NARRATIVE
Librarians must be more than cultural stewards of the community - we must also advocate on the community’s behalf to obtain the funding we need to sustain collections and community programming. This advocacy often takes the form of written appeals to government officials, but it can also involve speaking on behalf of library patrons at city council meetings and marching in support of library-related causes.
Just as important as advocacy is marketing, or the well-coordinated series of activities that librarians engage in to determine community characteristics and needs and to spread the word about library services. Effective marketing requires that we forge strong connections with community members while showing them how library offerings can improve the quality of their lives. All librarians do this to some degree when they post messages on social media, send out promotional flyers, make book face outs, and talk to patrons about upcoming library events. The best librarians know they cannot do it all on their own. They work with community partners who can spread the library's marketing messages to audiences whom the library might not otherwise reach.
Communication is the essential skill underlying advocacy, marketing, and every other aspect of librarianship. A librarian who can communicate well and who understands other people's communication styles can interact confidently with diverse community members and motivate people with divergent points of view to collaborate on shared goals. The ability to work with others to craft a community vision and think through the steps required to achieve that vision is, in my opinion, the essence of entrepreneurial leadership.
While studying at UNCG I learned advocacy strategies, marketing principles, and communication skills that will be useful in various library-related situations. The knowledge I gained has made me a stronger communicator and a more capable community advocate. I will draw on this knowledge during my future interactions with public library stakeholders and apply it when I am working to secure funding for services to marginalized and underserved communities.
Advocacy
During my time in the program, several professors stressed the importance of library advocacy. One of the most passionate promoters of advocacy was UNCG Professor Dr. Anthony Chow. Dr. Chow keeps MLIS students abreast of legislative matters pertaining to libraries and lets them know when major advocacy campaigns are underway. Because of Dr. Chow's communications, I was inspired to write letters to NC congressional representatives protesting cuts to Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) funding.
Librarians must be more than cultural stewards of the community - we must also advocate on the community’s behalf to obtain the funding we need to sustain collections and community programming. This advocacy often takes the form of written appeals to government officials, but it can also involve speaking on behalf of library patrons at city council meetings and marching in support of library-related causes.
Just as important as advocacy is marketing, or the well-coordinated series of activities that librarians engage in to determine community characteristics and needs and to spread the word about library services. Effective marketing requires that we forge strong connections with community members while showing them how library offerings can improve the quality of their lives. All librarians do this to some degree when they post messages on social media, send out promotional flyers, make book face outs, and talk to patrons about upcoming library events. The best librarians know they cannot do it all on their own. They work with community partners who can spread the library's marketing messages to audiences whom the library might not otherwise reach.
Communication is the essential skill underlying advocacy, marketing, and every other aspect of librarianship. A librarian who can communicate well and who understands other people's communication styles can interact confidently with diverse community members and motivate people with divergent points of view to collaborate on shared goals. The ability to work with others to craft a community vision and think through the steps required to achieve that vision is, in my opinion, the essence of entrepreneurial leadership.
While studying at UNCG I learned advocacy strategies, marketing principles, and communication skills that will be useful in various library-related situations. The knowledge I gained has made me a stronger communicator and a more capable community advocate. I will draw on this knowledge during my future interactions with public library stakeholders and apply it when I am working to secure funding for services to marginalized and underserved communities.
Advocacy
During my time in the program, several professors stressed the importance of library advocacy. One of the most passionate promoters of advocacy was UNCG Professor Dr. Anthony Chow. Dr. Chow keeps MLIS students abreast of legislative matters pertaining to libraries and lets them know when major advocacy campaigns are underway. Because of Dr. Chow's communications, I was inspired to write letters to NC congressional representatives protesting cuts to Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) funding.
In my correspondence I wrote about my own experiences growing up in a marginalized community and the impact that the public library had on my life. I later contacted the same congressional representatives to express my support for net neutrality, another important advocacy area mentioned by Dr. Chow, as well as by other MLIS professors. It was empowering to know that, even as a student, I could make a meaningful contribution to a national library advocacy campaign. Moving forward, I will continue to advocate on behalf of all library users, in particular those in marginalized and underserved communities.
Marketing
In Dr. Michael Crumpton's Foundations of Library and Information Studies class, we read about marketing activities that take place in libraries. Among the most critical are "research," "promotion," and "evaluation" (Koontz, p. 262). Market research, which involves learning about the needs and characteristics of the library's current and potential users (Koontz, p. 263), often takes the form of needs assessment. This type of assessment helps librarians determine how best to develop the library collections and programming to meet the community's needs. I had the chance to participate in a needs assessment while taking Dr. Kevin Washburn's collection development and management class. As part of a team of four other classmates, I reviewed demographic and library collections data to determine how a rural library's offerings could be improved. Together we created a profile of the community and a list of long-term collection goals. This challenging and rewarding assignment helped me understand the behind-the-scenes legwork underlying a library's collection development strategy. A subsequent assignment, which required my teammates and me to create a marketing campaign for the collection, gave me experience with using research to inform marketing promotion efforts.
