Marketing Ideas for Special Libraries

In a previous post, I interviewed Dr. Rajesh Singh about marketing in libraries. One of his primary points is that we are all marketers. All librarians are in the business of marketing the library’s services and resources to our communities. 

As I reread my interview with him I thought it might be helpful to put together a list of ideas for how special librarians can market their library. 

1. Add library information into new hire packets at your organization.
2. Present at new hire/student orientations. 
3. Keep your website up-to-date.
4. Highlight new resources on the website. 
5. Remind stakeholders about services and resources at point of need. In other words, think about a typical schedule for your stakeholders. Are there certain events that occur each year where they may need library services or resources? Are reports due at a certain time each year? Send a reminder via email about how the library can help with those events. 
6. Make sure your stakeholders know who you are. Attend events where you can meet others. 
7. Be clear about how the library can help stakeholders. For example, highlight how the library can:

8. Use communication tools used by stakeholders. For example, consider having a Slack channel if Slack is used at your organization. Be willing to adjust to communication channels as needed. 
9. Stay current with what your stakeholders need. This can be done through focus groups or surveys. 
10. Ask to give a brief presentation at institution-wide meetings or department meetings. 

There are many other ideas that could be included on this list, but hopefully these can get you started. 

As you are thinking about marketing, you may also want to revisit a previous article posted by Lucidea about the benefits of marketing for special libraries. Knowing the benefits of marketing can serve as encouragement as you undertake the process.