In this episode, I’ll share advice for anyone working in library promotions on how to say “no.” How do you have that difficult conversation? I’ve got three tips for you.
Kudos in this episode goes to Waimakariri Libraries. Watch the video to find out why they’re being recognized.
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!
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
In this episode, I’ll share three headlines about social media and how they affect your work at the library. They include a case study comparing ads on Instagram Reels vs. TikTok, a new Instagram feature, and a new way to track your Twitter analytics.
Kudos in this episode goes to Asotin County Library. Watch to find out why they’re being recognized.
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.
In this episode, I’ll lay out a three-point argument for why it may be time for libraries to consider moving away from posting on Facebook. I know this feels likes it’s in opposition to my post about Facebook best practices, but hear me out.
I know you’ll have a lot to say about this topic, so share your thoughts in the comments.
Kudos in this episode goes to Morrisson-Reeves library. Watch the episode to see why they’re being recognized.
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!
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
In this episode, I’ll answer a question from Leica who works at the Romeo District Library in Michigan. She said, “Would love some further suggestions for varying program descriptions, including making them more lively!” Thank you for the question, Lieca.
You can ask a question or nominate a library for kudos here.
Kudos in this episode goes to the Webster Parish Libraries. Watch the episode to find out why they’re being recognized.
Subscribe to this series to get a new video tip for libraries each week. Thanks for watching!
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
I love libraries. I work with libraries. I talk to library staff every single day. I like, share, and comment on library social media posts.
But every time I open my app for any of the platforms, I NEVER see content from libraries.
Why?
The odds are never in our favor, thanks to algorithms.
It’s a daily battle that libraries face. Social media is free and easy.
But it’s also not free and easy.
It’s incredibly, insanely difficult to figure out what works on social media when the rules are constantly changing. If you don’t have time or staff to keep up, it can be exhausting and demoralizing.
But like it or not, libraries must use social media to promote their services, collection, and events. We must do our best to work with the algorithms, for better or worse.
Starting next week, I’ll begin my annual six-part series laying out best practices for the top platforms used for promotion by libraries.
I chose these platforms because of a survey you, dear readers, so graciously answered. Nearly 300 library staffers let me know which social media platforms your library uses for promotion.
Before the platform best practice series begins, it’s important to set your library up for success by creating a social media style guide.
This is different than a social media policy, which lays out guidelines for how your staff will use social media to communicate with the public and sets rules for how the community interacts with you and others on your library’s social media accounts.
A social media style guide will ensure your posts are clear and consistent, no matter what platform you post on. It will take the guesswork out of many aspects of posting and make your work more efficient.
A social media style guide has seven parts. Here are the key decisions you should make now to ensure future success on social.
Make a list of all your social media accounts
Include your library’s handle on each platform. This will give you get a clear picture of the naming conventions you’ve used for your accounts.
Are the names consistent across channels? If not, choose a style and note it in your style guide.
Then, the next time a new social media platform is launched, you can claim and name your new account in a way that will make it easily discoverable for your existing fans.
Identify your library’s demographics for each platform.
Look at the insights for each of the platforms. Who is interacting with your posts? Your audience will be different for every platform. Make a list of the different audiences.
Because of the algorithms, you have very little control over who sees your post on any given platform. But you can get to know your available audiences and create content that will engage them.
If you are struggling with time management and you want to cut down on the number of social media posts you do, you can look at your lists of demographics. Identify the platforms with the audiences that will help you achieve your overall library and marketing goals. Post to those platforms and put the rest on hold.
Create a mission statement for each platform.
Look at your library’s goals for the year and what you know about each platform. Then write a one or two sentence mission statement for each of the social media platforms, lining up your library’s goals with the currently available audience for that platform.
For example:
LinkedIn: Discover career advice, business tips, and free resources that will help you succeed at work.
Twitter: Get regular updates on our collection, library events, and the literary and entertainment world.
Instagram: Photos tell the library’s story, one snapshot at a time.
These platform-specific mission statements, combined with the demographics you identified in the previous step, will help you visualize your audience every time you post. You’ll be able to connect with them because you’ll know who they are, and what they expect from you.
