Marketing Your Youth Programs

GET THE WORD OUTMarketing for Your Youth Department

Suzanne WalkerIndiana State Library

suwalker@library.in.gov

What are we talking about?

Ways to tell your story to your…

Patrons

…so that you can accomplish the goals you want to achieve in your department.

What is your goal?

• Getting people to participate in your youth programs.

• We are trying to reach four main groups of people…who are they?

• Parents, Kids, Teachers, and Teens• And guess what? These people are BUSY.

You must know your community

• A unique marketing strategy that works great in one community, may not work well in another community.

• Don’t get discouraged if your plan doesn’t work. You’ve learned something and now you can try something else.

• Don’t be afraid to try something again, with modifications based on what you learned or for a different audience.

A Good Foundation is Critical

• Library website should work, be clear, and be updated regularly

• Whatever library social media is being used should be updated regularly. Twitter and Facebook are very common for libraries to use to augment their regular website.

• Helps to have a clear library brand. All content you push out should have your logo and contact information. That means everything.

Traditional Marketing

• Traditional marketing strategies are not dead.• Articles in the local newspaper still work – Make those connections! – Submit, submit, submit– Even articles after the event give you a presence in

your community

Traditional Marketing

• Community networking…people are just people• Get on the local radio station• Again, make sure your website is up to date

Newsletters and Flyers

• Newsletters from your Department still fly– Might have a different one for all four groups– Take some time designing great flyers that are

uniform– Use different fonts sparingly– Make sure your fonts are clear– Have some white space– People do not read posters or signs and will

probably not read your whole flyer– Be careful with colors

A Few Slicker Options…

• Pictures in your Department– Digital Picture Frame

• Town Crier– Powerpoint Presentation that Loops…

TownCrier

• Event Connect Upcoming Programs

• Patron Connect Patron Services Announcements

• Book Connect Readers’ Advisory

• History Connect Mooresville & Area History

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For more information please ask a librarian.

Aug. 31“Our Time”

9:30 — 10:15 a.m.Ages 18 months to 3 yrs.

“Imagine That”10:45 – 11:30 a.m.

Ages 3 to 5 yrs.

“Young Child”6 — 7 p.m.

Ages 5 to 7 yrs.

REGISTRATION REQUIRED!

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For more information please ask a librarian.

Kindergarten Goodie Bags

Parents! Bring Your

Kindergartener During

Septemberto Get a Library

Card

First 100 Receive a Free Goodie

Bag!

Social Networking

http://www.slideshare.net/laurasolomon/how-to-fail-at-social-media-7662334

We are going to look at some do’s and don’ts from Laura Solomon. She’s awesome.

Blogs…

• Our YouTube Video…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mf6YHLOYwxM

Special for the parents

• Go to where the parents are (trapped)– Get your flyers in the grocery store– Dr.’s office or New Baby Kit at the hospital– Oil change place– Bureau of Motor Vehicles– Gym– Oh…they are on Facebook

Special for the teens

• Give them something…– Bags– Key Chains– Buttons– Pencils and Pens– Magnets– Bookmarks

Special for the teens

• Target the places they are already:– Twitter– Instagram– Tumblr…http://hipsterinthebookdrop.tumblr.com/– Vine is hip– Facebook losing out on the teens…it’s where their

parents are

Special for the teens

• Target the teens that are already coming– If they are in your building once a week, they

should be your BEST FRIEND (not really, but they should be very aware of what you got going on).

Special for the teachers

• Chocolate• Booktalks• School Librarians• Open Houses

Special for the kids

• Bookmarks• Signs on the (inside) of the bathroom doors• Find them at their schools• Be a brand in and of yourself– Purple hair– Carry an instrument– Big ol’ smile

Resources

• https://youthserviceslibrarianship.wikispaces.com/Library+Marketing

• http://themwordblog.blogspot.com/• http://www.olc.org/marketing/

suwalker@library.in.gov@suzieecw