Here’s a shocking headline: It turns out that young people are not using Google to find your library!
How do we know this? There’s a new study from Forbes that may have you rethinking your strategy on search and where you post your library promotions. I’ll share the results with you in this episode of The Library Marketing Show.
Plus we’ll give kudos to a library system offering a much-needed service for its community.
Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here. And thanks for watching!
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About 10 miles north of the northernmost coast of Scotland lay an archipelago or chain of islands called Orkney. The islands surround Neolithic sites dating back 5,000 years with tall sandstone cliffs and colonies of seals. Archeological evidence shows that humans have lived on the island for nearly 9,000 years.
That’s where John Peterson lives and works. He has managed social media for Orkney Library & Archive since 2017.
The library is one of the oldest public libraries in Scotland, dating back to 1683. These days, the Orkney library has two physical locations, a mobile library, and serves a population of about 22,000 people.
“Orkney is a very rural community with a lot of farming and agriculture,” explains John. “And of course, we’re an island so we’re surrounded by the sea and have a lot of maritime history, particularly from the 20th Century and the World Wars.”
The Orkney library may be remote, but it has fans worldwide. In fact, one of my readers nominated this library for a profile, saying “I love their use of social media and how they got such a small library on the world map.”
“We’re a very small organization and so we don’t have a marketing team or anything like that,” says John. “We just try to share what we’re doing with our followers on social media and have a bit of fun as we go along.”
“We use social media as a way of sharing what’s happening in the library and the archive and what we do every day. It’s a good way of showing off Orkney and what it is to be a library and archive service in the 21st century.”
“It has its challenges sometimes but it’s probably still our favourite as a way of telling stories and making fun posts or threads,” explains John. “For us, it has been a great way of communicating an idea with a few words and pictures. Our Twitter following is approximately 4 times the entire population we serve.”
“Instagram is our newest platform, but it has a growing audience, and we get a lot of nice feedback.”
“The platforms work differently, so we often have to tweak the posts slightly to suit each. Often, we post on Twitter first and then on to the other two platforms.”
When John sees a particularly effective post, he builds on that success by sharing the same kind of content his audience is responding to. But he admits that, like most of you, he’s sometimes baffled by what does and doesn’t work!
“We post different kinds of content,” explains John. “But they usually involve books, archives, or old photographs.”
Today is #TolkienReadingDay so we're in the hobbit of letting folk boromir #Tolkien Books than usual. We're not being smaug but we're a library and it's good to shire. So come along and baggins yourself some books. 📚
“Sometimes a post takes off far better than you expected and other times a post that you thought was interesting or funny doesn’t get much engagement. There is a whole load of reasons for that and it’s important not to get too disheartened if something doesn’t work.”
“Of course when a post doesn’t work it could be that the idea wasn’t good or wasn’t communicated well enough. But often it is just a case of timing – wrong time, wrong day, it didn’t get the retweets to send it further across the platform, etc. You could post the same post at two different times and get totally different responses.”
Try to post good content and try to post regularly – but not too much. Not every post can be funny or interesting. But try to make sure that some of them are so people have a reason to follow you.
Try to make it interesting. Don’t just do what everyone else is doing, and don’t rely on sharing content from other accounts.
Try to write your own stuff and find your own voice.
Pay attention to what works for you and then do more of it. Listen to feedback, good and bad – it’ll help you to do more of what people like and less of what they don’t.
Don’t be controversial and try to avoid politics.
Concentrate on what makes your library or organization different from everyone else and try to use those things to build your own presence and identity.
Look around you. Spot opportunities for good content. The more you do it the easier it gets.
Find some libraries on social media and follow them, no matter where they are in the world. They don’t have to be the famous places you’re always hearing about to be worth following. Anybody can be worth following if they post good, interesting content – even small local libraries on remote islands. Find some libraries and archives, museums and galleries, and give them a follow. You’ll be glad you did.
In one of our archive strong rooms there is a shelf. The shelf does not contain the most exciting or interesting item in the archive but it does contain something amazing.
