I qould take this ChatGPT generated persona and add or subtract the things that apply to my community.

Are personas too generalized?

There is nothing that replaces a personal conversation with a community member. But it is physically impossible to talk to everyone who lives in your service area.

Personas allow us to find the commonalities of the different segments of our audience. This exercise will lead you to create promotional items that connect with your target audience.

Your target personas will likely change over time. They may be different for different programs or goals that your library is trying to reach. That’s okay! Your target personas should be like your library: adaptable, flexible, and able to change to meet the needs of your community.

But by having defined target personas, you are better equipped with the insights needed to build an experience that consistently and efficiently speaks to your patrons as individuals – with content that’s super relevant to them.

More advice

The Top 7 Tips for Library Emails That Are Guaranteed To Appeal to Millennials and Gen Z Readers

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

Libraries Face a Crisis: Why You Should Throw Out a Full One-Third of Your Planned Promotions To Fight Back

Watch this video now

#LibraryMarketing Show, episode 209

I am proposing that you throw out one-third of your planned marketing and promotions for the next 12 months! I know it’s a big ask.

But I want you to use that space to create marketing and promotions that fight back against the biggest existential threat libraries have ever faced in their existence. I’ll explain why this is absolutely necessary in this episode.

Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here.

Thanks for watching!

Miss last week’s episode? No worries!

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

Email Click Rates and Send Times: What Are the New Best Practices For Libraries??

Watch this video

#LibraryMarketing Show, episode 206

We’ve already established that your open rate is not necessarily the best way to measure the effectiveness of your library’s email marketing. It’s your click rate. But…

What is a good click rate? And when are you supposed to send your library’s emails? You’ll find expert advice on both of those important points in this episode.

Plus a wonderful library video earns this week’s Kudos award!

Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here.

Thanks for watching!

Miss last week’s episode? No worries!

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

When I Heard This One Step To Increase Organic Reach on Social Media, I Got So Mad at Myself, I Did a Face Palm🤦

Watch this video now

#LibraryMarketing Show, episode 204

There is one very simple tip that you can use to increase the organic reach of your library’s posts on LinkedIn, YouTube, and Facebook (and X, if you still use that). And honestly, when I heard about this tip, I felt like smacking myself. How did I miss this? It’s so easy. I’m going to share it with you.

Plus we’ll give kudos to someone doing great work in library marketing.

Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here.

Thanks for watching!

Miss last week’s episode? No worries!

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

How Taylor Swift, Pedro Pascal, and Other Trends Led a Library Social Media Marketer to TikTok Success

Photo courtesy Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library

One of Paul Wellington’s first library experiences was not a pleasant one.

Growing up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, his parents occasionally took him to the Milwaukee Public Library, but it wasn’t a big part of his life.

“In high school, I distinctly remember visiting a branch after school,” recalls Paul. “I was not allowed to use a computer since I didn’t have a library card. I felt very unwelcomed, with little interest in returning. But little did I know libraries would become a big part of my life just a few years later!”

If you pay attention to library social media, you have seen Paul’s work. He is currently the social media specialist for the Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library (CHPL), working on the team I used to lead!

Paul’s work received national attention earlier this year when he posted this now-famous TikTok showing how holds are gathered at the library. The post has, as of this publication, a whopping 3.7 million views, 599,000 likes, and has been shared nearly 25,000 times.😮

@cincylibrary

No books were harmed in the making of this film. #CincyLibrary #CincinnatiLibrary #Library #Fyp #LibraryTiktok @belitskaydi

♬ original sound – Cincy Library

“I came across the idea when I saw a duet of a woman mimicking the person in the original video on TikTok,” explains Paul. “The next week, I proposed the idea to staff at a branch, with the realization that finding a volunteer was a long shot. Surprisingly, Kelwin (the Cincinnati Library staff member in the TikTok), agreed to mimic the person in the video. Cue the hilarity!”

“I thought the clip would receive a few thousand views, and I was really shocked at how quickly it went viral, including on other social media platforms.”

Paul Wellington

“Some other posts that have performed well are the Taylor Swift visit and Pedro Pascal as libraries posts. I shared the Taylor Swift TikTok a few days before she visited Cincinnati, and I hopped on the Pedro Pascal trend after seeing a post from Vancouver Public Library.”

