Web 2.0 Blowout: What You Should Know About Online Marketing & Your Library!

Cheryl BurnetteWebmasterHomewood Public Librarywww.homewood.lib.al.us cburnette@bham.lib.al.us205.332.6631

What is outreach?http://www.flickr.com/photos/msspider66/44397492/

Connecting users with library services

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7395147@N02/483197554/

Connecting users with librarians

What is online outreach?

By Brian Solis

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_jan/2460978886/

Make your library website two-way

Can people:• Register for cards?• Rate & review items?• Share their opinion?• Have an identity?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/leonski/457487863/

URLs for your library’s website

Have a short easy to remember URL

• www.tworiverslibrary.org vs.

• www.tworivers.lib.wi.us/index.htm

Register multiple domain names

• www.tworiverslibrary.net

• www.trl.org

• www.trpl.net or .info, .com, etc.

EngagedPatrons.orgFree & low cost Web 2.0 services for libraries run by

Glenn Peterson (Hennepin County Library)

• Events calendar with online registration

• Contact forms

• Custom web-enabled databases

• RSS feeds

• Library blogs

• Google Maps mashup for library locations

OR TRY• Library Websites www.librarywebsites.com

Library directory listings:• Libdex

• MapMuse

• Libraries411

• PublicLibraries.com

• Libweb

• lib-web-cats

Can search engines find your library?

• Search for variations of your library’s name – even misspellings

• Ensure that your site is at the top

• Use major, minor & metasearch engines

• Buy search engine optimization (SEO)?

• Possibly buy AdWords from Google

GoogleYahoo

SurfWax (+ educational, US Gov tools, etc.)

dogpileAsk.com WebCrawler

Is your library in the general directories?

• YellowPages.com & WhitePages.com• Yahoo! Local• Google Maps• AskCity• Microsoft Live Search Maps

http://www.flickr.com/photos/detroitderek/2540955593/

More than just a map…

Add your location to wikimapia

WikipediaList your library in Wikipedia on your town,

county and university/school entries

• External Links

• Main Text

• Talk yourself up!

Social networking must-haves!What sites do your customers use?

• flickr (techsoup.org - save $)

• Blogs (Blogger + odiogo)

• twitter

• MySpace

• facebook• Podcasts (podCast411)

• Videocasts (YouTube)

• IM/meebo

Start with a profile or page and keep the account current! Remember no

information is better than old information. Then

gradually upload photos, blog, become friends & fans, join groups, send

notifications & bulletins, comment, upload

podcasts, send flyers(?) etc.

flickr user

Tweeting on twitter

Post your flickr photos & your blog to twitter using twitterfeed twitterfeed.com & Ping.fm (Ping.fm supports over 30 sites)

Use TwitterLocal www.twitterlocal.net to find local twitterers

Look who’s on facebook!

Send facebook flyers to targeted audiences - $10 for 5,000

Instant Messaging/meebo

• More and more customers IM as a primary method of communication

• It’s FREE and easy!

• Train staff and man computers

• Advertise: flyers, blogs, email, & website!!!

HPL

Chambers County Library

Submit your blog to search engines

• Feed Submitter submits your RSS feed to 15 sites at once www.feedsubmitter.com

• Robin Good’s RSSTop55: Best Blog Directory And RSS Submission Sites www.masternewmedia.org/rss/top55 (--over 200 now)

“I think that this is a VERY powerful list to use to increase your RSS feed/blog exposure and visibility online. If you organize yourself well...you can do the whole effort in less than a day and you can start to see the results the day after.”

• RSS Specifications list of places to submit your feeds www.rss-specifications.com/rss-submission.htm

How about blog geo-search engines?

• Feedmap www.feedmap.net

• Blewspace www.blewspace.com

• Frappr www.frappr.com

Reach out & be social: find local blogs & forums to monitor, offering

help & information with comments, posts, etc.

• Blogdigger local

• BlogsByCity.com

• Metroblogging

• Feedmap

• Technology boards

• Google & Yahoo local groups

Interact with local blogs

• Don’t intrude, but be available

• Identify yourself as a librarian, etc.

