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The Ultimate Library Marketing Checklist: How to Decide When and Where to Promote Your Library

I am a list maker.

This is going to sound crazy but one of the most enjoyable parts of my day is the moment when I get to check something off my to-do list.

Recently, one of my readers asked me if I have a checklist for library marketing. She wanted to make sure she wasn’t missing any opportunities to promote her library.

Of course I do! Scroll down for the master checklist for library marketing.

But just because there are so many tactics available to market your library doesn’t mean that you should use every one. There is a bit of science involved in deciding when and where to run a library promotion.

To help you make these decisions, there is a series of questions you need to ask yourself. Do this every time you create a marketing campaign for anything at your library. This will ensure your promotions are effective and you are working efficiently.

How does this event, service, or item serve your library’s strategy?

Every piece of marketing you do needs to be in service of reaching your library’s strategic goals. They are the reason you come to work every morning. So make certain there is a solid connection between your promotional efforts and your library’s overall strategy.

What do you know about your current cardholders and the people who live in your community? 

A clear image of the person who will consume your marketing messages will help you do a better job of marketing to them.

Where do these cardholders live? How do they engage with your competitors like Amazon and other bookstores? Where do they get their news? Do they have access to Wi-Fi? Do they have children? What is their living situation like? Do they work? What is their transportation situation?

The answers to these questions will help you create promotions that resonate with your intended audience.

Click here to download the master checklist for library marketing.

Now it’s time to decide what to promote, how to promote, and when to promote. Here are three rules to live by when figuring out the best channel for your library marketing.

Don’t feast at the buffet of tactics.

You don’t have to use every tactic available to you. Choose which ones will work best for each promotion. It’s a smarter use of your time and energy.

For example, my library held a teen poetry contest in April every year. We know that teens are typically considered to be a really hard audience to reach. So I went after their parents and teachers!

I marketed the contest on our website, in social media, on the digital signs in branches, with posters, and with email. Notice all the categories I didn’t use!

I didn’t send a press release because I had no evidence from past years to show that promoting this contest in the news would get us more entries. I didn’t use all the signage options available to me because teens don’t pay attention to signs. And I didn’t include the contest in our content marketing publication because the average reader of that publication was an older empty-nester–not the right audience for that promotion.

For each promotion, use only the tactics that work best for the intended target audience. You’ll be more efficient and effective!

Determine how you will measure success.

You must make sure that you accurately document the results of every promotion you do. This will help you to adjust your promotions to improve effectiveness. Keep meticulous records of data as it comes in.

As a starting point, you can measure every promotional request against two basic rules.

If the promotion doesn’t result in higher circulation, program attendance, or usage, don’t do it.
If the promotion is not tied directly to the library’s overall strategy, cut it.

When I worked at the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, my marketing team conducted a year-long experiment to see if we could drive attendance at events. We hypothesized that emails sent to targeted cardholders would result in higher attendance.

We were wrong.

We did 118 branch promotional emails that year and only half were effective in boosting attendance AT ALL. With that data, we decided to cut way back on email branch promotions.

The next year, we sent only 34 emails promoting attendance at branches. Our effectiveness level increased to 68 percent. More than half of the programs saw a significant increase in attendance–at least ten percent–after their cardholders received an email. 

Why did the emails work the second year? When we cut down on the number we were sending, we were able to create messages that did a better job of resonating with people. Turns out, our audience responded to quality, not quantity!

At some point, you may realize there is an tactic that just doesn’t seem to work. You have my blessing to drop anything that fails. Use only the things that can help you to achieve your goals and cut the rest.

Share your results.

Talk about the results with your colleagues and share your results with other departments. Transparency in marketing is a good thing. It helps your co-workers and administrators have a clearer understanding of what you do. And they may look at the results and find some new insight that you missed.

Failure is okay, by the way. Marketing is an experiment! Sometimes the stuff you do will work, sometimes it won’t. If something doesn’t work, don’t do it again. Spend your energy on the things that do work.

You may also like these posts

Going Live on Facebook? Here are Three Tips to Maximize the Reach of Your Library’s Virtual Programs

The Virtual Library Conference is Over and Now the Work Begins! Here’s What to do Once You’ve Closed Your Laptop

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Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, click on the “Follow” button in the bottom left-hand corner of the page. Connect with me on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

3

The Dreaded Library Annual Report: How to Create a Masterpiece that Showcases Your Library’s Value and Inspires Your Readers

Is there any library marketing task as daunting as the annual report? I don’t think so.

