Marketing with social media

How do I feel about the marketing opportunities that social media now offers? Well, as I have been discovering throughout this programme, there are a vast range of Things that provide an opportunity for making connections and communicating, for sharing information and interacting. And the thing I find most incredible about the various tools I have explored is that they are free! So without a doubt, libraries should make use of social media to ensure a presence within online communities, because if they don't they are missing out on an important way of reaching out to users.

As far as marketing with social media is concerned, I think the main aim should be to promote the image of the library as a modern, friendly, approachable place, and to publicise services that are available. I agree with Stewart Bain that libraries' use of social media should be fun and engaging, and that the content provided would need to be kept up-t0-date and posted relatively frequently. I understand that the point of social media is to encourage conversations and participation, and should not be used merely as a means to broadcast information. I'm not sure how easy this is to achieve, but it's certainly worth a try, and a process of regular evaluation would be needed to identify what is working and what is not.

The tool that I consider most suitable to promote my library's sevices to its users is Facebook. As I mentioned before, the best chance of connecting with users is by utilising a space that they are familiar with and spend a lot of time in. Now I realise there is no guarantee that users will fully embrace the library's efforts in this area, but I believe the format offered by Facebook Fan Pages is ideal for communicating information about new resources, news about the library, publicising services and the collection, and promoting a friendly and accessible image of the library. Maybe including features that encourage direct participation by users (asking directly what they think about a particular service, or maybe something more fun like captions for photos) could help to measure the effectiveness of the page (but do students have the time/interest to spend on these kind of things?). Maybe having the Library's Facebook page displayed on a pc within the library would help in promoting awareness and visibility. Though interacting and communicating with students through social media may be a little beyond my expectation right now, utilising it to at least promote the library's services and resources, I feel, would be a step in a positive direction.