Decide the voice and tone you’ll use for each platform.
You want to use the same language and tone across platforms for consistency. The goal is to make sure your audience recognizes your posts no matter which platform they are on. Some things to consider include:
Whether your library will use formal or conversational text.
The words, phrases, and names that are specific to your library and can be used in posts. For instance, does your Maker Space or your Bookmobile have a specific branded name? Include that in your list.
Make a list of the acronyms your library commonly uses internally, along with the full spelled-out versions of what they stand for. Decide whether it’s appropriate to use the acronyms on each social channel, or if the full terms should be used.
Include parameters for inclusive language that will be standard for your library. For example, will your library remove the use of pronouns to be inclusive to all genders? How will you refer to people living with disabilities?
Choose an expert to make grammar and punctuation choices for you.
This decision will take the guesswork out of your library’s use of serial commas, headline capitalization, dash style, dates and times, and more.
Define the aesthetics.
This section will lay the groundwork for the visual portion of your posts. Decisions to be made here include:
Will you use your library’s defined brand colors?
Which fonts will your library use in images, cover photos, and for short-form social media posts like Instagram Stories and Reels?
How will your library’s logo be used on social media? Will it be used as the profile photo for your platforms? Can it be added to images? If so, where will it be placed and how large should it be?
Will you use emojis, GIFs, and memes? Which ones? How many? On what channels? How often?
Will you include a call to action in every post? What kinds of action words will you use in your call to action?
How often will you include links in your posts? Will you use a URL shortener?
Which hashtags will you use? How many hashtags are acceptable on each platform?
Will your library use filters and effects in your posts?
Formalize curation
Your library can share the blog posts, infographics, case studies, and interesting posts created by other organizations on your platforms. This is a great way to add value for your available social media audiences without creating new content of your own. Some key decisions to make around curated content include:
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
I recorded this episode during the Association of Rural and Small Libraries Conference in Reno, Nevada. I’ll share my biggest piece of promotional advice for my new friends who work for small and rural libraries.
I’ll also share kudos in this episode to someone very special.
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.
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
For libraries large and small, public, private, and academic, there is but one powerful promotional tool that you can use to reach as many people as possible.
It’s an email.
When you have limited staff, limited time, and an audience that is scattered across a large geographic area or is not comfortable coming into the building, email is the most effective method of communication.
And while the digital divide is still a very real and present problem for many communities, access to the internet is improving.
The latest Pew Research Center study released in August of this year shows that rural residents have seen a nine-percentage point rise in home broadband adoption in the last five years. 72 percent of rural Americans have high-speed internet access. Smartphone ownership also rose nine percentage points among rural residents in the past three years.
That’s a significant portion of your audience that’s reachable by email.
And the beautiful part is when you build a subscriber list, it’s all yours. No algorithm can touch it!
Segmenting your audience by their self-identified interests is the most effective way to market your library by email. Once you’ve created your segments, the next step is to build your subscriber lists. That’s your golden ticket to promotional success.
Here are 12 super easy ways to do that.
Sign up people whenever you interact with them.
I’ve got a thing for candles that smell like baked goods.
Every single time I stock up at Bath and Body Works or Yankee Candle, I am asked for my email at checkout. And I always give it to the cashier.
Why? Because I know I’ll be sent coupons. This means I’ll be able to enjoy the scent of sugar cookies or freshly baked apples wafting through my house without having to turn on my oven.
Every time your library staff talks with a patron, whether it’s by phone, chat, at the desk, or at outreach events, they should be asking for their email. Train staff to ask for email at every opportunity.
Create a form sign up for holds and self-service checkouts.
Some of our patrons prefer not to interact with staff. They love self-service. They may dart in and out of your building to get their holds. (That’s me!)
For these low-interaction patrons, create a form as a bookmark. Ask for the person’s name and email. If you have segmented email lists, you can ask them to check off the ones they’d like to subscribe to. They can return the form when they return their items. Or, even easier…
Add an opt-in page to your website.