Neither does reader Carrie Weaver of Peters Township Public Library. She is the inspiration behind this post.

Carrie writes, “I am sure many other libraries are preparing their 2020 summaries for stakeholders, elected officials, and the folks in the communities they serve. Can you talk about what they should/should not be? What should be included? What is a good length? I want our annual report to be more than a bunch of stats – I want to tell the story of how our library served our community in this year like no other!”

Confession: I created six annual reports during my time at the The Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library. And I found it to be the most difficult work I had to do every year.

Carrie was spot on. The annual report has an importance that no other piece of library marketing holds. And that’s especially true this year. It must convey the work you did, the value you provided, and the ways the pandemic affected your library.

And, as Carrie says, your annual report is more than an archive of your library’s work. It is a way to tell the story of your library.

Your annual report can show the connection between your library’s mission and strategy. It can clarify the impact your organization had on the community. And of course, your annual report can thank donors and volunteers, as well as inspire future donations and volunteers.

You are no longer locked into using a brochure or a longform magazine. Your library may decide to change format, the size, and the way you present that information to best serve your audience.

We’ll start with ten tips for putting together a highly effective annual report. Then, I’ve gathered examples of library annual reports, as well as annual reports from other non-profit organizations for inspiration!

Decide what your key message will be.

Your annual report should be more than a list of your work. It can tell a story. And you can use it to stir emotion.

Ask yourself: What do you want your readers to feel once they’re finished reading your annual report? Think about how you’ll construct a narrative and take your readers through the various pieces to an end point, the focus of your key message.

Think of this as a call to action for readers. How can they help your organization to make progress this year? The answer should be very clear to readers once they reach the end of your document.

Focus on your library’s accomplishments, not just activities.

The readers of your annual report want to know why your library did what it did in 2020. You’ll want to highlight how your library staff responded to the pandemic. Don’t just talk about how you pivoted to provide support to your community. Talk about why that pivot was so important.

Write about the impact your work had on your community. Connect the everyday activities of your library to your mission statement and your library’s overall strategy.

Create an outline to lay out what you want to cover and how you’ll cover it. 

Plan to mix elements, with some pages including text, photos, and data. This mix will keep your audience interested and will help them to comprehend and remember the story and data points in your annual report.

Also, make sure that the pages include room for photos, as well as plenty of white space.

Use infographics to convey data.

Infographics can explain complex ideas and information in a simple way that is accessible to many audiences.

Our brains are hard wired for visuals. An infographic can trigger a reaction in the human brain, sometimes even before the person consciously realizes and processes that reaction. For more tips about constructing an infographic, read this post.

Balance data with stories.

Stories can humanize the work of your library and make your annual report more compelling.  

Clearly show the change that resulted from your library’s work. Use a storytelling structure with a beginning, middle, and end to show what changed as a result of your library.

In addition to patron stories, you might also consider including stories about your senior staff and employees to showcase the value of the people who do your library’s work. 

Finally, share a story of one person rather than a group. Your readers will find it easier to connect to a single person than a group of people. For the most compelling story, use that person’s own words as much as you can by including quotes and first-person narratives.

Use your words to inform and inspire.

The text portions of your report must be in your library’s brand voice. You’ll want your words to feel authentic and intimate to appeal to the heart of your audience.

Try to avoid being professorial or aloof. You can excite, surprise, and delight readers of your annual report by writing in a conversational tone.  

In fact, your library may consider using a blog-like model for the text in your annual report. Streamline your text to highlight only the most interesting tidbits for your readers.

Let the story determine the length.

There is no right or wrong length for an annual report. The amount of space you need to accurately convey the story of your library’s journey through the past year is exactly the right length.

Of course, you may need to add or cut sections based on factors outside of the story. For instance, if you use a vendor to print copies of your report, you may be bound to fill or fit a certain number of pages. But in general, let the story of your library be the guide when determining the length of your report.

Convey a sense of gratitude throughout the document.

An attitude of gratitude should permeate the entire report. Be sure to emphasize how important taxpayer and donor support is to your success. Saying “thank you” creates a personal connection to your supporters that can boost engagement for future fundraising campaigns, as well as loyalty to your library.

If you highlight a specific initiative or program, you can conclude the text with a line like: This was made possible with the support of taxpayers, corporate partners, foundation, friends, and individual supporters.

