ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

It’s not just academic @ your library: The Campaign for America’s Libraries Academic and Research Library Campaign

by Helen H. Spalding

About the author

Helen H. Spalding is president of ACRL and associate director of libraries at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, e-mail: spaldingh@umkc.edu

“T sn’t it true students don’t use college libraries anymore?” “Why should I use the library when I can log on to the ’Net from my dorm room?” “Why do we need librarians?”

Chances are that if you haven’t been asked one of these questions lately, you may be sometime soon. Will you be prepared to answer them?

The reality is that in today’s complex information environment we have a greater responsibility to communicate the resources and expertise our libraries and librarians provide, both on our campuses and in society. The “if you build it, they will come” mentality no longer applies to academic and research libraries, nor libraries in general for that matter.

The advent of new technology, the increased use of Web-based technologies, and the success of bookstores such as Borders, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon.com are generating new perceptions about our role in the mind of the public and offering us new opportunities to improve and publicize our services. Libraries are reexamining how they do their business, how they serve their users, and how they can ensure their continued vitality in an ever-changing information age. In our case, students, faculty, researchers, and others are using our libraries in new and different ways. We need to see these changes as opportunities to re-educate our key constituencies of the value of our libraries and our -librarians to our campuses and our communities.

A new strategy

So how can academic and research libraries break through the information clutter and get

out the message about the unique story they have to tell? By embracing the concept of public relations and marketing as an integral part of the strategic planning process.

As part of @ your library, the Campaign for America’s Libraries, ACRL and the ALA have partnered to bring you a new, national marketing effort. Through this Academic and Research Library Campaign, we have a special opportunity to heighten awareness and support of academic and research libraries and to attract more quality candidates to our profession. The campaign will be officially announced during ACRL’s 11th National Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina, April 10-13, which is also National Library Week.

Members of an ACRL @ your library task force helped to shape this effort, as did some 40 academic and research librarians who participated in a strategic planning and marketing retreat this fall hosted by 3M Library Systems, a founding partner of the Campaign for America’s Libraries. Participants discussed key issues concerning library marketing and publicity, including how to identify key users or “customers,” how to develop appropriate messages, what vehicles of communication should be used to promote academic and research libraries, and how to prepare long-term marketing plans.

The goals of the Academic and Research Library Campaign are to:

• promote awareness of the unique role of your academic or research library and its contributions;

• increase visibility and support for your library and librarians;

• better market your services on-site and online;

• present academic and research librarianship as a desirable career choice, and

• foster a greater connection with other types of libraries.

The campaign will target undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, researchers, administrators, and staff as primary audiences. Secondary audiences to be addressed include alumni, individual donors, institutional funders, trustees, policymakers, parents, the general community, and media.

As part of the campaign, a new toolkit has been developed that includes creative strategies, practical ideas, case studies and profiles, customizable press materials, resource lists, and more. The toolkit will be distributed to each attendee at the ACRL National Conference. I encourage you to review it, share it with your colleagues back home, and adapt the materials for your own library. There also will be a new Web site with a copy of the toolkit, additional resources, and downloadable graphics at http://www.ala.0rg/@y0urlibrary and at http:// www.ala.org/acrl.

Of course, we hope you will share your best practices in marketing and public relations and your involvement with the @ your library campaign with ALA and ACRL. To facilitate the discussion, we have set up a new electronic list called ACADEMICPR to which we hope you will subscribe. You also can send your good ideas directly to the campaign via e-mail to atyourlibrary@ala.org.

How else can you get involved?

On Thursday, April 10, the ACRL @ your library task force is sponsoring a full-day preconference entitled, “Strategic Marketing for Academic and Research Libraries: Train The Trainer.” The preconference is designed specifically to help academic and research librarians train their colleagues to develop effective marketing plans for their libraries using the tools developed for this new campaign. Interested librarians can register on the ACRL Web site at http://www.ala.org/acrl/charlotte/ registratior/registration.html. Attendance is on a first-come, first-served basis.

There also will be a free mini-workshop in Toronto during the ALA Annual Conference, sponsored by ACRL and the ALA Public Awareness Committee, called “Survival in Academe: Marketing @ your library,” which will give a brief overview of the new campaign and showcase the tools and resources available to help you promote your library. Look for more details coming soon in C&RL News and American Librαries.

Many of us in academic and research libraries thought we would never have to do it—“it” being marketing and public relations. But the time has come. The work we do is central not only to higher education and to research, but also to the collection and preservation of our nation’s literary, cultural, and historical heritage. Increasing our visibility and better communicating the value of academic and research librarians and libraries will benefit all who depend upon these services. I also believe it will foster a sense of pride among our members and the greater academic and research library community for the important work we do every day.

This campaign is for you. Ultimately, you are the best advocates your users have for demonstrating and communicating the importance of the collections and services you deliver to support learning, teaching, research, and quality of life.

So join us for the first-ever Academic and Research Library Campaign and come see what’s new @ your library. ■