Marketing-Mantra-for-Librarians

Call for papers: IFLA volume on Marketing Library & Information Services

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 12:49:00 +0000

Call for Papers

Marketing Library and Information Services: A Global Outlook

To be published in:
‘Green-Back’ IFLA publication Series, by De Gruyter Saur, Munich (Germany)

IFLA’s role in bringing marketing closer to libraries is of significance in many ways. Its formation of a new Section on Management and Marketing in 1996 was an important step in this direction. This section has taken up many initiatives to bring marketing into the heart of libraries and librarians. It has organized many workshops/ conferences and made the marketing theme popular; brought out many useful publications putting marketing jargon in simple ways; promoted the marketing theme for inclusion in the course curricula; and worked for identifying best practices through instituting international award on marketing.

In 2006, the publication ‘Marketing Library and Information Services: International Perspectives’, edited by Dinesh K. Gupta, Christie Koontz, Angels Massisimo and Rejean Savard was brought out under the auspicious of IFLA. The publication was well received in the library community world over and was reviewed in many international journals in English and other languages.

To continue the efforts, new publication ‘Marketing Library and Information Services: A Global Outlook’ is being planned and which will be published by IFLA’s official publisher De Gruyter Saur under the ‘Green-Back’ Publication Series, in the last quarter of 2012.

Library and information professionals (practitioners, researchers, faculty members, consultants, and others) who have put exemplary marketing efforts are encouraged to share their experiences by way of contributing papers for the volume broadly related with the following areas:
1. Changing marketing concepts
2. Marketing library and information services (MLIS) in different countries
3. Marketing library and information services in different kind of libraries
4. Education, training and research
5. Web based marketing

We would also request contributors to focus on recent developments in the field like: marketing of e-resources, digital library marketing, consortia based library marketing, marketing of e-products/ services,
marketing through training/ information literacy, marketing library services to global community, and other such aspects which are contemporarily significant on the theme and which they would like to share with the library community worldwide.

Select papers will be put together in the volume to bring the global
outlook of marketing library and information services.

The Editorial Team: The team consists present & past members of IFLA Management and Marketing Section:

Dinesh K. Gupta, Dept. of Library and Infromation Sc., Vardhaman
Mahaveer Open University, Kota, India
dineshkg.in@gmail.com

Christie Koontz, School of Information Studies, Florida State
University, Florida, USA
christie.Koontz@cci.fsu.edu

Angels Massisimo, University of Barcelone, Spain
amassisimo@ub.edu

Dateline:
Submission of expression of interest with proposal- 31st January. 2012
Confirmation to authors for the contribution: 15th March 2012
Submission of full papers-31st May 2012

IFLA International Marketing Award for 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:09:00 +0000

The IFLA Section on Management and Marketing in collaboration with Emerald has the pleasure to announce the IFLA International Marketing Award for 2012.

The IFLA INTERNATIONAL MARKETING AWARD will honor organizations that have implemented creative, results-oriented marketing projects or campaigns. Three finalists will be recognized for their outstanding achievements. From these three finalists, the winner will be chosen and receive airfare, lodging and registration for the World Library and Information Congress:78^th IFLA General Conference and Council in Helsinki, Finland in August 2012, as well as a cash award of USD 1,000 which must be used to further the marketing efforts of the recognized organization.

Three finalists will be announced in March 2012. A first place winner will be chosen and two distinctions will be awarded. The winner will be announced officially during the Press Conference of the Congress in Helsinki, Finland.

For applications and application material in seven IFLA languages can be accessed at:
IFLANET

Last date for submission of application: 15^th January 2012

Marketing Libraries in a Web 2.0 World

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Mon, 30 May 2011 10:23:00 +0000

Marketing Libraries in a Web 2.0 World
Edited by Gupta, Dinesh / Savard, Réjean,
2011
DE GRUYTER SAUR, Munich (Germany)
ISBN 978-3-11-026331-2
Series: IFLA Publications 145

Marketing the 21st century library and information organization to its new age customers using Web 2.0 tools is a hot topic. These proceedings focus on the marketing applications and (non- technical) aspects of Web 2.0 in library and information set ups. The papers in English and French are exploring and discussing the following aspects: General concepts of Web 2.0 and marketing of library and information organizations; How libraries are adopting Web 2.0 marketing strategies; Marketing libraries to clients in using Web 2.0 tools; International trends and Interesting cases of marketing through Web 2.0 tools.