Proofread like your life depends on it.

Your annual report should be professional, polished, and proof-read. Recruit at least three staff members outside of your department to read the proof before it goes to the printer.

And double check the names of donors. Donors will feel slighted if their name is misspelled or if their donation is not acknowledged in the annual report.

Repurpose your annual report for additional marketing content.

You can extend the value of all the hard work you’ve put into your annual report by using the pieces for marketing.

Put the full report on your website for public transparency. Write a blog post version of the report and link to the full document.

Add a line to your emails and newsletters to prompt the community to read the report. And separate out the sections to create condensed social media posts for further reach.

Library annual reports for inspiration

San Mateo County Libraries 2019-2020 Annual Report

Mid-Continent Public Library 2019-2020 Annual Report

Cuyahoga County Public Library 2019 Annual Report

Spokane Public Library’s 2019 Annual Report

New York Public Library’s 2019 Annual Report

Other annual reports for inspiration

EveryLibrary’s 2019 Annual Report

Feeding America’s 2019 Annual Report

Equal Justice Initiative 2018 Annual Report

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5

Six Years Later, Library Marketing No Longer Stinks! Here are Four Forward-Thinking Things Libraries Must Do Now.

Text of Four Forward Thinking Things Libraries Must Do Now over a vintage photo of library shelves. Photo courtesy Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.

I started this blog six years ago. Can you believe it?

When I published my first post, I really had one goal: To help other library workers. I believed that sharing tips, strategies, ideas, and best practices for library marketing would strengthen the whole library industry and help secure the future of libraries.

I still believe that.

And we’ve come a long way in library marketing. Many libraries are promoting their collection and services in ways they would have never imagined six years ago. They’re focused on strategy and innovation. They’re not afraid to try new things. They’re experimenting. They’re putting cardholders first.

Library marketing no longer stinks! Now it’s time to advance library marketing to the next level. Here are the four things libraries should do now to move successfully into the future.

Put your collection front and center on your website.

When I visit a library website, the first thing I notice is how prominently they promote their books, movies, and streaming content. When I must search for these things, it causes me real grief. It’s like going to the grocery store and finding the milk and eggs hidden in a back room accessible only to the most intrepid shoppers.

Most of the folks who interact with your library online are there for the collection. If you don’t believe me, check your website statistics. Look at Google Analytics. I’ll bet you the most visited pages of your website are the homepage, your catalog, and any page that showcases your collection items.

Don’t hide your collection on your website.

If you have a personalized reading recommendation service, put it right in the middle of your homepage. If you have reading recommendation newsletters, put your opt-in link right in the middle of your homepage. Post about your collection on social media at least 50 percent of the time.

Books are your brand. If your library wants to have a part in making the world more informed, more educated, and more empathetic, put your collection right where people can find it on your website.  

Shift your energy from library programs to library services.

I have shared many conversations in the past few years with library workers who express frustration over program promotion.

This reached a fever pitch in 2020, as the pandemic forced programs to move online. Library workers couldn’t measure attendance as they once did. And attendance and registration numbers dropped off.

The frustration is palpable. We put all this work into quality programs, and no one shows up. Doesn’t that bother anyone else? Why are we doing this?

Libraries need to have a hard conversation with themselves. Programming gets too much emphasis in libraries.

We should spend our energy instead on developing and promoting our unique services, like homework help, adult education courses, genealogy research, and small business support.

No one else in our community does these things for free. They are so important to our communities. These are the hidden treasures of libraries. And they are underused because people don’t know they exist.

So, let’s spend this year shifting our focus to strategically and systematically promoting these services. Add mentions of these services in your email newsletters. Post about these services on social media at least 25 percent of the time.

And use those precious in-person interactions to market your services. If you see someone picking up curbside items on topics like career, education, or family history, let the patron know about the appropriate matching service.

Use data to make current library cardholders happy.

Many libraries spend an awful lot of time focused on trying to get new customers. But once a person signs up for a library card, we take it for granted that this cardholder will use their card again.

It takes a lot of time and energy to get a cardholder signed up in the first place. That time and energy is better spent working to make current library users realize everything their magical library card can offer them. Because what would you rather have… lots of library cardholders or lots of library users?

This year, I want libraries to spend less time chasing new cardholders and more time gathering data about our current cardholders. Then target current cardholders with marketing messages that keep them coming back to the library.

