Communicating the value of special libraries requires ongoing effort, especially as technology evolves, workflows shift, and budgets tighten. As information professionals, we’re often called on to justify our work and explain how our efforts advance organizational goals.
Below are my ideas for how to share your library’s value through data, context, and storytelling to make its contributions visible and meaningful.
Use Data to Tell a Compelling Story
My previous posts on quantitative and qualitative data can be good places to start with telling the story of your library. Collect data and then tell a story around what that data reveals.
Ask yourself: What does the data tell others about what you accomplish in the library, who it helps, and how it supports the mission of your organization?
The numbers alone—circulation statistics, reference questions answered, or database usage metrics—are merely the foundation. The real value lies in weaving these statistics into a compelling story that demonstrates the benefits the library brings to the organization.
Balance Quantitative and Qualitative Evidence
Effective value demonstration requires using both qualitative and quantitative data. Quantitative data provides concrete evidence—track cost per search, time saved per consultation, or percentage improvement in research efficiency.
However, qualitative data often tells the most compelling stories. Consider collecting testimonials about decisions made possible by library research. You may also want to document how information services prevented costly errors, or highlight instances where library expertise accelerated important projects.
Align Your Story with Organizational Goals
When we align the data we collect with contextual information needed to explain how the library supports the organization’s mission, we underscore the library’s value. This alignment creates a direct connection between library services and organizational goals.
For example, if your organization prioritizes innovation, demonstrate how library research accelerates growth. If compliance is critical, show how your information management reduces regulatory risks and potential penalties.
Consider ROI (Even If It Seems Hard to Measure)
Return on investment (ROI) is often discussed in the business world, but it can be challenging to measure in libraries because they are not directly revenue generating. However, libraries can still demonstrate ROI by focusing on cost avoidance, time savings, and productivity.
Consider calculating the value of preventing duplicate research, reducing time spent searching for information, or avoiding costly mistakes through providing accurate and timely information.
Position the Library as a Strategic Partner
In special libraries, having a clearly defined user group and an organization with clear needs can make demonstrating the library’s value more incisive than in other libraries. It is useful to think about your library as a strategic partner, rather than simply a service provider.
Explain how your users leverage the library as a partner. To demonstrate value, highlight where the library collaborates with users to achieve goals and results.
Emphasize the Library’s Role in Knowledge Management
Finally, consider the strategic value of your library’s knowledge management role. When employees leave, they take their knowledge with them, but the library remains. Special librarians help maintain critical organizational knowledge that would otherwise walk out the door.
This contribution is tough to quantify, but for organizations that have invested heavily in building their intellectual capital, the continuity the library provides is invaluable.
Tell Your Story Consistently and Proactively
The key to demonstrating the value of your special library is consistent, proactive storytelling that speaks the language of your stakeholders. Connect your outcomes to organizational priorities, and tell stories that make your impact more tangible and visible.
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