Contents
Raymond Bérard
Preface/Préface .........vii
Dinesh K. Gupta and Réjean Savard
Foreword/Avant-propos .................................... xi

Section-I: Web 2.0 and marketing: general concepts

Olivier Le Deuff
The Library 2.0: origins of the concept, evolutions, perceptions
and realities .............. 3

Tanja Merčun and Maja Žumer
Making Web 2.0 work for users and libraries............. 13

Jean-Pierre Diouf
Le marketing des bibliothèques supplanté par le Web 2.0:
mythe ou réalité? ................ 23

Section-II: Adopting Web 2.0 strategies

Heather Lea Moulaison and Edward M. Corrado
Staying free from “Corporate Marketing Machines”
library policy for Web 2.0 tools ............... 43

Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe and Rudy Leon
Innovation as a framework for adopting Web 2.0
marketing approaches ...............57

Section-III: Marketing with Web 2.0 and the client

Lionel Dujol
Web 2.0 : de nouveaux usagers en bibliothèque? .......... 69

Li-Ping Ku
Creating and using Personas for library service in the Web 2.0 era:
a case study of the Chinese Academy of Sciences ............ 79

Yamina Benhaouya
The impact of CMR 2.0 in the library ............ 87

Section-IV: Case studies
Rajesh Singh
How tangible is your library in the digital environment?
Implications of social media marketing in reinventing
communities' library experiences ............ 97

Nadia Temmar
La dimension participative du Web 2.0 : un atout marketing
pour la bibliothèque de l’École Supérieure de Banque d'Alger ....... 109

Rudolf Mumenthaler
Library Marketing 2.0: experiences of the ETH-Bibliothek
with social media ......... 125

Section-V: International perspectives

Amadou Anta Samb
Web 2.0 tools and the marketing of libraries: the case of Africa ........ 137

Moreno Barros
Brazilian librarians and Twitter ....... 147

Conclusion
Christie Koontz
Marketing in a Web 2.0 world: a conference perspective ......... 157

Winners of the IFLA International Marketing Award-2011 announced

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 01:56:00 +0000

9th IFLA International Marketing Award
Sponsored by
Emerald Group Publishing Ltd

The IFLA Section on Management and Marketing in collaboration with Emerald is pleased to announce the winners of the 9th IFLA International Marketing Award for 2011.

First place was awarded to the German National Library of Medicine, (Cologne, Germany) for its campaign “Pilots take off – and land (as you like it.)” The campaign focuses on ZB MED search portals MEDPILOT and GREENPILOT, and follows the principle that online products must be marketed online for optimal impact and success. The basic premise relies upon target group specific communications to the search portals’ “digital residents”. Users with comparatively conservative usage behavior (“digital visitors”) are reached through more traditional media such as trade shows, press releases, personal contacts and in-house events. In this manner, an integrated communication consisting of both conventional and innovative measures is achieved. Contact for the award is Elke Roesner elke.roesner@zbmed.de. The first-place winner receives airfare, lodging, and registration for the 2011 IFLA General Conference and Council to be held this year in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and a cash award of $1,000 (U.S.) to further the marketing efforts of the library.

Second place was awarded to Edmonton Public Library (EPL) (Edmonton, Canada), for the project “Rebranding the Edmonton Public Library – from research to implementation to results.” In the fall of 2009 the Edmonton Public Library (EPL) started an ambitious project to dramatically change the perception and image of its library system, culminating with the launch of EPL’s new brand in 2010. The new brand provides a fun, fresh and creative base from whic to engage library stakeholders. Contact for the award is Tina Thomas, tthomas@epl.ca

Third place was awarded to the Georgia Institute of Technology Library (Atlanta, Georgia, USA), for the project and radio broadcast “Lost in the Stacks.” This is the world’s first and only research library rock n’ roll radio show and airs on WREK 91.1 FM (and streams worldwide) on http://wrek.org every Friday at noon from Georgia Tech’s campus. Contact for the award is Ameet Doshi ameet.doshi@gatech.edu. .

More details about these winning campaigns are available from Christie Koontz, Christie.Koontz@cci.fsu.edu, Information Coordinator for the jury.

The first place winner will be announced officially at the IFLA press conference, time and place to be announced. Second and third place winners will be announced also and awarded with distinctions.

For this ninth award, applications were available on the IFLA Web. Altogether there were 19 applicants from 12 countries including Australia, Canada, China, Germany, India, Indonesia, Lithuania, Maldives, Netherlands, Russia, Spain, and USA.

Read more detail on the IFLANET

What are we really doing to market electronic resources?