We can create surveys to gather demographic data and psychographic data. Then we can use that data to ask ourselves: what do our current cardholders want and need from us? Focus on those things this year for maximum effectiveness in your library marketing.

Make it easier for people to use your library.

Let’s be honest: people must clear a lot of hurdles to use the library.

It’s hard to get a library card. Community members must provide proper identification. If they apply online, they must show up at a branch to claim their card, often within a specific amount of time. I was reminded of this just a few days ago, when I received this Tweet.

Library users also must have separate logins and passwords to use services like Hoopla, Overdrive, Kanopy, and Freegal.

And if cardholders don’t return items on time, they get fined. If a library user accumulates too many fines, they lose the ability to use their card.

All these things may seem like little inconveniences. But it is these little hurdles that stand in the way of advancing our libraries in the future.

I know some of these hurdles are not the fault of the library. We’re often at the mercy of our vendors. But our communities don’t know that and, frankly, I don’t think it matters. People expect easy access to library services. And they receive easy and convenient services from other companies.

Libraries need to make a concerted and deliberate effort to make it easier for people to use the library in 2021. We’ll have to do this to compete with convenient services that threaten to take away our market share.

First, let’s fix the things that are in our control. We can make it easy for anyone to get a library card online without ID. And we can eliminate fines and fees that serve as a barrier to many of our patrons.

Next, let’s band together to demand vendors create integration that allows library users to access their services from our website with one-step authentication: their library card number. Demanding this change as an industry will be one of the best ways to advocate on behalf of our cardholders this year.

You may also like these posts

The New Year is Here! Here are Five Things for Your Library to Promote in 2021.

Zoom Fatigue is RUINING My Library Programming! How the Heck Should Libraries Deal With That?

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1

Targeted Email Marketing for a New Era: The Pros and Cons of How Most Libraries Segment Their Audiences

Photo courtesy Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County. Bond Hill Branch.

This is the first in a two-part series on email marketing for libraries. Part two is here.

If there is one thing that I know about library promotion, it’s this:

If you want to be successful in library email marketing, you must target your messages.

This isn’t just my personal belief. It is a method which worked, with impressive results, during my years at a public library. And I see it working now for hundreds of libraries around the country and around the world in my day job at NoveList.

Why are libraries hesitant to do targeted email marketing?

There are two big reasons that libraries fear the idea of segmenting their email audiences.

First, libraries are worried about email marketing in general. They feel it’s too promotional and that email messages from the library will be received as spam. They may even believe that people don’t want to receive email marketing from anyone, even a library.

This is not the case. The average consumer is accustomed to giving out their email address in exchange for marketing messages targeted specifically to them. Opt-in Monster research shows 99 percent of people with an email address check their inbox at least once a day.

Why? Because they are looking for messages from friends, family, and places they love. They love the library. Your cardholders and community members feel excitement when they receive an email from you.

Libraries worry that, by sending targeted messages to segmented audiences, they will miss out on the chance to get a message to all their cardholders. 

Many libraries are sending the same message to every cardholder, sometimes hundreds of thousands of people in one burst. It feels like the natural thing to do. “Everyone needs to know about this!”

The problem with that approach is that your cardholders are individuals. One message never fits them all.

This is particularly true if your service area covers a range of incomes and demographics. The needs and interests of your cardholders vary greatly.

By targeting your message, you are more likely to say something that matters significantly to your cardholders, which makes them more likely to take an action, which makes it more likely that your email will be successful.

Targeted email marketing for libraries is effective because it serves the right message to the right group of people. And it works for all kind of messages.

Do not let your fears about email set you up for failure. Your cardholders want to hear from you. There are not very many industries which can say that. Let’s take advantage of it and give the people what they want!

Libraries who do segment their audiences tend to use three main methods. There are benefits and drawbacks for each.

Segmenting by library card use

Some libraries group their cardholders by the type of material they most frequently check out: kids’ books, print books, e-books, etc. Then, they send targeted email messages about those formats or collection types to those specific users.

This was the method we used when I worked a public library. For example, we would send an email promoting three new e-books every month to people who appear to favor e-books.

Benefits: This method is great for collection marketing. Most libraries will notice holds and checkouts increase, sometimes exponentially, when they send messages about items to people who have shown a previous interest in those items.

Drawbacks: The way a person uses their library card may not correspond to their true library interests.

For instance, an adult who frequently checks out children’s books for their kids may also love to read e-books. By focusing solely on the fact that they more frequently check out children’s books, a library may miss a key opportunity to market e-books to that cardholder.