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Instagram has made four major changes to its algorithm! One of these changes might be a deal-breaker for your library, especially if you are a team of one person. We’ll unpack the four new things you’ll have to keep in mind when posting to Instagram and how those changes impact the work of your library marketing in this episode.
Plus we’ll give kudos today to a library that won’t have to worry about changing their Instagram strategy because they’re already following best practices for one of these four new Instagram algorithm changes.
Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here. And thanks for watching!
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:
There is a phrase that pops up quite frequently in library marketing which has bothered me for quite some time: “More than books.” Other than a few people I work with at NoveList, I thought I was the only person who felt this way. But I’m not! A librarian wrote an eloquent piece about it this week, and we’ll talk about it in this episode of The Library Marketing Show.
Plus kudos go to a library for their perfect response when trolls took over a Facebook post about their in-library Pride Month display.
Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here. And thanks for watching!
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:
Photo courtesy Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library
The first thing I do when I visit my parents is greet their dogs. The second thing is to look for my list.
My parents are aging, so I like to help with things they can no longer do. I wash windows, weed the flower beds, and sew on loose buttons. As I work through the list, I get a certain satisfaction in checking things off.
Lists have always been a part of my life. My mother wrote a daily list for when I got home from school. Feed the dogs. Make a salad. Start your homework. It’s almost as if she thought I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if I didn’t have a list to follow.
And she was right. I now make lists for everything. Lists for packing. Lists for groceries. Lists of tasks I need to complete during the workday. Gift lists at the holidays.
Lists help you focus and prioritize. So, when one of my readers asked for a list of the ten best tips and practices for library marketing, I dug in. (Imagine me cracking my knuckles, blowing on my fingers, and setting my fingers on the keyboard here.)
Top Ten Tips for Library Marketing and Promotions
#1: Send email to your community.
Email is the most effective marketing tactic. You don’t have to battle algorithms. And 99 percent of people with an email address read their email daily, usually first thing in the morning.
Starting a consistent library email program can be intimidating. But I put it at the top of the list because it’s the best use of your time.
You can start small by sending a newsletter. Work your way up to targeted email segments, where you’ll be sending shorter, more focused messages to specific groups of people. Don’t worry that you’re leaving people out with more niche emails… you are not.
#2: Post no more than once a day on your social media channels.
Social media for libraries works to create brand awareness and affinity. But they’re also ruled by algorithms that determine who sees your posts. The algorithms value quality posts, not quantity. So, posting often does nothing to boost your reach. Once a day is plenty.
Make a schedule to create quality posts and give your social media feeds consistency (which the algorithms love). For example:
Monday: Promote an item in your collection.
Tuesday: Share a video.
Wednesday: Ask a question.
Thursday: Promote a program.
Friday: Share something about a library staff member or something behind the scenes of library work.
Saturday: Promote a service, like your seed library, a database, streaming videos, or your MakerSpace.
Sunday: Share something funny, inspiring, or thoughtful about the joy of reading or the importance of intellectual freedom.
Each year, beginning in November, I publish a best practices guide for each of the major social media channels. To see the guides, type the name of the platform you want to research in the homepage search bar.
#3: Put a bookmark in every hold and checkout that leaves your library.
Your collection is a marketing tactic! No library visitor should ever leave the building without a piece of promotional material.
To get started, pick three areas of focus for your bookmarks. Make one bookmark for each of your three focus promotions. For example:
A booklist
An online item like streaming music
A recurring program.
Teach staff to add a bookmark to every hold and checkout. They use context clues to decide which of your three focused promotional bookmarks will resonate most with each library visitor.
#4: Write a general marketing script and have staff recite or read it before every program.
Your programs are also a marketing tactic. Use the first minute of each program as a “housekeeping moment”, so share a marketing message to this captive audience.
The message should be short, 3-4 sentences. And it should be tailored to the audience.
Here’s an example. Let’s say your library just purchased a set of after-hours holds lockers. You want people to use them. You can create a script for staff to read before programs.
For children’s programs your script might say:
“Hello everyone! I wanted to let you know about a new service we have at the library – our after-hours holds lockers. You can pick up your reserved books and materials anytime, even when the library is closed. It’s a convenient way to get the books your family needs, on your schedule!”