• Be real - have authentic interactions

• Don’t be heavy handed

Community Events CalendarsList your library events & services in local

community websites & calendars

• LibraryThing Local www.librarything.com/local

• Upcoming upcoming.yahoo.com

• Craigslist www.craigslist.org

• Eventful eventful.com

• AmericanTowns www.americantowns.com

• Book Sale Finder www.booksalefinder.com

List your library in FREE Wi-Fi

directories

• JiWire www.jiwire.com/providers/wifi-directory.htm

• Wi-Fi-FreeSpot www.wififreespot.com

• Wi-FiHotSpotList.com www.wi-fihotspotlist.com

• WiFinder www.wifinder.com

• Wi-Fi Zone Finder wi-fi.jiwire.com

Who’s linking to you?

• Schools

• Local book stores

• City & county departments

• Community groups

• Other libraries & blogs

• Adult education centers

Find out! In Google & Yahoo

link:YourLibraryURLHerehttp://www.flickr.com/photos/thetypejunkie/2164755188/

Social Review Websites

• judy’s book

• insiderpages

• yelp

• Citysearch

What are your customers saying about you when you’re not around?

insiderpagesjudy’s book

Is your library mentioned in:• Google or Yahoo news

• Icerocket

• Bloglines

• Technorati

• flickr

• delicious

Bloglines

(you may be surprised)

delicious & furlBookmark recommended sites & helpful links in a web

directory to share with others.Set up a username & public profile with your library name.

• Catalog• Magazine & newspaper articles - a.k.a. databases• Readers advisory, book groups, blogs, • Calendar of events & programs• Homework Alabama• AVL• City & county links• Government sites …anything you can think of

Can people find your a/v?

Popular video sites & directories:• YouTube• Google Video• blip.tv

Popular audio sites & directories:• Podcast Alley• digital podcast• podfeed.net

• PodPusher www.podpusher.com - submit to over 60 directories & search engines FREE

• podCast411 www.podcast411.com/page2.html - list of FREE audio & video podcast directories

• Internet Archive www.archive.org - FREE upload & archive

Popular a/v sites & directories:• iTunes• Podcast.com• Odeo• podcastpickle

• vimeo

Freebies for a/v• Audacity audacity.sourceforge.net – audio recording &

editing software (All you need is a microphone - $15 up)

• Windows Movie Maker – video editing software (Use a digital camera that records movie clips or a video camera - $100 up)

• iMovie for Macs – video editing software

• Avidemux fixounet.free.fr/avidemux – video editing software

• (Not Free - but low cost) AVS – video editing software, appx. $65 for the entire suite

• Internet Archive www.archive.org – website to find free background music

Slam the Boards!

Answers.com, WikiAnswers (wiki.answers.com), Yahoo Answers & Amazon's Askville – “We recognize that these sites can help promote the idea that librarians are active and dynamic participants in the web 2.0 community, and we're not just waiting for the questions to come in!”

answerboards.wetpaint.com/page/Slam+the+Boards!

The 10th of every month!

Push out as much info as possible

• Newsletters (maybe invest in software-$)

• Get email addresses from ILS

• Have paper sign-ups and promotions

• Catalog/account info updates

• Blog posts

• Calendar events

Texting (text messaging)

• Teens are biggest users

• Offer both reference & circulation via text-$

Second Life, Info Island• Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County

www.plcmc.org/teens/secondLife.asp• American Library Association and Second Life®

tinyurl.com/69rzkx• Second Life® – Official Web Site www.secondlife.com• Teen Second Life® – Official Web Site teen.secondlife.com• Teen Second Life®: Library services in a 3D world

(SirsiDynix Webinar, 2007) tinyurl.com/2fwdoc• Second Life® for Dummies by Sarah Robbins • Second life : the official guide by Michael Rymaszewski

Tips for Digital Marketing Success• Advocate to your leadership –

– eBranch is library’s most public face– libraries are digital resource centers– can be open 24/7– cheap compared to brick & mortar buildings

• Develop a plan with a budget and staff needs• Start with the easy things and move on to the

harder stuff• Register for everything with the same

(generic) email address• Have Web 2.0 staff training – encourage full

participation

Think your patrons aren’t using these tools…well they are! Be a tech leader in your community!