Friday, March 23, 2012

Steal These Ideas: 11 Free Marketing Strategies to Try Today

Lindsay Sarin, Andrea Snyder and Julie Strange
  • all from Maryland
  • Julie blogs at strangelibrarian.com
  • marketing is something we all do: not big and scary
  • #STIMcil
  • marketing is about how you want to present yourself
  • need to build your marketing strategy from the ground up (need a good foundation, like a house)
  • know where you stand: assess
  • start with your staff: have an honest conversation and listen
  • look at your numbers...need to know starting point
  • ask the user
  • i am not my users: i am an information professional...remember the peeps don't think like us
  • focus groups are great: but have a third-party moderator
  • sometimes the truth hurts
  • find out what you need to assess
  • create a blueprint: with clear goals
  • clear the decks
  • be aware of how many messages you are putting out at once
  • too many bookmarks are not good!!!
  • ditto w posters
  • choose the essential and eliminate everything else
  • examine the things you like from others' and figure out the elements of their success. replicate
  • create your message: what do you want to convey?
  • keep the message simple: eg EPL: Spread the words.
  • good idea to generate slogan ideas: tweet your lib peeps
  • have an idea with staff: get prizes and treats for my MGS brainstorm session: also everyone put 20 ideas on postits and stick them on the wall...make it fun and make it happen
  • collect ideas from outside the lib world: get outside the bubble
  • right person, right place, right time
  • need to keep your current customers happy: word of mouth is fab
  • reduce pain-causing stuff: work like a patron...pay attention to how people are using your space, resources etc.
  • ask patrons what bugs them about your space / materials / virtual services
  • listen, pay attention and fix it
  • use your library like a customer and pay attention to little things you can change to make a big difference
  • renovate when necessary
  • be brave
  • "get carded" campaign with giant lib card and local celebs: new pic released each week
  • did during lib week/month
  • good idea! share with ppp
  • stuffed animals sleepover: evening story time, bring your stuffie, stuffie sleeps over, staff takes pics of what stuffies do at night (Teddy Bears photocopied their bear bottoms!) Picked up next day.
  • ideas:
  • ask patrons to take pix of their lib books on vacation with them
  • flat stanley + lib card
  • brain storming is fab :)
  • give people something to do
  • phrase things in active language "Like us on FB"
  • tell peeps why your stuff is applicable to them (...this is why you need MGS...)
  • *review this pre-mgs brain storming session!*
  • immerse yourself in something outside your comfort zone and pay attention while you're there
  • get into the community: shameless library promotion
  • be a real person, not a building
  • create elevator speeches
  • keep your librarian brain on at all times
  • ifttt.com
  • like hootsuite...check it out...can link w google calendar
  • assess the results
  • debrief after everything: talk to staff and patrons about what worked and what didn't...and learn from that (schedule to do re mgs tag line...six months?...a year?...also wrt ebook help + iHelp and any other initiatives)
  • tool kit: decide what you want in your tool kit and build it (ideas etc...)
  • stealtheseideasmarketing.tumblr.com
  • tips and todos and slides, also resource list: check it out!
  • also area to submit your own ideas!!! Fab!

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