A second drawback is that your library will want to promote things besides your collection, like programs, big events, and advocacy messages. Segmenting audiences solely by their favorite collection format gives you no clue as to your cardholders other potential interests.

Finally, this kind of segmentation often requires sophisticated email marketing programs that are expensive and time-consuming to manage. Smaller libraries without a dedicated marketing department and libraries with limited budgets may find these programs cost prohibitive.

Letting people self-select

Many libraries have an opt-in page on their website listing email interest groups. Visitors can self-select which emails they prefer to receive.

Benefits: When a person chooses to receive an email from you about a certain subject, they are also likely to open and engage with that email. They have already indicated their interest by selecting it.

Most library email opt-in pages do not require a person to be a cardholder to sign up. So, a second benefit of this method is that you can send marketing messages to people who aren’t in your cardholder base but can be enticed to use your library. That’s a fantastic way to expand your cardholder base!

Drawbacks: A library using this method must commit to intentionally market the marketing lists. They must make sure the community knows the opt-in page exists and convince people to sign up.

Segmenting by cardholder location

Some libraries have sent messages to people who have indicated a certain branch is their home branch or to people who live in a certain portion of the community.

Benefits: This is a great method for in-person program promotion. People are more likely to attend events that are near their home. Segmenting your audience by their location is an efficient use of your time for program promotion.

Drawbacks: There is a certain set of library cardholders who are willing to travel to attend programs and events at branches far from their home. They may be interested in hearing from your library about certain types of events, no matter where they are held.

In addition, the branch a person most frequently uses may not actually be near their home! Many people frequent the library branch near their workplace or some other important and frequently visited location.

You may also find these posts helpful

Three SUPER Easy Ways to Get More Results from Your Library Email Marketing!

Are My Library Email Metrics Good…. or Bad?! Here Are the Latest Stats to Help You Figure It Out.

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6

My Favorite 💜Ways to Use Customer or Patron Testimonials for Library Marketing!

Watch Now

The Library Marketing Show, Episode 65

In this episode, answers a viewer question about how to use customer testimonials for library marketing.

Kudos in this episode goes to Madison County in Mississippi for creating a Virtual Library.

Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know in the comments. And subscribe to this series to get a new video tip for libraries each week!

Thanks for watching.

3

The Virtual Library Conference is Over and Now the Work Begins! Here’s What to do Once You’ve Closed Your Laptop

Photo courtesy Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County

This post is part two in my series on making the most of your virtual conference experience in 2020. If you haven’t already, I’d love for you to read part one here.

Once you close your laptop, the second part of your conference experience begins. It’s time to reflect on what you’ve learned, share with your co-workers and, most importantly, figure out how to put these new ideas into practice at your library.

Here’s a framework you can follow to maximize the value of your virtual conference experience with three important post-conference steps.

Reflect on what you’ve learned

After a virtual conference, you might be tempted to switch your brain off the minute you close your computer. But try to resist the urge to unplug right away. Instead, commit to capturing the insights you’ve learned while they are fresh in your mind.

I usually spend a half hour to an hour at the end of a conference day organizing my thoughts. At an in-person conference, I would return to my hotel, grab an adult beverage from the bar, and head to my room to organize my notes. At home, I schedule “buffer time” into my work calendar to complete this step. Reviewing your notes in detail while they are still fresh in your mind will help you retain the information.

First, copy important names, insights, and ideas into a collaboration tool like Evernote, Trello, a Google doc, or your library’s shared documents drive. Fill in details you may have scribbled down in haste. If you took screenshots, organize them so you can easily identify the presenter and session later.

If the virtual conference organizers are making videos available after the conference ends, go back to the sessions you watched to copy and paste the URLs into your notes. That way, if you want to re-watch them again, you’ll save yourself the time hunting for the right video!

Next, formalize any connections you made with other attendees. Look them up on Twitter and LinkedIn and follow them or send them a connection invite. Include a personalized message so they understand why you are reaching out.

If there were speakers or sessions that really inspired you, send a thank you email to the presenter. As a speaker, I can tell you I really appreciate hearing from attendees, especially when a session inspires them.

Finally, be sure to fill out any post-conference survey. Conference organizers and speakers truly appreciate the feedback.

