Marketing Today's Academic Library: A Bold New Approach to Communicating with Students.

Marketing Today's Academic Library: A Bold New Approach to Communicating with Students. Marketing Today's Academic Library: A Bold New Approach toCommunicating with Students BY BRIAN MATHEWS Chicago: American Library Association, 2009. 171 pp. soft coverISBN ISBNabbr.International Standard Book NumberISBNInternational Standard Book NumberISBNn abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 9780838909843 Marketing Today's Academic Library is another great offeringfrom ALA Editions, aligning quality content with succinct suc��cinct?adj. suc��cinct��er, suc��cinct��est1. Characterized by clear, precise expression in few words; concise and terse: a succinct reply; a succinct style.2. presentation.The author works at the Georgia Institute of Technology Georgia Institute of Technology,in Atlanta, Ga.; coeducational; state supported; chartered 1885, opened 1888. It is a member school in the university system of Georgia. Significant among its facilities and programs are the Frank H. , is also aspeaker on various library topics, has published journal articles andmaintains a blog: The Ubiquitous Librarian. The need for librarians andlibraries to become 'ubiquitous' is used as a launch pad byMathews in his prologue. Although later asserting that 'librariesdon't need to advertise' he nonetheless endorses the need tocreate 'a richer library experience'. Such observations setthe scene for his key theme: showcasing 'proactive and targetedcommunication strategies aimed at establishing an emotional andinteractive connection with our users'. This all about'offering a balanced array of academic, social, creative andcultural experiences' to make the library inspiring--a'premier campus destination'--rather than 'just a placethat students have to go'. How does he proceed to tackle such lofty objectives? The chaptershave logical emphases, such as 'defining the user','student need states', 'the library as product','conducting marketing research' and 'buildingrelationships'. One component of this generally upbeat and practical book isChapter 6, focussing on building relationships. This theme ischaracterised as 'making connections', Mathews alluding to thearchetypes in Malcolm Gladwell's influential book, The TippingPoint The point in time in which a technology, procedure, service or philosophy has reached critical mass and becomes mainstream. See network effect. See also tip and ring. , when considering 'how information, trends, and behavioursare created and passed along'. Gladwell's thesis is thatnetworks of influential personalities 'shape the beliefs of themasses' within society. These form a trinity:'connectors' (who know everyone--act as conduits ofinformation and 'have many ties in different social realms'),'mavens' (who know everything--accumulate knowledge and arecompelled to inform and help others') and 'salesmen'(those you want to hang out with--persuasive, charismatic and optimistic op��ti��mist?n.1. One who usually expects a favorable outcome.2. A believer in philosophical optimism.op individuals). However, Mathews acknowledges the challenge for academiclibraries in initiating such systems, such students needing to bediscovered and encouraged. He then discusses cool hunting ('glorified peoplewatching'), where trends are spotted early on and integrated intomessages or product development. The main focus is on 'who isspreading the trend and who is adopting it'. For libraries thismeans that an enhanced awareness of campus culture may refinecommunications and assist the goal of user-sensitivity--colourfullydescribed as taking the pulse of 'what is interesting and importantto our students'. The centrality of relationships to successfulcommunication programmes is asserted, surely a legitimate andevidence-based claim. Strategic library partnerships with students areendorsed by Mathews, in part a continuation of his earlierarchetypes--'advocates', 'ambassadors','consultants' and 'affiliates'. Various suggestionsfor tapping into student representative bodies and websites are alsowell made. There is also a chapter on developing brand strategies.'Brand' is depicted as the idea--the 'philosophicalconcept' of who libraries are and what they offer--and'branding' as the recognisable image, the 'visualrepresentation' of our library services. Mathews conceptualisesbrand strategy as three separate layers--'visual' (logo,slogan), 'value' (a rational integration of appealing factsand perceptions) and 'emotional' (psychological impression ofdesirability). He provides several layered examples of branding library'products' such as reference librarians, databases, quietstudy space and help. These are subordinate to all-encompassing library themes, theunifying and 'big vision' concepts. He presents big visionexamples drawn from student surveys (the scholarly'productivity' facilitated by the library) and fromOldenburg's book, The Great Good Place (academic library as'third place', a public destination between work and home,exemplified by Starbuck's). Other examples include the importanceof student peers, library as 'refuge' or venue for'self-discovery' and assimilation of information. I found allof these to be persuasive illustrations that struck chords withpersonal, anecdotal tertiary library experiences, very likely also to bereinforced by more systematic, evidence-based