An ALA Continuing Education and SJSU iSchool Advanced eCourse
It’s time to move on to a new way of doing library marketing. “If we have it, they will come” is old-school thinking. Whether it be public, academic, school, or other type of information center, librarians must possess the skills needed to showcase our collections and services for current and new communities.
This course will provide a thorough, modern, and comprehensive approach to marketing that is applicable both for those with marketing experience and those new to these responsibilities. Mary Evangeliste and Sue Alman, instructors at the SJSU iSchool, will not only take you through the fundamentals of marketing, public relations, and outreach, but will also show you how to deploy them strategically using different tools and technologies. You’ll learn how to assess which approaches and tools are appropriate for different situations and segments of your community as well as practical approaches for moving from planning to action.
After participating in this course, you will be able to:
- Identify the types of modern marketing tools available for use in libraries.
- Develop a marketing plan for your organization.
- Implement an environmental scan to determine the needs of the different communities that you serve
- Recognize the pros/cons of multiple social media platforms.
- Identify, analyze, and match the available marketing tools most appropriate for each audience.
- Develop a social media plan.
- Identify potential external funding sources to support your library’s marketing campaign.
- Assess the success of the marketing efforts through pre-established measurements.
Mary Evangeliste has held library positions in special, academic, and public libraries. She is the owner of Fearless Future, a research and design firm that has operated since 2005. She is the co-author of two titles published by the American Library Association: Bite-Sized Marketing and Letting Go of Legacy Services. She lives in Baltimore, MD where she is forming a civic literacy nonprofit organization.
Susan W. Alman, PhD., teaches courses in interpersonal communications and marketing/public relations for information professionals at the San José State University School of Information. Her book, Crash Course in Marketing for Librarians, is in its 2nd edition, and she consults and leads professional development workshops and courses on communication, social media, and marketing. Alman has held teaching posts at the University of Michigan and University of Pittsburgh.If you have questions or requests regarding accessibility, contact us at ce@ala.org or at 312-280-5100.