Share what you’ve learned

At the very least, you’ll want to share what you’ve learned with your boss and your team. But more than likely, your conference learnings contain lessons that everyone at your library could benefit from. So, turn your notes into a short presentation and invite co-workers to watch. My husband does this as a “lunch and learn” for his co-workers.

If you aren’t comfortable doing a “live” presentation, you can record yourself on Zoom, Teams, or WebEx, and share the video (like you do with virtual story times!). Loom is also a great option for recording yourself.

During your presentation, share the top-line things you learned at each session you attended. Tie your findings to your library’s overall strategy. This will help prove the value of your conference attendance to your supervisors. It will also lay the groundwork for when you put your new ideas into practice.

After your presentation, make sure your co-workers have access to the notes you took at the conference using the collaboration tool in step one. Include links to any slideshows, handouts, or screenshots you have.

Put big ideas to work

Here’s where you find the true nuggets that will help your library. I suggest you look through your notes again and organize a new list of action items in categories that correspond with your work.

Tools and technology: List any digital trends and industry advances that your library should act on.

For instance, at the Library Advocacy and Funding Conference, I learned about new software platforms which allow libraries to gather and use data related to their community. I also learned new information about how to increase organic reach on Facebook and Instagram.

If you learn about a new social media platform or about a product that helps you to do a better job at promoting your library, list those in this section. Include the reasons why an upgrade or a change in tools and technology will help your library. Research cost and timetables for implementation.

Content inspiration: List any new creative concepts or topics you think your cardholders would respond to. If you attended a session from someone who shared practical ideas for what to put in your library’s newsletters or how to design print pieces, list those ideas. Then, pull out your editorial calendar and start scheduling!

Productivity and project management: List anything you learned that will help you and your library co-workers to do your job more efficiently.

Maybe you had a Twitter exchange with a fellow attendee whose library has an approval process you wish to imitate. Or maybe you attended a demonstration of a platform like Trello or Asana.

If you learn about new ways to address existing challenges, optimize workflow, or streamline your promotional methods, put those on your list. Your co-workers and supervisors will appreciate any new insight on how to improve efficiency at your library.

Have you changed the way you work at your library because of something you learned at a conference? I’d love to hear about it. Let me know in the comments.

You might also find these posts helpful

Six Tips to Make the Most of Your Online Experience During Virtual Conference Season

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Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, click on the “Follow” button in the bottom left-hand corner of the page. Connect with me on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. 

5

Are My Library Email Metrics Good…. or Bad?! Here Are the Latest Stats to Help You Figure It Out.

Watch Now

The Library Marketing Show, Episode 62

In this episode, Angela shares the latest metrics on open and click-thru rates for library email marketing and helps you figure out what metrics are good!

She also shares Kudos with the Madison Public Library for their back-to-school teacher button project.

Check out the virtual conferences I’ll be attending. Let’s connect!

What did you think of this episode? Are you struggling with marketing and promotion right now? Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know in the comments. And subscribe to this series to get a new video tip for libraries each week!

Thanks for watching.

5

The BIG Debate: Should We Use the Word “Customer” to Describe Our Library Users?

Should we use the word "customer" to describe our library users?

Watch Now!

The Library Marketing Show, Episode 60.

Does it matter what we call people who use the library?

A blog post by Ned Potter that prompted this episode. Watch the video to see my response and get a link to Potter’s post.

Also this week,  find out who was nominated by another library in their state for Kudos!!

What did you think of this episode? Are you struggling with marketing and promotion right now? Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know in the comments. And subscribe to this series to get a new video tip for libraries each week!

Thanks for watching.

0

Three Transformative Tips to Improve Focus and Re-Energize You When Working in the Library Doesn’t Feel Fun Anymore

Blue Ash - Sycamore Branch staff: Mrs. Sonia Bibbs (left) Library Assistant, Douglas Robinson, Corinne Hand (right) Children’s Librarian. Courtesy Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.

I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted.

The pandemic is exhausting.

Worrying about the health and safety of family and coworkers is exhausting.

Natural disasters, a nation coming to terms with centuries of racial disparity, and a Presidential campaign here in the United States are exhausting.

And yet the library world continues to provide service during this crazy year. Your library probably still did a summer reading program. You’re providing virtual programs. You support students and teachers as they navigate distance learning. You’re promoting books and offering reading recommendations.

The world throws hurdles at you, and your library responds.

Is it any wonder if you feel like you need a nap and a hot bath nearly every day?