Your bookmark can simply include the URL to a landing page on your library website where people can opt-in to your segmented lists. You might also include a QR code that takes people directly to your opt-in page.
An opt-in page is also handy for the next four suggestions.
Ask staff to include a link to your opt-in page in their email signatures.
Library staff send a lot of emails to patrons, community members, presenters, and stakeholders. They can help build your subscriber lists by including a line with an embedded link to your opt-in page in their email signature.
Start an opt-in campaign.
Send an email to your current subscribers and ask them to opt-in to other segmented lists. You can also give them the option to opt-out of any lists they may not be interested in any longer.
It may seem counterintuitive to remove people from your email list to grow your email list. But your current email subscribers are more likely to engage with other lists.
Also, their interests may have changed since they signed up. Give them the chance to update their subscriptions. They’ll be more likely to engage with the emails you send to them.
Cross-promote your least popular list to subscribers of your most popular lists.
Experiment with cross-promotion to give your least popular lists improved visibility. Include a few teaser lines in your email or e-newsletter and a link to sign up.
Promote your lists on your social media cover photos or headers.
Pick a list to promote by looking at the demographics for each of the social media platforms your library uses. You’ll be able to pinpoint which of your segmented lists will resonate the most with the followers of that platform.
Or you can highlight your opt-in page, where people can choose from all your lists. Then create a high-quality graphic and include instructions for signing up in the caption, and watch your list grow.
Share email previews on your library’s social media accounts.
Sharing a portion of your emails or e-newsletters is a great way to attract your audiences and entice them to join your email list.
Doing this demonstrates the value of your library and your email messages. Community members will be more likely to sign up if you give them a preview of what you’ll be sending them.
Promote your emails in your YouTube video descriptions.
Include a plug for your email lists every time you upload a video. One line at the beginning or end of your video description is all you need.
This is especially effective if you create a how-to video. Tell your viewers that they can sign up for more informative content and instruction by clicking the link in your description.
Promote your emails on your blog
For every blog post you publish, include a line that asks readers to sign up for one of your subscriber lists.
This works well when you match the content of the list with the content of your blog post.
Put the “ask line” somewhere in the first two-thirds of the blog post to catch readers who might not read your post all the way to the end.
Encourage subscribers to forward your emails.
Include social sharing buttons and an “Email to a Friend” button in your emails. Also, at the bottom of your emails, include a “Subscribe” call to action with a link so that the people receiving the forwarded emails can easily opt-in too!
Send great content.
If your emails are informative and interesting, your library will get a reputation… a good one.
Your communications will be viewed as valuable. People will always look forward to receiving your emails. They’ll be more likely to forward them to their friends, family, and co-workers. And this will help you to gather additional subscribers.
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
In this episode, we’ll share the latest social media platform headlines and break down what they mean for libraries. That includes a new scheduling feature for Instagram, a new, easy way for your Facebook followers to find your content, and new data on the use of Twitter by Gen Z.
Kudos go to the Invermere Public Library. Watch the video to find out why they were nominated by author Elinor Florence.
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!
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
I check my holds list on my library’s website pretty much every single day.
This is no lie.
At my library, each cardholder has a dashboard. You can see all the items you’ve put on hold and how many cardholders are in line in front of you.
You can also put books, DVDs, and CDs on a “for later” shelf. If you’re like me, you’ll check that shelf religiously.
After checking my print item holds, I open the Libby app and check the status of all the audiobooks I’ve put on hold. I try to guess which audiobook has the best potential to be made available at the exact moment I finish my current audiobook.
That’s totally normal, right?
I promise you that there are thousands, nay, tens of thousands of readers who partake in this same obsessive routine. Libraries who capitalize on that obsession get higher circulation numbers. And the more people engage with your collection, the more they are likely to engage with other parts of your library.
That’s why I am an advocate for robust and strategic collection promotion. But most library marketing teams spend their energy and resources promoting programs.
75 percent said promoting programs and events. A mere FOUR PERCENT said promoting their collection.
(Excuse me now while I have a short cry).
These libraries are missing a crucial fact about their cardholders.