For adult programs, your script might say:
“Hello everyone! Before we begin, I want to tell you that our library now has after-hours holds lockers. Maybe you saw them as you walked in: they’re just to the right of the front doors. You can pick up your reserved books and materials at any time, even outside of our regular hours. So if you work a late shift or you’re going to have a particularly busy day and can’t get to the library before we close, you can still get your books!”
#5: Talk to one community group every month.
Reach out to the Kiwanis Club, Chamber of Commerce, Junior League, and local professional groups. Ask for five minutes during their next meeting to talk about what is available at the library and to sign up members for a library card.
#5: Analyze your promotional metrics each month.
Schedule 30 minutes once a month to look at the past month’s performance on social media, email, and your website.
Watch for trends. Did your social media impressions spike this month? What may have caused that? Did your email open rate plummet? Take a look at the emails you were sending to determine what may have caused the dip. Did attendance skyrocket at your monthly book club after you posted an Instagram Reel promoting it? Do more Instagram Reels!
This work will help you spot issues and opportunities. You can replicate the things that your audience responds to. And you can stop doing the things that don’t work for your audience, and have the data to back up your decision! It’s time well spent.
#6: Create an editorial calendar for the next 6-12 months.
Planning your promotional schedule gives you time to thoughtfully create your promotions and get approvals. Plus, you can share your plans with your coworkers and supervisors, so everyone at the library knows what’s been marketed and when.
Schedule your emails, when you’ll change your website graphics, your book displays… even the signs in your library lobby.
Some of this planning will be easy. You know when summer reading, Library Workers Week, National Library Card Signup Month, back-to-school, and holiday events happen.
Leave space in your calendar for those unexpected things that come up. If your director announces his or her retirement, your building needs renovations, or your library buys a new database… you’ll have space in your calendar to accommodate those promotions.
#7: Ask for time at the next all-staff meeting to discuss library marketing.
One of the most common things library marketers struggle with is their coworkers. They don’t understand how promotions work!
Transparency is always a good idea. You want everyone, from the front-line staff to your senior staff, to understand what you’re doing and why you’re doing it.
Talk about your goals. Talk about how you work to accomplish them, and why you use certain marketing channels for certain promotions. Then, share successes to show that your efforts are working and share failures to drive home the point that marketing is an experiment and you’re always learning.
The media is an audience you must court, like any other target audience! The easier you make their job, the more positive press coverage your library will enjoy.
I used to work as a television news producer and I have many friends still in the business. Here are the top six tips they give for garnering press coverage for your library. Here are more tips from another former journalist turned library marketer.
And, I hope you’re planning to attend the 2024 Library Marketing and Communications Conference because this is the focus of my session this year! I’ll be moderating a panel with three former journalists turned library marketers who will share their top tips for building positive relationships with your local media.
#9: Start a blog.
A blog is one of the best ways to share information about the library and drive visitors to your website. It allows your library to tell your story, create brand awareness, and promote your library to your audience for free, without having to deal with the rules of someone else’s platform.
Marketing is changing all the time. You can keep up with the latest social media news and marketing tips by dedicating time to this work.
Hey library marketing friends: Remember, every promotion you put out into the world can spark a lifelong love of reading in someone. Your work makes a difference!
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:
We are going to put a common library marketing fear to rest, once and for all.
Here’s the concern: Are you inadvertently leaving people behind when you target people with your email marketing? Let’s get into it in this episode of The Library Marketing Show.
Plus kudos go to a library that was the focus of a blog post by a local country radio station DJ!
Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here. And thanks for watching!
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:
Sometimes in these videos, I give you a list of tips to help set you up for library marketing success.
But in today’s episode, I’m only going to share one task you’ll want to do once a year (yep, that’s it!) to ensure that your library’s email marketing continues to be successful.
Plus I’ll give kudos to 27 libraries who won a major award, and I’ll tell you where you can meet them in a few weeks!
Do you have a suggestion for a topic for a future episode? Want to nominate someone for kudos? Let me know here. And thanks for watching!
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:
Photo courtesy Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library
During the pandemic, Claudine Bennet was stuck at home, and trying to adjust to her new role as External Relations Manager at Dayton Metro Library, she came up with a fun game.