explorations. This chaptercloses with salutary sal��u��tar��yadj.Favorable to health; wholesome.salutaryhealthful.salutaryHealthy, beneficial mention of the ubiquitous McDonalds empire as'an ideal model for libraries to follow': an inclusive, funexperience using the power of emotion, as academic libraries too canengage and bring people together for academic success within the greateruniversity experience. Chapter 8 deals with promotional building blocks. The proximity ofan academic library to its 'well-defined population' isflagged as an advantage--observing, interacting and reacting to libraryusers is relatively easy. Mathews also alludes to a common advertisingmaxim--'that it often takes five impressions before anadvertisement is effective'. Library communication and promotionalinitiatives should use a variety of formats ('vertical'progression--the building blocks of different promotional channels),plus continuous exposure ('horizontal' progression--the lengthof the campaign). Choosing the appropriate marketing mix isimportant--Mathews lists common communication strategies used byacademic libraries: print materials (fliers, bookmarks, posters, floorplans, newsletters), giveaways (pens, magnets, USB USBin full Universal Serial BusType of serial bus that allows peripheral devices (disks, modems, printers, digitizers, data gloves, etc.) to be easily connected to a computer. drives), events(orientations, workshops, contests, film viewings), campus media,digital media (library website, blogs, podcasts, social networking See social networking site. social networking - social network sites) and word of mouth. Chapter 9 is about 'designing messages'. 'Librarypromotions should be inspiring'--far preferable to a condescending'we know best' message (no quibbles there). The desirabilityof designing emotionally appealing messages is also espoused: hencepsychological benefits and motivational triggers rather than a'purely factual statement'. Library objectives commonlyinclude any of: 'attracting new users','attendance', 'use of products' and 'perceptionof the library'. Again, this seems to be a legitimate array. Theyare our marketing aspirations, our desired impact(s); the reaction ofstudents to library promotional materials is predicated on them actuallyencountering these--'location, location'. While shunningover-exposure, the many surfaces available within the library itself aretouted as the most obvious location, with other high-density places likestudent centres, bus stops, even 'chalking' on busy walkwaysalso rating. The library website also enables banner ads, videos, blogsand other means of exposure. Social networking sites like Facebook,Flickr and Twitter A Web site and service that lets users send short text messages from their cellphones to a group of friends. Launched in 2006, Twitter (www.twitter.com) was designed for people to broadcast their current activities and thoughts. offer places for informal contact. Customising thelibrary's promotional message based A communications interface between two systems that is based on a set of text commands. A message-based system is a type of client/server relationship, in which requests are made by a client component, and the results are provided by a server component. on the context is likely to bemore effective. The critical nature of timing is also mentioned, Mathewsconceptualising each semester into three parts: 'orientation'(when library messages should be casual and simple, perhaps provokingcuriosity), 'productivity' (when students are dealing withassessment tasks; library as pragmatic and flexible source of resourcesand technology), 'closing'(in the final lead-up to exams,library themes of empathy and functional productivity). The authorsummarises the attributes of an effective campaign: 'aspects thatare surprising, relatable, tangible, experiential, shareable andmeasurable'. Chapter 10 is about 'measuring the impact', Mathewssuggesting several bases on which academic libraries can gauge theimpact of their promotions and marketing programmes. A selection ofthese includes seeking direct customer response to a marketing message(e.g. students accessing a special library statistical webpage), orbenchmarking key statistics (e.g. database usage, circulation) againstthe student population, or using web analytics and longitudinal studies longitudinal studies,n.pl the epidemiologic studies that record data from a respresentative sample at repeated intervals over an extended span of time rather than at a single or limited number over a short period. .Chapter 11 is integrative in nature ('putting it alltogether'). This is a very useful compilation of marketing advice specificallydesigned for academic libraries. It draws on various'road-tested' professional experiences and conveys acontemporary appeal. Once the exclusive domain of other professionals,library marketing capability is now a significant and mainstream strandof our own working lives and strategies. Michael Cullen Dr Michael John Cullen (born 5 February 1945, London) is a New Zealand politician.Cullen currently serves as Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand, Minister of Finance, Minister of Tertiary Education, Attorney-General and Leader of the House. The University of Notre Dame Notre Dame IPA: [nɔtʁ dam]is French for Our Lady, referring to the Virgin Mary. In the United States of America, Notre Dame Australia