Marketing

Do you need help developing relevant content pieces for your next blog or newsletter that will help engage and build patron relations? We can assist you with content creation, email marketing, video and social media outreach.

Tips for effectively marketing to patrons:

  • Focus on what you do well and build on that, don’t try to be all things to all people through your marketing efforts.
  • All marketing should focus on moving your goals forward, don’t be afraid to say no if it doesn’t help achieve your goals.
  • Utilize the expertise and experience from your team and keep communication open, share ideas and thoughts.
  • Make sure the entire staff knows what the marketing goals for the year are so that the message is consistent for patrons.
  • Keep a swipe file of marketing ideas that you come across that have inspired you.
  • Choose the marketing tactic that gives you the best ROI.
  • Attend local marketing group morning meetups to get familiar with what other local professionals are doing.
  • One-off marketing promotions can pose more of a challenge to communicate to an audience. Most marketing initiatives work better using consistent messaging over a longer period of time.
  • Try to avoic using library jargon in your marketing promotions. Use language that patrons recognize and is part of their everyday vocabulary.

Content Creation

Need a head start on that next blog post or newsletter? We can help! People are consuming content faster than ever before, and cutting through the noise with relevant and timely content that shares information and tells a story is a key component of marketing.

Tips for creating content that connects:

  • Know what your goal is before sitting down to write, plan and map everything out prior to writing.
  • Tailor your content to be all about the audience, not about you. The more we help the audience with what they care about, the more they'll come back wanting to read more!
  • Utilize brief surveys to find out what topics your audience are interested in.
  • Select the right format that best suits the content you are creating. Is it data heavy and may be better suited as an infographic? What about a short video as opposed to a newsletter?
  • Don't try to write for everybody, instead try writing like you are reaching out to one specific person.
  • Good content is made even more attractive when it has a strong visual element to go along with the text.
  • Try to build a visual identity with your content by utilizing consisten images, layouts and font choices.

Email MarketingEmail tips

Whether you’re sending out a weekly email notifying patrons of events and new releases or a monthly newsletter, email marketing is a proven tactic to get the right message to the right people directly. Targeted emails are one of the most effective ways to market your collection.

Email marketing services are available that let you send to thousands of recipients with an easy-to-use template format to quickly create professional, captivating email campaigns. Two of the most widely used services are MailChimp and Constant Contact. 

Best email marketing practices:

  • Target your emails to specific interests and demographics based off ILS data.
  • Use A/B testing with subject lines to see what works, and what doesn’t.
  • Establish expectations and goals prior to developing an email marketing campaign.
  • Success may be in the intangible results, not just the numbers. If you’re building patron relationships that may outweigh hard data on open and clicks through rates.

Social Media

Reach out to current and potential patrons with a variety of the most widely used social media platforms. We can help you get started by choosing the right channel for your needs and setting up your page on the most popular platforms such as:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube

Social media marketing tips:

  • Stray outside the library box to look for inspiration from what other companies are doing.
  • Use the ladder tactic - awareness - engagement - evangelize.
  • Pin new book releases on Pinterest.
  • Don't overlook LinkedIn - link to self-help books, seminars and events that would appeal to job seekers.
  • Try to engage the audience by starting a conversation. Be prepared to answer any questions or comments that come up from a post.
  • Highlight employees and super-user patrons with a weekly or monthly spotlight feature.
  • Interact with other libraries through social media. Playful and good hearted back-and-forth conversations between locations is a great way to win new followers!
  • Go behind the scenes and give your followers an insider's look at what goes into the day-to-day operations at their local library.
  • Try to develop a frequent posting routine for each social media channel that you use, if you're not publishing frequently it's easier to get forgotten.
  • If you're utilizing multiple social media channels, try using a social media management tool like Sprout or Hootsuit to schedule and manage your feeds from one location.