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 16:34:00 +0000

Marie Kennedy, (2011) "What are we really doing to market electronic resources?", Library Management, Vol. 32 Iss: 3, pp.144 - 158

This paper aims to identify which marketing activities libraries are using to promote electronic resources and to examine how libraries are measuring the successes or failures of their marketing plans.

The research analyzes the literature published in library science on marketing techniques for electronic resources in use at libraries; the corpus is composed of 24 documents published from 1994-2009. The literature is qualitatively analyzed to determine the techniques in use, the libraries' goals, targeted groups, budgets, and assessments of their marketing plans.

A total of 38 unique marketing techniques were discovered in the 24 documents consulted for this research. The four most popular techniques were patron training in a group setting, flyers/brochures, e-mails to patrons, and surveys. Libraries were generally unclear about stating the goals for their marketing plans but were able to easily identify the target of their marketing efforts. Budgeting was inconsistent among libraries included in this research; nine libraries reported having either no budget for marketing or did not mention budgeting in the article. Assessment was the weakest part of the marketing plans, with four libraries not documenting an awareness of the need for assessment and seven libraries noting an understanding of the need to evaluate their plan but unsure how to do so.

Based on the analysis the paper makes it clear that as libraries engage in marketing activities, they should make themselves aware of general principles before beginning their plan. Special focus should be given to selecting activities that match the goals of the marketing plan and choosing an appropriate evaluation technique before beginning the marketing activities.

Relation Management Position...announced

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 08:50:00 +0000

It is very nice to see the announcement of Head of Relationship Management,
University of York - Information Directorate offering an exciting opportunity has arisen within the Services Division, which brings together Library and IT staff to provide integrated services from within a newly refurbished and extended Library building. Applications are invited for the new post of Head of Relationship Management, leading a team of Academic liaison librarians, software applications support, training and communications staff.
You will be prepared to innovate, lead and manage change, respond enthusiastically to external developments, and be a reflective practitioner taking responsibility for your own development needs. You will have a good honours degree, a postgraduate qualification in a professional area relevant to the duties of the post, and considerable appropriate professional experience. You will make a significant contribution to achieving the overall vision for information within the University, with skills, knowledge or experience in service delivery, marketing, user understanding and relationships, quality and performance measurement.

You will work closely with and deputise for the Head of the Services Division and develop effective relationships within and outside the University. Management experience, preferably in a higher education, research or related service-oriented environment, and a good understanding of important issues for higher education institutions and the information services which support them are essential.

Branding Yourself

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:42:00 +0000

Librarian Like a Rock Star: Using Your Personal Brand to Promote Your Services and Reach Distant Users appears in the Journal of Library Administration The business world has been using corporate branding and relationship marketing to build customer loyalty and satisfaction. In recent decades, individuals have applied the tenets of branding to themselves to create the idea of personal branding- marketing yourself as your own brand. By thinking in terms of personal branding and relationship marketing, distance education librarians can more effectively reach out to remote students and build long term relationships that are beneficial to both students and librarians (abstract)

Library management and marketing Session in QQML 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 15:29:00 +0000

The 3rd Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries International Conference (QQML2011) was scheduled during the previous 2nd QQML2010 Conference. QQML2009 and QQML2010 were successful events both from the number and quality of the presentations and from the post conference publications in Journals and Books. QQML2011 will continue and expand the related topics.There will be session on Management & Marketing in the QQML 2011:

SESSION TITLE: Library management and marketing
Coordinator: Dr. Angela Repanovici, Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania
Leadership in managing services for diverse and complex groups of patrons
In this session we are looking to learn from best practices from libraries that have demanding, diverse and complex groups of patrons. How will academic libraries balance between demands from scholars from different traditions; the bookish humanities and the more journal-oriented Social Sciences? Is there anything to learn about catering for the different emphasis placed on bibliometrics as a tool for funding agencies? On what basis will the academic libraries that are in this kind of situation act and make decisions?
Performance indicators
Libraries, as well as other organizations, are under close scrutiny from patrons and funding agencies. The library manager needs some tools for assessing the performance of the library, both as itself and bench–marked with others. In this session we are looking for papers on best practice on performance indicators. What are good and useful indicators for performance for different kinds of libraries? How can library leaders and managers utilize the information derived from such indicators to improve the library services? Can performance indicators be used to market the library to stake holders?
Evaluation
Library leaders have to find some ways of gaining systematic information about the activities in their libraries. Staff meets users every day, so there is no shortage of impressions, ideas and mental images, if one as a leader can find a way to utilize this. Often, though, this information will be ad hoc and qualitative rather than systematic and quantitative, and as such less useful for improvement and bench marking in a library. What are efficient ways of evaluation for libraries? What examples of best practice can we find of different evaluation methods for different purposes?
User education
The traditional approach to library patron education is being challenged by several factors. One is the enormous amount of information that is available from libraries; so much, that it is not possible for anyone, not even the librarians themselves, to keep abreast of the development. Another challenge is the growing concern from stake holders and funding bodies that the population should become more computer literate and information literate, and seeing libraries as useful tools for this purpose. In this session we will look for papers describing best practises within the field of user education.

