Social Media

Yes we all know that social media is essential in our communication efforts. I'll admit sometimes it's frustrating to find the time for social networking, but "The Social Pulpit" - how Obama used social media in his campaign is really inspiring. I really liked the way they combine social media with targeting audiences to get their message across. The spheres of cross-influence is a great public engagement model. So if you get a chance take a look at this, there are definitely some applications that would work in your library.

Electronic or Print?

Recently there were several examples on PR talk about annual reports. And the discussion centered on struggling with the issues of do we use print or electronic format. Personally I like the idea of using both. One can get great coverage with an electronic newsletter, but it's often nice to have some print copies. During my public library years, when I did a lot of speaking to community clubs it was always nice to have an annual report or some summary sheet to actually hand to participants. Check out these great examples, if you have others to share let me know and I'd be happy to post.



http://www.metrolibrary.org/annualreport



http://www.plcmc.org/About_Us/Insights_2009_fall.pdf

Summer Reading Promotion Sparks Interest of Local Businesses

Each December the North Carolina Public Library Directors Association hosts an awards presentation at their annual banquet recognizing both libraries and individuals. Libraries receive awards for programming, promotions, service, staff development and new or improved facilities. I attended this year's banquet and was so impressed with the many creative ideas. Thought I'd highlight one which can easily be replicated and is such a great way to involve the business community in your library.

The staff at Mauney Memorial Library was looking for ways to involve downtown businesses and demonstrate the amount of foot traffic library activities can generate. Their concept is simple, easy to replicate and inexpensive. For their summer reading program downtown partners were selected and agreed to host the mascot for one week during the six weeks of the summer reading program. The library mascot, Bobbie the Butterfly, was positioned at a different business each week. Each week a new riddle was posted in the library. The riddle is solved by identifying the business that Bobbie was visiting. When children, moms and dads visit the business they are awarded a reading buck. The reading buck can be spent at the Summer Reading Store at the library.

The program increased door traffic for each business partner and was an easy way for the library to demonstrate their community involvement. This can be easily replicated in libraries and communities of all sizes.

Holidays at Your Library

A busy time for all, but it might be a good time to try a few creative things in your library to entice new customers. I've seen some interesting promotional ideas recently that tie to the holidays. Here are just a few ideas - if you have others, please share.

• Special book displays about holidays in other countries.
• Favorite recipes from the staff - tied to a display of cookbooks.
• Special hours for students studying for exams, offering refreshments.
• Holiday gift ideas - books that make great presents
• Teens having a virtual holiday celebration - sharing ideas of what to do over the holiday, tie in to the library's facebook page
• Highlight travel books for those travelling over the holidays
• Information on databases that provide consumer reviews for gift buying
• Suggested books for parents to share with their children
• Highlight the PBS series on NC LIVE - great for watching over the holidays.

Customer Service in the Retail World

I had an interesting conversation with a friend this weekend who works for Coldwater Creek. She was sharing some of their policies on customer service. I found it very interesting to hear how they focus on "touchpoints" - touching each customer. No not physically, but making a connection with everyone who comes in their store. Employees are assigned certain areas of the store and when someone is in their section they make sure to make a connection. I was thinking how effective that could be in our libraries. I picture staff having certain areas and roaming, connecting with customers in their area. I'm sure many do this and if you do I'd love to hear about it. I remember while at ALA a few years ago and we visited libraries that had pods instead of large reference desks. The pod allowed the customer and staff to work together in close proximity.

Swap and Chat at NCLA

Swap and Chat was great fun at NCLA. Special thanks to all the libraries who shared their pr materials. I spent time video taping participants who shared some of the good ideas they picked up while browsing.

NCLA Conference

Currently attending the North Carolina Library Association conference in Greenville. Today was a busy day - starting out with our morning session with Keith Michael Fiels, ALA Executive Director. Keith shared his thoughts about the future of libraries. I loved his comment," if we predict the future we can create the future." So let's make positive predictions! And of course what I liked was his focus on the importance of increasing public awareness for libraries. Following along the same lines, David Singleton, Director of Customer Experience at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, spoke in the afternoon about the challenging times facing our libraries, emphasing the importance of communication not only to our customers, but also our staff. David shared the following quote, "during challenging times, make asset scarcity a source of innovation, not enervation." by John Ulmschneider.
Tomorrow I plan to continue collecting video clips of great pr ideas from out participants at the Swap and Chat - so watch for more postings.