Working for a library was not Paul’s first career choice. He originally pursued a degree in architecture at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. During the spring of his first year, he got a job as a circulation aide at the Milwaukee Public Library.

“I was promoted to Circulation Supervisor at a branch in 2016,” says Paul. “During the height of Covid in 2020, physical circulation was slow, and I asked to assist the Marketing department with Facebook and Instagram. I loved managing social media, which eventually led to my current position as the Social Media Specialist with CHPL.

“My favorite part of managing social media for CHPL is thinking of creative ways to promote the library, whether it’s through humorous text, videos, or memes,” shares Paul. “My least favorite part, and this is something I’ve started recently, is editing captions for our YouTube videos. While very tedious, it’s important that CHPL makes its content accessible to everyone!”

I can say from experience it is difficult to manage social media for a library like CHPL, which has 41 locations and serves a population of 800,000 residents county-wide. Paul has the library’s five strategic priorities, which are guiding principles for deciding what he posts on social media.

“Within these priorities, I focus on promoting the library’s events, services, and resources,” explains Paul. “Each day I share 4-6 posts on Facebook and Twitter, and 1-2 posts on other platforms (Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads), so there are plenty of opportunities to promote the library offerings.”

“I would say one key to success is capitalizing on social media trends and events in your local community. If you’re able to incorporate the library into this type of content, you’re setting yourself up for success.”

How does Paul resist the urge or the demand to post about every program or service the library provides?

“The most common requests for social media posts are events, and the library has hundreds of them each month,” says Paul. “A large number of our events are recurring storytimes and book clubs, so I tend to promote other unique events. Library staff understands this process, and I rarely have to deny a requested event promotion.”

Paul spends a lot of time on social media, (go figure!) looking for inspiration. His top four favorite libraries to watch are:

And Paul has one big piece of advice for anyone working on social media for a library.

“It is important to understand the demographics for each platform. For example, CHPL’s Facebook followers have an older demographic, while Instagram consists of a large number of Millennials.”

“Content that works on one platform may not work on another. You can still share the same event, service, or resource across all library platforms, but consider the text and the way it’s presented (photo, graphic, meme, or video).”

More Advice

Turns Out, There’s One Social Media Platform That Really, Really Works To Promote Your Collection to Gen Z and Millennials! Here’s How To Take Advantage of This at Your Library

Upcoming Appearances

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

Is Artificial Intelligence a Threat to Your Job in Library Promotions? An Expert Explains Why It’s Not Time To Freak Out

Watch this episode now

#LibraryMarketing Show, episode 203

Is Artificial Intelligence (AI) a threat to your job as a library marketer? It’s a serious question I’ve been pondering for a while. I turned to someone I truly admired for advice and we’ll unpack what she has to say about AI and promoting your library in this episode.

Plus we’ll give kudos to someone doing great work in library marketing. And this week, it’s a surprising choice!

Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here.

Thanks for watching!

Miss last week’s episode? No worries!

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

Customer Service Is Helpful: How One Library Scores Big Promotional Points by Being Friendly

Photo courtesy Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library

Meghan Kowalski thought she wanted to work in politics.

In college at the Catholic University of America, she interned for then-Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton while also working at the campus library.

“I was interning for her during a summer when the Democratic National Convention was held,” explained Meghan. “It was organized chaos. That summer taught me that I MUCH preferred library work over politics,”

Library work runs in the family. Meghan’s father was the librarian at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, where the family eventually settled.

“I can’t ever remember not loving or being aware of the power of libraries,” said Meghan. “When we lived in Florida, the branch library for our area was a few streets away from our neighborhood. It was the one place outside our neighborhood I was allowed to bike to by myself. I would go, peruse the shelves (usually for a new Laurelene McDaniel book), and come home with my reads for the week.”

Meghan now works as the Outreach and Reference librarian for The University of the District of Columbia. She loves connecting people to the information they are interested in or need. And she loves what she learns from the students and faculty during her interactions.

When Meghan started her job four years ago, her position was brand new. So, she conducted a SWOT analysis to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that her library faces. During the process, she uncovered an amazing angle for library promotion.

“I used a series of formal and informal interviews, space assessment, and document review to get a handle on what people thought about the library,” explained Meghan. “From there, I realized that we had a great brand image as being ‘The Helpful Place.’ Time after time, I learned that people went to the library for help because they knew someone would always be there.”