My Name is Dewey (Video)

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:58:00 +0000

News from IFLA Management & Marketing Section

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:26:00 +0000

It is very nice to see new developments at the IFLA Management & Marketing Sections through its webpage. Efforts by new Information Team headed by Christie are commendable. Congratulations Christie for the well beginning.

The news items of interest are:
-IFLA to Publish M&M Marketing Libraries in a Web 2.0 World
-Highlights of M&M Section Meetings in Gothenburg
-http://www.ifla.org/en/management-and-marketing/marketing-award, please remember that last date of submission of application form is 30th November, 2010
-Mid Year Meeting: Athens, Greece February 25-27, 2011

Management & MArketing at IFLA 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 02:15:00 +0000

Number 21 of the Management and Marketing section Newsletter is now available!

Topics include:

* Letter from the Chair
* Informations about the pre-conference satellite meeting “Marketing libraries in a Web 2.0 world”, Stockholm, organized by Management and Marketing Section, in collaboration with the Stockholm University Library
* Gothenburg M&M Programme
* Winners Announcement for the 8th IFLA International Marketing Award and Apply for the 2011 IFLA International Marketing Award
* Informations about the Mid-Year-Meeting of M&M Standing Committee February 26-27 2010, The Hague

Please mark your calendar for the Management & Marketing Section Meetings in Gothenburg: the first Section SC meeting will take place on Tuesday 10 August 2010 from 8:30-11:20 (room G2). The second Section SC meeting will be scheduled on Sunday 15 August 2010 from 9:45-11:15 (room G2)

I will be attending the the events/ sessions/ meetings and will be happy to interact with colleagues..will post about the Satellite Meeting and the main conference of IFLA..

Marketing Libraries in a Web 2.0 World

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 12:26:00 +0000

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)
Management and Marketing Section, in collaboration with the Stockholm University Library, are organizing a pre-conference and satellite meeting in Stockholm, the Capital of Sweden, during August 7- 8 2010.

This is held in conjunction with the IFLA annual conference, which takes place in Gothenburg, Sweden, the following week.

Marketing the 21st library and information organization to its 21st century customers using Web 2.0 tools is a “hot topic”. This satellite meeting will focus on the marketing applications and aspects (not technical), of Web 2.0.

Detailed information is available at:
http://www.sub.su.se/ifla/start.htm

I will moderate a session on 8th August at15h30 International perspectives The papers and presenters include:

Djibril Diakhaté, École des bibliothécaires, documentalistes et archivistes, Dakar (Sénégal): State of the art in the use of social web Tools in the promotion of libraries in Africa.

Moreno Barros, University of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil): Brazilian librarians and Twitter

Bentenbi Chaibdraa Tani, University of Oran-Essenia (Algeria):Towards a visibility of Algerian libraries in the era of social media

In Search of Marketing Excellence in Libraries

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 16:36:00 +0000

I would like to share with the readers that my paper, ‘In search of marketing excellence in libraries: The IFLA International Marketing Award’written jointly with Dinesh K.Christie Koontz (USA) and Daisy McAdam (Sweden) appears in the June 2010 issue of the IFLA Journal.

'To recognize libraries in the global community that develop and implement effective marketing programs, the Management and Marketing Section of the IFLA joined to create and sponsor the IFLA International Marketing Award. The IFLA International Marketing Award honours organizations which implement results-oriented
marketing projects or campaigns. Three finalists are recognized for their outstanding achievements. From these three finalists, the winner is chosen and is announced in the Press Conference of the IFLA General Assembly and Congress. The IFLA Award was introduced in 2002, attracting 218 applications from 49 countries
during the last eight years. The paper discusses the award, its history and geographical representation, winning projects with comments from winners. The analysis is based on the data collected for the seven years of Award applications (2002–2009). The results for the Award for 2010 have also been included'. (Abstract)

Colleagues from around the world are encouraged to apply for the Award-2011.