Library marketers are expected to be energetic and enthusiastic. More than any other library staffer, you’re expected to have exciting and innovative ideas to promote all these major developments and service changes as well as the smaller services that everyday cardholders rely on.

And you’re expected to produce results, driving people to watch virtual programs, use your curbside pickup service, and follow all the rules for social distancing.

It’s only natural to feel burned out by the speed at which everything happens at your library. And when you get stressed, work stops being fun. The quality of your work suffers.

But your library and your community depend on you. So here are some tips to help you manage your work and avoid burnout.

Prioritize, stay completely focused on your goals, and say “no” to EVERYTHING else.  Humans are all weirdly programmed to say yes, to take on more, to squeeze as much out of life as we possibly can.

Busyness feels wonderful. We’re doing something! Stuff is happening! Progress is being made!

But without space for creative thought, mistakes are going to happen. Your work won’t be what it could or should be. And that means your marketing will be less effective.

So, just like you weed your collection, you need to weed your promotions. This is especially true now, when your audience is suffering from content burnout because of the pandemic.

In my first year at a library, I said “yes” to everything. And nothing I did was any good.

When I realized I was doing too much, I set some ground rules for the goals I wanted my staff to focus on. I aligned these goals with my library’s strategic goals. They were:

  • A promotional tactic (like emails) had to produce a ten percent bump in circulation, program attendance, or usage. If it didn’t, we stopped doing it.
  • A service had to be easy for the cardholder to use to get promotion. Databases are a good example. If a cardholder was required to sign into the library website with their card to get to the database landing page, and then had to create a separate account tied to their email to use the database, we didn’t promote that database.
  • We only did full marketing campaigns for paid presenters. Free presentations got a poster or flyer and a social media mention.
  • All promotional requests had to tie directly to the library’s overall strategy. If the branch or library staffer requesting promotion couldn’t demonstrate how the program or service moved the library’s overall goals forward, we didn’t promote it.

I know that sounds harsh. And some of those rules might not work for a smaller library or a different set of library leaders. That’s okay. Set your boundaries to work within your own system.

Weeding your marketing content will allow you to do a better job and be more creative with the promotions you have left. Evaluate your promotions twice a year to keep your marketing lean and reduce the stress on yourself and your co-workers.

The word “no”, while it may be very small, is liberating. It’s good for you and for your marketing strategy.

Define your workflow and make it the law of your marketing landscape. A defined workflow sounds like the opposite of a creative endeavor. But it ensures that a quality product is created in a timely and efficient manner. It creates space for you to think. And that’s incredibly important for anyone working in a library, especially right now.

There are two options: outward-facing workflow and team workflow. Choose the one that works best for you and your library.

Outward facing workflow means that you approach each job given to you by a senior leader or another library department or partner in the same way.

  • All marketing requests go through one person on your team, who acts as project manager.
  • That person is responsible for looking at the request and determining if it fits into the library’s overall strategic goals.
  • That person sets clear expectations and goals for each project and communicates a plan of action based on realistic timelines and due dates.

This is not to say that your team has no say in the work you do. But the ultimate decision rests with the project manager.

Team workflow is more collaborative.

  • All marketing requests are considered by the team.
  • The team looks at each request and decides what tactics will work, and whether they have the time to complete those tactics.
  • The team sets the goals and determines who will communicate due dates and expectations.

It may take some time to get a smooth workflow in place. Be patient with yourself and with others. Keep reinforcing your expectations. Eventually, your coworkers and supervisors will understand and appreciate your workflow, especially when they start to see results.

Be generous with positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement is one of the easiest and quickest ways to improve happiness and effectiveness on the job. It bolsters self-confidence and inspires people to do their best work.

If you see a co-worker doing something well, say so, even if the job is small. A kind word can go a long way to boosting morale and creating energy. Don’t just say, “Well done.” Write out a note or an email praising specific actions or portions of work.

And, if you have a staff, give your employees unexpected breaks. When I was a library manager, I took my staff to lunch off-site. We had field trips to libraries outside of our system. Sometimes we had “reading time” where I would read them one chapter a day from a book we all chose together.

It might sound silly, but these little activities are energizing. They create bonds between co-workers. Staff return to work after these little breaks with enthusiasm for their work. And enthusiastic people do a better job… on the job.

You might also want to read these

Four Important Project Management Lessons You’ll Need to Survive the Next Year of Library Work

COVID-19 is STRESSFUL for Library Workers. Here Are Tips to Help You Feel Better.

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