People want the collection items. That’s why people get a card. And that’s the main way people use their card once they’ve got it.
The Public Library Survey Report‘s latest data, released in August, showed that there were 2.2 billion items circulated in 2019, about seven items per person in the United States.
By comparison, there are almost 125 million program attendees at public libraries. If each of those attendees only attended one program, that would account for only 38 percent of the total population in the U.S.
And most libraries spend significantly more on their collection than they do on anything else. Library Journal’s 2021 Budgets and Funding Survey shows that libraries spent 11.2 percent of their total budget on materials in 2020.
I am certain the data for other countries is similar.
If your library is putting resources into your collection, you must promote it. That’s the truth no matter what size library you work in.
But my gosh does it seem intimidating. Where do you start? And how do you get the most bang for your buck, in terms of circulation success?
Here are four easy things you should do right now to promote your collection. Because it’s what your community wants and needs from you.
Create FOMO with email.
Last month, I spoke to a self-described “library fan” who confessed to me that she often buys books because she didn’t know her library had new titles for checkout.
Most people don’t even think about turning to the library when their favorite author releases a new book. A concentrated collection marketing effort will change that.
Holds are a promotional opportunity. And the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is a real and tangible driver of promotional success.
So, promote your titles, especially new titles, using email. Include a line telling your cardholders that they are getting a jump on the holds list. Your most avid cardholders will pounce at the chance.
You can start small. Send an email once a month promoting three titles. Include a link to your catalog that will allow people to check that title out in whatever format they prefer.
All you need to do is include the book jackets, a short annotation, and a link. There are email programs designed specifically for libraries that make this process super easy.
You can also create a list of titles that aren’t new, but that are related by story element to the new titles which are the primary focus of your email. Give cardholders the option to check out these older titles while they wait for the newer titles.
Make sure you track holds and checkouts of the titles you promote in your email. That will give you some data to help you make decisions about what to promote next month. It will also be proof of the effectiveness of your work.
In my experience, one email a month can drive a circulation increase on average anywhere from 125 percent to 375 percent!
Strategically “upsell” your collection
Upselling is a sales term in which customers are encouraged to buy a more expensive version of a product than they originally intended.
Libraries can upsell too. We want our cardholders to end up checking out more items than they originally intended!
To do that, we must always be thinking of ways to offer other collection items to patrons as they checkout.
For instance, if you are running your library’s drive-thru window and a patron comes to pick up their hold on a memoir by a rock star, you can encourage them to log onto your library’s website to listen to that musician’s streaming music.
Or maybe you notice a patron bringing a stack of Regency-era books to your checkout desk. Suggest that the patron also check out DVDs of movies like “Pride and Prejudice”.
If your library is doing a screening of a kids’ movie, be sure to have an abundant number of books for kids in the same genre so that your patrons can leave the movie with a stack of books to read at home.
Look for every opportunity to encourage your patrons to check out more materials.
Harness the power of an eye-catching book cover.
Publishers understand the psychological impact of a good book cover. They spend a ton of money and research to pick the most engaging cover. We can use that to our advantage when we promote collection items.
On digital platforms, you’re trying to get people to stop scrolling as they move their feed. And a beautiful book cover works great for this purpose.
You can also put this concept to work for in-person book displays. Put your books face out. You want people to be drawn in by the beauty of the book cover.
Let someone else pick the items.
Delegate the selection of items to promote to the people who know what they’re doing–your collection or materials selection department.
Or ask the general staff of your library for recommendations. Librarians love it when you ask them what they’re reading. Your biggest problem will be whittling down the answers!
You can also crowdsource collection promotions from your followers. Ask people to share their book recommendations with you on social media or by emailing you.
You can even ask them to record a short video of themselves making their recommendations. Then you can share that content! You can even make a poster or sign featuring a photo of your patron and their book recommendations.
Subscribe to this blog and you’ll receive an email every time I post. To do that, enter your email address and click on the “Follow” button in the lower left-hand corner of the page.
Super Library Marketing: Practical Tips and Ideas for Library Promotion 