9th IFLA International Marketing Award

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 14:30:00 +0000

Apply for the 2011 IFLA International Marketing Award

The IFLA Section on Management and Marketing in collaboration with Emerald has the pleasure to announce the IFLA International Marketing Award for 2011.

The IFLA International Marketing Award will honor organizations that have implemented creative, results-oriented marketing projects or campaigns. Three finalists will be recognized for their outstanding achievements. A first place winner will be chosen and two distinctions will be awarded. From these three finalists, the winner will be chosen and receive airfare, lodging and registration for the World Library and Information Congress: 77th IFLA General Conference and Council in San Juan, Puerto Rico in August 2011, as well as a cash award of USD 1,000 which must be used to further the marketing efforts of the recognized organization.

Three finalists will be announced in March 2011. A first place winner will be chosen and two distinctions will be awarded. The winner will be announced officially during the Press Conference of the Congress in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Objectives of the Award

* Reward the best library marketing project worldwide each year
* Encourage marketing in libraries
* Give libraries the opportunity to share marketing experiences

Guidelines, application material and previous winners can be found at the web page of the IFLA Management and Marketing Section

The Hub: business model of the future for books and libraries?

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 03:03:00 +0000

An interesting story has been published at: www.teleread.com about whether libraries need to expand horizon as information provider It says:
And how about the library? Is that in jeopardy in this growing digital age? Maybe, if you see is as is merely a repository for books, and if the librarian’s job is simply to put books back where they belong. But how about if you view the library as the ‘hub for all things information’?

Our local library system spends a lot of time helping newcomers to the community—they have kits to help people learn English, they run classes on how to find a job and use a computer, and they have an extensive directory of community organizations they can refer people to for various issues. In this age of information overload, there is a place for a hub like this!

They also work a lot with students of all ages, teaching them how to research, how to read and explore. It’s not just about going to Wikipedia and copying down what you find, it’s about learning how to find the right resources for the project at hand. Sometimes, that will be a paper resource—I got valuable aid from a librarian when I was researching a project for a course I took, and kept finding references to a seminal article on the topic that dated back to the 1970s. I wanted to track down the original article, and my local reference librarian had a grand old time helping me with my good old-fashioned search.

And sometimes what you need will increasingly be an electronic resource. But consider this: there are a million free books on Google Books alone! Most sites like that are great if you know exactly what you’re looking for, but they are not so great for the casual browser. There is still a need, just like in the old days of paper-only, for an educated cross-referencer who can say to the book lover ‘here are some other books you might enjoy.’

As my local library branch undergoes a renovation—this is the third time a local branch has closed down for a year as soon as I move close to it—I would like to offer a humble suggestion. Thing big a little. Could you put in a garden with some outdoor reading space? Maybe a vending machine, or humble little coffee bar? Could you leverage the free wifi and comfortable hanging-out space into something that would truly be a community destination? Think big, because you are no longer merely a repository for books. You are a vital ‘hub’ for all things ‘information.’

Read the complete story

Brand yourself as Librarian

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 09:03:00 +0000

Two articles on Library Marketing

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 11:40:00 +0000

Marketing strategies for visibility by Linda Ashcroft appears in the Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Vol. 42, No. 2, 89-96 (2010), abstract given below:

Any organization must build a good reputation and image in order to ‘anchor’ its relevance and indispensability in the minds of a wide variety of audiences. Many commercial organizations maximize opportunities to raise favourable awareness about what they do – and their techniques and approaches can be applied to libraries. Examples from organizations such as supermarkets, charities and tourism demonstrate how they have taken an opportunity to draw national and international media attention and to promote themselves favourably to a wide audience. Techniques demonstrating the significance of the right timing, the importance of having the right resources in place and using the right means of communication to reach the various audiences involved relate in the same way to libraries as to other organizations. Sponsorship is now big business, going beyond the commercial sector as some libraries are now negotiating effective sponsorship deals and attracting favourable media coverage in doing so. Ongoing evaluation informs marketing techniques to build on success and maximize publicity.

Another article Narrative-based library marketing: Selling your library's value during tough economic times appears in the Emerald's Journal:The Bottom Line: Managing Library Finances, 2010, 23(1),5 - 17.

You can learn a lot from your customers

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Mon, 31 May 2010 12:16:00 +0000

An interesting post 'You can learn a lot from your customers', on the blog: The Marketing Blog . Though it is in relation with a company fits into our domain. It urges that Getting feedback from your customers is easy to do and takes very little time - it's an essential part of marketing.

