Electronic Resources – Marketing on a Shoestring

Public Library Marketing on a Shoestring

By Sally Dewey

As the Electronic Resources Manager, an important part of my job is promoting the resources we buy.  I’ve actually had this job (under one title or another) since CD-ROM networks were around—back then we were just trying to alert the user in the building that we had something beyond books on the shelf. Then, in 1997, with web-based databases it was about the Library being the patron’s Information Home Page 24/7, or “Where it all Clicks.

Today, as public libraries are battling to stay relevant, we want to want to attract, snag, and entice patrons into discovering the wealth of resources we make available online.  Why would we want to do that?  To battle patron ignorance.

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Topic Finder: Helping Users Search to Research

Topic Finder Search

As of October 31, Term Clusters has evolved into Topic Finder in Gale Artemis: Literary Sources, Literature Criticism Online, Something About the Author Online, and Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online and all periodical resources such as:

• Academic OneFile
• Fine Arts & Music Collection
• Gardening, Landscape & Horticulture Collection
• Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Life & Issues Collection
• General Business File ASAP
• General OneFile

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Libraries Add Economic Value to Local Communities

Largo Public Library

By Ken Detzner

The public library is a place of learning, a hub for educational resources, and a community center. Children discover new worlds as they’re read to, young adults learn new skills and librarians assist patrons needing educational or business support.

Not only have libraries historically proven to be beneficial to the areas they serve, a recent Return on Investment study conducted by the Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development, University of West Florida, provides the hard numbers demonstrating the economic value of public libraries. The overall Return on Investment that libraries offer, the business and educational support that is provided, and the essential services provided show that libraries are not only places of learning, but add economic value to their local communities.

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10 Ways Your Child With Special Needs Can Benefit From a Trip To The Library

children's nonfiction

By Karen Wang, via The Friendship Circle Special Needs Resources

Everyday, 4.2 million Americans visit a library.  Are you one of them?

Almost every town in America has a public library, but many families of children with special needs shy away from libraries, often for behavioral reasons. These are the families who could benefit the most from the library!

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Re-thinking Ready Reference with GVRL

nonfiction ebooks

By Holly Hibner and Mary Kelly

In the olden days before computers, ready reference collections were the soul of a library. Librarians helping patrons to answer questions or understand a topic always started in the reference section of the library. They were the most expensive materials and librarians were vigilant in guarding those precious items. I have been admonished by a librarian more than once for not handling these books carefully.

Ready reference collections have adapted to the new world of instant access, anywhere and anytime. Patrons still have questions and are trying to understand topics as always, but now they want it faster, more convenient, and always reliable. The reference need is still there, but now librarians have to think about access and delivery to patrons.

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19th Century Nitty-Gritty: All this for a loaf of bread?

By Melissa Rayner

Victor Hugo’s famed novel–and the play that sprung forth from that novel–has been in the media quite a bit lately. Who that hears the story doesn’t fall in love with the noble criminal, Jean Valjean? Sure, he stole, but it was only a loaf of bread, and he was only trying to feed his impoverished nieces and nephews. Did he really need to be imprisoned for the better part of his adult life?

Book reviewers–both contemporary to our times and contemporary to Hugo’s–agree that Jean Valjean is a tragic figure, a noble one. Just check out this concluding snippet from an 1862 review of the novel in the Birmingham Daily Post (courtesy of 19th Century British Newspapers). Despite the obvious ethnocentric nature of his stance, it’s clear the reviewer was a fan–and that he understood its message:

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Did You Know: Those jaunty young men in their flying machines

Did you know…that even after that first flight at Kitty Hawk by the Wright brothers, Americans were still skeptical about air travel as being a realistic possibility. It took until World War I which served as the impetus that the development of air travel could really happen. Learn more about the growth and progression of air travel in U.S. History in Context. Check it out or call your rep for more information.

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Partner Interview: IGI Global

Get 20% any title from IGI Global on GVRL! Offer valid through December 31, 2014 is good on any title from Cyber Tech Publishing, Idea Group Inc, IGI Global, Information Science Publishing, Information Science Reference, IRM Press, or Medical Information Science Reference. Please contact your Gale Sales Representative for details or to place an order!

In this post, Nick Newcomer, Director of Marketing and Design at IGI Global, provides some background about the company, their publishing strategy, and why their titles on GVRL are valuable to your library.

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