Marketing
In Dr. Michael Crumpton's Foundations of Library and Information Studies class, we read about marketing activities that take place in libraries. Among the most critical are "research," "promotion," and "evaluation" (Koontz, p. 262). Market research, which involves learning about the needs and characteristics of the library's current and potential users (Koontz, p. 263), often takes the form of needs assessment. This type of assessment helps librarians determine how best to develop the library collections and programming to meet the community's needs. I had the chance to participate in a needs assessment while taking Dr. Kevin Washburn's collection development and management class. As part of a team of four other classmates, I reviewed demographic and library collections data to determine how a rural library's offerings could be improved. Together we created a profile of the community and a list of long-term collection goals. This challenging and rewarding assignment helped me understand the behind-the-scenes legwork underlying a library's collection development strategy. A subsequent assignment, which required my teammates and me to create a marketing campaign for the collection, gave me experience with using research to inform marketing promotion efforts.
Another experience I had with the promotional side of library marketing was when I created a "mock" public service announcement (PSA) for Professor Daniel Martin's media production services class. Aware of the numerous structural inequities impacting minority academic achievement, I developed a video targeted toward African American teenage males. The short video features an adult African American male talking about his personal experiences with the library and why libraries are important in a democratic society. Since completing that video project, I have practiced promotional skills by using my blog to promote National Poetry Month and online projects created by librarians of color.
The Foundations class was also the one in which we discussed the value of both quantitative (e.g. survey) and qualitative (e.g. focus group) evaluation methods. Most of my professional evaluation experiences thus far have been as a survey creator in the higher education environment; however, as a student, I have evaluated my library student blog statistics to determine what attracts blog readers to certain posts. In the years to come, I will apply the survey skills and evaluative strategies I have learned when doing assessments of my outreach work.
Communication
Having worked as a communications specialist for a large university prior to beginning the MLIS degree, I am well aware that communication impacts every aspect of an organization's functioning. Among the many communications I created as an MLIS student were discussion board posts, presentations, videos, reflective essays, executive summaries, websites, infographics, and research papers. Doing this work has prepared me to interact with library staff, users, board members, and community partners.
While communication as a key librarianship competency was stressed in all of my MLIS classes, the topic was especially central to the discussions we had in Dr. Richard Moniz’s library and administration management class. In Dr. Moniz’s class we explored workplace communication challenges by reviewing human resource case studies and discussing how employees might interact with each other in various scenarios. We also discussed the effect of nonverbal communication on workplace relations and the importance of encouraging staff input in strategic planning discussions.
My final assignment for Dr. Moniz’s class was a research paper titled “Fundamentals of Communicating With and Through Public Library Boards.” I chose the topic of public library boards partly because of my interest in working for a public library upon graduation. I interviewed two library directors in different regions of the United States. They discussed their relationships with their boards of trustees and stressed the importance of educating board members about the role of the library board. These conversations, as well as my own research into library boards and communication theory, greatly improved my understanding of public library politics and administration. This understanding will be vital in my future work with board members and government officials.
The Foundations class was also the one in which we discussed the value of both quantitative (e.g. survey) and qualitative (e.g. focus group) evaluation methods. Most of my professional evaluation experiences thus far have been as a survey creator in the higher education environment; however, as a student, I have evaluated my library student blog statistics to determine what attracts blog readers to certain posts. In the years to come, I will apply the survey skills and evaluative strategies I have learned when doing assessments of my outreach work.
Communication
Having worked as a communications specialist for a large university prior to beginning the MLIS degree, I am well aware that communication impacts every aspect of an organization's functioning. Among the many communications I created as an MLIS student were discussion board posts, presentations, videos, reflective essays, executive summaries, websites, infographics, and research papers. Doing this work has prepared me to interact with library staff, users, board members, and community partners.
While communication as a key librarianship competency was stressed in all of my MLIS classes, the topic was especially central to the discussions we had in Dr. Richard Moniz’s library and administration management class. In Dr. Moniz’s class we explored workplace communication challenges by reviewing human resource case studies and discussing how employees might interact with each other in various scenarios. We also discussed the effect of nonverbal communication on workplace relations and the importance of encouraging staff input in strategic planning discussions.
My final assignment for Dr. Moniz’s class was a research paper titled “Fundamentals of Communicating With and Through Public Library Boards.” I chose the topic of public library boards partly because of my interest in working for a public library upon graduation. I interviewed two library directors in different regions of the United States. They discussed their relationships with their boards of trustees and stressed the importance of educating board members about the role of the library board. These conversations, as well as my own research into library boards and communication theory, greatly improved my understanding of public library politics and administration. This understanding will be vital in my future work with board members and government officials.
LEARNING ARTIFACTS
1. Advocacy Letters
2. Marketing Goals and Promotional Flyers
3. Public Service Announcement (Video Project Reflection)
4. Research Paper on Library Board Communication (Summary)
1. Advocacy Letters
2. Marketing Goals and Promotional Flyers
3. Public Service Announcement (Video Project Reflection)
4. Research Paper on Library Board Communication (Summary)
Reference
Koontz, C. (2015). Managing communication, marketing, and outreach. In S. Hirsh (Ed.), Information services today (325-333). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Koontz, C. (2015). Managing communication, marketing, and outreach. In S. Hirsh (Ed.), Information services today (325-333). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.