Everyone knows that you can learn a lot from customers. But how many people actually reach out to them and ask for their opinion? A company that I recently consulted for reaches out to hundreds of customers daily but never asks them what they think of their products, services customer service agents, or service. Getting feedback from your customers is easy to do and takes very little time - it's an essential part of marketing.

Using surveys to ask about customer satisfaction or to generate ideas for your business is essential. What most companies don't realize is that collecting customer feedback is easy to do with the right tools and well defined goals. Collecting information should be part of every business.Each touch you have with a customer is an opportunity to collect information.

Whether you are a retail business or run your business online, collecting information can be as simple as asking. I've seen a variety of techniques that are effective for surveying customers and gathering information. Here are just a few:

1. Use SurveyMonkey or another online survey solution. These are inexpensive and esy to design. Use posting options to send links via email or post online.

2. Print survey cards that can be included with an order. If you are selling physical products, whether shipping or checking out at the counter, be sure to include a paper survey card.

3. Print information about your survey on a customer receipt. When you hand over a receipt or send via email, let your customers know about your survey and how they can provide feedback.

4. Offer an incentive. If you can offer a free product or discount for those who complete your survey, you can dramatically improve response rates. Find low cost options that provide value to your customers.

5. Create a contest. Establishing a contest around that encourages customers to send you there feedback can be an exciting way to gather information. Video contests, testimonial submissions, and user videos can give you new ideas and information that enhance your business.

These methods are great for collecting information. The key is to consider what information is vital to your business? What type of information for customers can improve your service, sales, and marketing? Take time to ask the right questions and the results can be of tremendous value.

I find that surveys that take less than 5 minutes to do are completed more often than longer surveys - unless their is an incentive. Depending on the size of the incentive, individuals are usually willing to complete surveys of different length. Experiment with survey format and length to improve response rates.

Make surveys an essential part of your overall marketing program. Use surveys to evaluate your business and collect vital information. Also use the touch to collect customer testimonials that you can publish online and off. Customers are always your greatest asset!

Books in home as important as parents' education in determining children's education level

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Fri, 21 May 2010 15:57:00 +0000

Whether rich or poor, residents of the United States or China, illiterate or college graduates, parents who have books in the home increase the level of education their children will attain, according to a 20-year study led by Mariah Evans, University of Nevada, Reno associate professor of sociology and resource economics.

For years, educators have thought the strongest predictor of attaining high levels of education was having parents who were highly educated. But, strikingly, this massive study showed that the difference between being raised in a bookless home compared to being raised in a home with a 500-book library has as great an effect on the level of education a child will attain as having parents who are barely literate (3 years of education) compared to having parents who have a university education (15 or 16 years of education). Both factors, having a 500-book library or having university-educated parents, propel a child 3.2 years further in education, on average.

Being a sociologist, Evans was particularly interested to find that children of lesser-educated parents benefit the most from having books in the home. She has been looking for ways to help Nevada's rural communities, in terms of economic development and education.

"What kinds of investments should we be making to help these kids get ahead?" she asked. "The results of this study indicate that getting some books into their homes is an inexpensive way that we can help these children succeed."

Evans said, "Even a little bit goes a long way," in terms of the number of books in a home. Having as few as 20 books in the home still has a significant impact on propelling a child to a higher level of education, and the more books you add, the greater the benefit.

"You get a lot of 'bang for your book'," she said. "It's quite a good return-on-investment in a time of scarce resources."

Read full report

Make friends with books

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 18 May 2010 16:44:00 +0000

From The Hindu

For a long time they were the most trusted friends of children. Sitting quietly on the corner of a study table they weaved many a tale like none else could whenever asked to.

Then, came the computers, video games and the play station. But, books, those printed words running into pages unfolding worlds of history, myths, epics and much more, never really lost their tryst with young minds as they wooed them back time and again whenever naysayers predicted the death of reading.

With the sun blazing away, baking the city like never before effectively ruling out outdoor games for the good part of the day, children have rediscovered their time tested friendship with books this summer.

Read full story

Don't judge a library by its cover

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Mon, 10 May 2010 17:31:00 +0000

An interesting story appears about a school library in Juneau Empire

...It is obvious that for many Gastineau students, the library is at the heart of their school universe, critical to their success at learning and a place where they feel good about themselves. Unlike some libraries this one is not a dry and quiet room where the ruffling of pages is the loudest noise - the library at Gastineau is alive. It inspires.