“Even if the library couldn’t help (for example, with a financial aid problem) at least we tried or would direct them to someone who could assist. I leaned into that to reinforce our already positive customer service experience while slowly building our platforms.”

Meghan also set about getting her fellow staff and faculty trained to provide great customer service to their students.

“During my first summer here, I created a customer service commitment document and general training workshop,” said Meghan. “This gets reinforced twice a year during our required departmental events. I’ve covered everything from customer service basics to remote customer service to accessible service to how to deal with students who already have too much going on.”

Meghan’s university is an HBCU (Historically black college or university) and a commuter campus. Their students are non-traditional. Those facts about her target audience inform everything Meghan does to promote her library.

“They have so much going on already,” said Meghan. “I don’t want ‘dealing with the library’ to be another hurdle they have to jump. So, we work on equity and consistency in our service. We are going to focus on the individual in front of us and work with them in a manner that best suits them as a person.”

“In the end, all the outreach I do comes down to one simple message – we are the place you can come to get help. It doesn’t matter if I’m sending an email, tabling at an event, teaching a class, or just chatting with someone – I want them to walk away remembering that the library is where they can come for help.”

Meghan’s focus on reinforcing the library’s reputation as a place where students can get good customer service was well-received and supported by staff and faculty.

“I approached this from a fait accompli standpoint,” explained Meghan. “It’s integrated into something we ALL do. I reinforce it by sharing positive feedback whenever we get it. I also framed it from the beginning as ‘This is something you are already doing.’ My work is just reinforcing that positive attitude and training on the nuances.”

Meghan admits that it is hard to measure the impact of good customer service. Reviews, polls, and occasional surveys of the library are all positive. The library also sees a lot of repeat customers.

“If I focused too much on basic metrics, I might cry,” declared Meghan. “Instead, I see our outreach as relationship building. If you make a student happy, they will talk about you with your friends.”

“That is why customer service is so important. You can help someone, but if you do it in an off-putting way, that person will never come back. You can also be unsuccessful in solving someone’s issue but, if you are friendly about it, that person comes back because they liked the experience and at least you tried.”

In addition to presenting at this year’s Library Marketing and Communications Conference, Meghan is launching a new personal newsletter (on Substack) called Content Prompt.

“It’s basically designed to juice your creative side to find content ideas when your brain is tired,” explained Meghan. “We don’t have to work alone! The one great thing about librarians is that we are all so willing to share.”

Meghan has one great trick for catching those fleeting moments of inspiration.

“I keep a note in my phone where I can brain dump things whenever the inspiration strikes,” explained Meghan. “Once a week, I sit down with that note and process things out to make sure I can actually do something with them.”

“Also, never discount the phrase, ‘I don’t know. Let’s find out together.’ For our students that shows that research is a process, and we are all working on it. It can also model that failure is okay. Resilience in research is a key skill. When our students see that even librarians have to keep trying, it helps.”

More Advice

Turns Out, There’s One Social Media Platform That Really, Really Works To Promote Your Collection to Gen Z and Millennials! Here’s How To Take Advantage of This at Your Library

Upcoming Appearances

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

💛The Best Advice From the Top 4 Library Marketing Professionals: Special Episode!

Watch this episode now

This is a very special episode of The Library Marketing Show.

That’s because you are going to get marketing advice from not one… not two… not three… but four of the top professionals in the library marketing industry.

And I’m bringing it to you as my gift because this, my friends is… the 200th episode of The Library Marketing Show!

Plus we’ll give kudos to someone doing great work in library marketing. Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos?

Let me know here.

Thanks for watching!

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

3

I’m Issuing a Challenge! 3 Key Phrases I Want Library Marketers To Say More Often

Watch this video

The #LibraryMarketing Show, Episode 198

I would like to issue a challenge to my library marketing friends. I have three phrases that I want to hear you say more often: to each other, to your coworkers, and to the world in general.

I’m going to explain why these three phrases are so important to the success of your work in this episode.

Plus we’ll give kudos to someone doing great work in library marketing.

Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here.

Thanks for watching!

Will I see you soon?

Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email whenever I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page. You can also follow me on the following social media platforms:

0

A WordPress.com Website.

Up ↑