“At the time, I had a map next to my desk at home,” remembers Claudine. “I would glance up and see a city and boom! I was searching for their website and social media presence.”
“Not only did I learn a lot about what libraries across the country were doing during a pivotal time in our country, but it helped to affirm we were on the right track with our strategy.”
Claudine has come a long way from her childhood days spent in the basement of the Peru Free Library in upstate New York.
“The children’s section felt like a magical hide-out,” recalls Claudine. “Adults were never in that space (a paradise for a kid!) and I could read and look at all the books I wanted!”
Nowadays, Claudine oversees media relations and marketing for DML, located in south central Ohio. The system has 17 physical branches, 350,000 active card holders, and a service population of 533,892 residents.
A few months ago, Claudine contacted me to nominate her library for kudos on The Library Marketing Show. She wanted to share a newsletter her library sends to lawmakers and legislators.
Claudine and the External Relations (ER) team realized they needed such a newsletter in 2023.
“News releases in the local media, flyers in branches, our website and social media platforms – those are great ways to get information out,” explains Claudine. “We also have a general digital newsletter that reaches more than 65,000 subscribers. But those methods are broad brushstrokes.”
“When Austin Railey III joined DML as the new Government Relations and Advocacy Director we started brainstorming how we could strategically tell our stories to decision-makers. After weighing the pros and cons of various methods, we decided the most targeted and economically efficient way was through a quarterly email.”
Claudine says the newsletter, Beyond Books, is a collaborative effort. Her department works with others to select stories that reflect how the library collaborates on community initiatives such as economic and workforce development, building regional partnerships, and creating innovative services and programs of value to all community members.
“The stories we tell in Beyond the Books aren’t about the who, what, when, and where of events and programs, but about the why,” says Claudine. “Why did we create a program? Why is the program or service helping our patrons? Why should it receive support? Why is DML a valued community partner?”
“We always put photos in the newsletter also. Reading a story is great, but seeing the story is incredibly valuable too!”
Claudine says the audience for this specific newsletter is a curated list of 200 elected officials and government sector leaders. DML tailors the information to reflect the topics of utmost importance to these readers.
“Because the topics are relevant to the readers and we limit the content to two to three stories, it is an easy and digestible way for elected officials and community leaders to stay connected with how the Dayton Metro Library is achieving its mission, vision, and values,” asserts Claudine.
The collaboration involved in Beyond Books is key to its success.
“When looking for communication solutions for a niche audience, bring everyone to the table,” advises Claudine.
“For myself and my team, it is incredibly helpful to understand what is trying to be communicated, to whom, and why. Those answers will help to identify which communication tool we need to optimize and what information should be shared.”
“Once that is explained and expectations are established for everyone, the creativity flows! Now, as a team, we often suggest stories for Books and Beyond because we understand what we are trying to achieve.”
Claudine’s team is also working on a new branding campaign called Free to Belong. Working with a nationally recognized local advertising agency, the library sought input from staff and the public about its brand and marketing tools. The new campaign is in its second phase. The library will release television commercials, social media spots, print and radio ads, and billboards.
“The second set of spots cement DML as a destination where everyone is valued,” explains Claudine. “They will feature the library meeting people where they are, including the Bookmobile at festivals and our library tent at special events such as the annual Pride celebration in Dayton.”
“The spots will also feature members of marginalized communities as they use library resources including collections and technology. Everyone needs to see themselves in our spaces!”
When she’s looking for inspiration, Claudine turns her eyes to other libraries in the Buckeye State.
“Libraries in Ohio are incredibly inventive and impactful in their marketing efforts,” says Claudine. “I’m always inspired by what they are doing!”
“We’ve created a state-wide committee of library communications and marketing professionals, and we share our “aha” moments, ideas, resources, challenges, and successes. I have learned that libraries are truly a profession that subscribes to the philosophy of ‘When one rises, we all rise.’”
Hey library marketing friends: Your work is important and you are making a difference. Keep it up, you’re doing great!
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:
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:
Super Library Marketing: Practical Tips and Ideas for Library Promotion 