Kids love going there and always feel welcome - as do parents - to read, discuss books, attend social events, and take part in schoolwide events. The school librarian has created this special place.

The spelling bee finals, the "Battle of the Books," potlucks for teachers and parents - these are only a few of the successful events hosted at the library. I was at the "Battle of the Books," an event run by the school librarian, and saw parents and teachers and a librarian moved to tears by the efforts and the successes of the kids involved. Some team members were struggling readers, but you could see the pride of accomplishment on their faces and hear it in their voices when they gave a correct answer during the contest. It was unforgettable.

Reading might be the most important academic skill for kids to acquire early. The librarian at Gastineau puts in all kinds of time and effort to get to know each kid, encourage them daily, consult with parents and provide opportunities for reading success. She is not a mere "shusher" and book-shelver, but an inspired professional, a tireless advocate, and, for students, an ally and teacher.

I understand the library program is being cut in half at Gastineau, and I hope that decision is reversed. Cicero, an ancient Roman from whom we could still learn a thing or two, said, "If you have a garden and a library you have everything you need."

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Ranganathan’s Philosophy and Marketing

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Tue, 04 May 2010 01:01:00 +0000

May-June issue of MLS Newsletter is out recently. It covers cover story on 'SLA Alignment’s Five Steps for Rebranding and Communicating Change'; special report 'Useful Fundraising and Marketing Offerings at PLA in Portland' and of course my short write up on continuing Christie Koontz's column customer-based marketing 'Ranganathan's philosophy and marketing'.It has other items of your interest as well.

In the column, I have emphasised that customer is central point to both the philosophies of S.R. Ranganathan and to marketing. Ranganathan’s user-centric approach, which is humanistic, has a strong emphasis on marketing. Realize, the library service is only as competent, helpful, accessible, knowledgeable, courteous, friendly, and reliable as the person who represents it. Such attributes in a librarian are in no matter different from the attributes of a successful marketer.

The Magic of the Library (Guest Post)

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 14:51:00 +0000

The University of Bergen Library wanted to make a broad audiovisual presentation of the library to provide an interesting, exciting and fun review of the library collections, resources and departments. The film was to be a pilot to get experience with the production and impact of film as a tool in library marketing. Ole Gunnar Evensen(Ole.Evensen@ub.uib.no) and Svein-Arne Selvik write about the video in detail :

We started with a clean slate and our goal was to create something new and different. The film was not first and foremost intended to show where the library is or how to borrow books/ search the databases but was meant to convey the fantastic opportunities the library offers by presenting it as an exciting, inspiring and cool place. The film was also meant to challenge prejudices about libraries in general.

The general impression was that knowledge of the University Library and the broad range of resources we offer was not good enough. In particular, the various options other than books and electronic resource, such as the special collections, photo collections, and our many departments were not well known. We simply wanted to increase the public’s desire to use the library. The target group was the university’s patrons but with a special focus on new students.

The ambition of the project was that production should have professional quality. Subsequently there is a great emphasis on dramaturgy and narrative technique. Obviously high ambitions and low budgets are difficult to combine, so this called for creative thinking. We initiated collaboration internally at the University with the Department of Information Science and Media Studies. As a result of this the recent (June 2009) graduates from the course in movie and television production, Jade Hærem Aksnes and Stian Hafstad, were hired for a summer job to make the movie. Technical equipment for filming and editing was put at our disposal free of charge from the department. With their youthful enthusiasm, talent and creativity, the two students did a fabulous job. The students were supervised by Svein-Arne Selvik who functioned as the producer. Mr Selvik is employed at the library's Acquisitions Department, but has a background in TV production. As the production budget did not cover for actors, one had to rely on the library’s own employees to step in front of the camera, and Acquisitions manager Ole G. Evensen was assigned the part of the film’s recurrent character.

The primary target group for the film is students and the film was posted on our website (link) and used in training and information seminars. We wanted the students to gain a better understanding of the vast collection of resources the library can offer. We also wanted to highlight the potential of the library as a meeting place.

In addition to its primary role as a university library, our library is also open to the wider community. We wanted to reach out to the public and used distribution channels such as You Tube, and social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

As we quickly received many positive comments on the movie and high ratings, we decided to make a dubbed English version of the film to reach a wider public. The version Youtube.com has subtitles that can be auto translated into many languages.

Our experience is that this information film project really has paid off in many respects. The film has created greater awareness of the library in the academic society as well as among the students. The librarians use the film to kick off training sessions, and we experience that more than 6 months after the release of the film the number of views at Youtube is still increasing.

