Many of society's negative perceptions of libraries and librarians stem from misconceptions. By being stronger advertisers of what we have to offer, many people would be amazed and find that libraries and librarians can be extremely helpful (I know I have been “wow-ed” several times as I learn more about what libraries have to offer through my Clarion coursework, especially with regards to references sources and electronic databases).
I briefly brought up a thought on the discussion board that if libraries want to attract patrons, they must advertise outside of the library, which got me thinking… besides using MySpace and Facebook, how else can libraries market themselves to potential users? Shortly after I posted my thoughts on library marketing to the discussion board, I headed off to the train station. While standing around waiting for my train, a few words carved into a wooden sign caught my eye. “What is noosphere?” I had no idea what noosphere was, but it sparked my curiosity enough to want to get to a computer right away to look it up. And, voila! That's how I came up with my next idea for library marketing.
Libraries could come up with a question like “What is noosphere?” or something similar to get people wondering and then post the question all over the place-- at train stations, in shopping malls, on the Internet, etc. and follow it with a web address. For example, What is noosphere? www.noosphere.com. When people visit the website it could give them an explanation of the word and follow with something like, “If this question sparked you're curiosity (and obviously it did, or you wouldn't be here), you may also be interested in knowing…” and follow with an interesting fact about libraries or their services. What a great way to advertise something!
In an effort to reach out to the next generation, one thought would be to have teens manage a portion of your library's website. They could highlight programs and services that they think would be of interest to other teens. They could set up a chat or discussion board for teens. And, you wouldn't even necessarily need to hire them. You could team up with a local high school and offer this opportunity for a group of seniors to work on as a senior project. Teens are generally more up-to-date with the latest web interfaces than older librarians, so why not take advantage of their skills and expertise? According to the cover story in the most recent issue of School Library Journal, “By recruiting a teen or two to assist you, you're validating their technological expertise and social networking skills. You can also empower youth by letting them redesign your Web site or contribute online content to it, like art, poems, or blog postings” (Goodstein, 2008, p. 43).
Not only is it necessary for libraries to attract users, it is just as important for libraries to attract people to commit to working in the library field. One way libraries are attracting people to work for them is by coming up with new, descriptive job titles. Instead of just being called a plain, old librarian, Michelle Mach found that there have been library jobs posted in American Libraries and College and Research Libraries News with 300+ different titles from Web Content Librarian to Knowledge Analyst. For a complete list of these unique job titles, please visit http://www.michellemach.com/jobtitles/realjobs.html.
Personally, I think having a unique or specialized job title gives the person with that title a better sense of purpose and/or confidence. Also, some people, in an attempt to squelch society's negative perceptions of librarians and to give the public a clearer understanding of their role, may want to have one of these clever titles. I for one wouldn't mind it.
In conclusion, it is vital for libraries to start thinking outside the box and reaching out more to a variety of interest, age, and ethnic groups, in order to make themselves visible and desirable in today's world. Whether that means advertising in non-traditional ways, supporting the next generation by fostering their skills, or attracting and recruiting forward-thinking librarians, now is the time for libraries to plan for the future.
References:
Evans, W. (2007). What drives you? Library Journal, 132(20), 84. Retrieved May 25, 2008, from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA).
Goodstein, A. (2008). What would Madison Avenue do? School Library Journal, 54(5), 40-43. Retrieved May 26, 2008, from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA).
Mach, M. (2003). Real job titles for library and information science professionals. Retrieved May 26, 2008 from http://www.michellemach.com/jobtitles/realjobs.html
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