ENGLISH DUBBED VERSION http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wytQ3pudf5k&feature=related

The Norwegian media has noticed the film, and there have been numerous postings about it, including on the websites of Norway's two largest TV stations.

It is a great honour for us to be awarded the third runner up place for the IFLA International Marketing Award 2010. Indeed, this has inspired us to further promote our library so that as many people as possible will get to experience the importance and usefulness of the library. The follow up of the first general library information film will be a film specially aimed at new students and focusing on the risky business of cheating and plagiarism. We are planning to release the new film at the end of May.

Future of Marketing

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 02:09:00 +0000

An interesting video

Story Tubes: Connecting Kids (Guest Post)

noreply@blogger.com (Dinesh K. Gupta) — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 08:57:00 +0000

StoryTubes, the two-minute or shorter “my favorite book” video project, offers to dynamically increase interest in reading by connecting kids to other kids about books. Kids and their favorite books star in their own self-made videos for fun and prizes. It strengthens and establishes new relationships with technology and libraries.

[Denise Raleigh is the Director of Marketing, Development & Communications at Gail Borden Public Library District, 270 North Grove, Elgin IL 60120. Her e-mail address is: draleigh@gmail.com]

The project is for young people, ages kindergarten through high school.

The goal is energize kids’ interest in reading. The project attracts young people to an extremely creative and fun technology- based project that ultimately connects them to each other about books. It uses kids’ interest in media to fuel a core activity-- reading. StoryTubes is futuristic and inspires creativity, literacy and technological experimentation.

StoryTubes started in 2007 at Gail Borden Public Library so that local kids could use technology to talk about stories. Kids were thrilled to be the stars of their own movies and have a chance to win prizes. With their parents' permission, they filmed themselves talking about their favorite books and uploaded the videos to YouTube. Several thousand people viewed the videos at http://www.storytubes.info and voted for favorites. Online votes came in from all around the world. In 2008, kids from all over the U.S. spoke passionately about their favorite books as partner libraries from across the contiguous United States came aboard. In 2009, there were over 400 entrants including entries from Canada and Alaska. Googling “StoryTubes” returns over 27,000 links.

The contest prizes include books provided by publishers such as Simon & Schuster, Scholastic, DK, Charlesbridge Publishing, Harper Collins and Little Brown as well as cameras provided by Sony. The chance to win one of these prizes added excitement to the competition.

In its second year, StoryTubes expanded into new territory with the addition of Alaska and Canadian partners, Juneau Public Libraries and Annapolis Valley Regional Library in Bridgetown, Nova Scotia. Other partners that helped make StoryTubes 2009 a success were Buffalo and Erie County Public Library of Buffalo, NY; Middle Country Public Library of Centereach, NY; The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County/ImaginOn, Charlotte, NC; Washington-Centerville Public Library of Centerville, OH; Gail Borden Public Library of Elgin, IL; and Harris County Public Library of Houston, TX.

Currently, the marketing has been of a low cost effective campaign using both virtual and in- person channels.

Eblasts are sent to
• bloggers all over North America
• state and province library associations
• school associations
• library associations – please see educators’ testimonials at http://www.storytubes.info/
• Children’s Book Council

Viral voting determines some of the winners of the smaller prizes. This component creates local and Internet buzz. One teacher described the scene in her hometown as, "...people were stopping in grocery stores to ask each other if they had voted for Jared that day." During May of 2008, the StoryTubes web site averaged 1,037 pages per day and 1,301 hits per hour. The StoryTubes web site pages were viewed over 150,000 times during the contest. .

We Plan to Create a Legacy - An organically growing database of creative book recommendations will allow the children of today’s youth to watch their parents. StoryTubes will create a creative literary legacy for tomorrow.

Costs – The beauty of this project is its minimal cost for entrants. The video can be filmed by phone, digital camera, webcam or video camera. There are many free videoing editing programs such as Windows Movie Maker and Apple’s iMovie. Libraries are the perfect partners for this project due to their role as providers of technology access. Both YouTube and TeacherTube are free video hosts. Time and creativity are the major costs. The StoryTubes web site has video “How tos” such as the one below at http://www.storytubes.info/categories/what_is_storytubes.html

Distribution is worldwide wherever there is an internet connection whether by phone, gaming device or computer.

By kids, for kids, it is all about connecting them to stories. Visit www.storytubes.info now as the contest is in full swing and watch kids in 2010 express their passion for books to others worldwide.