| By Gale Staff |
Libraries strive to serve everyone in their community, from engaging readers to offering accessible online learning opportunities to hosting events for all age groups. Over the past few years, librarians have adapted to an array of evolving needs spurred by the pandemic. Although in-person visits are still 35% lower than prepandemic levels, from 2022 to 2023, libraries saw a 24% growth—the first increase in visits since 2019, according to the Urban Libraries Council. These positive trends are marked by other notable upticks, including a 40% increase in digital resource access from 2019 to 2023 and a 53% increase in program attendance from 2022 to 2023.1
How can you sustain this upward momentum to promote in-demand services and drive more community members to your library? Refresh your marketing strategy for the new year to effectively connect with patrons and nonvisitors alike. With a mix of online and offline approaches, you can showcase your library as a valuable community hub for patrons of all ages and interests.
Get tips to spread the word about your library’s services with strategic audience targeting, digital marketing tactics, and more—all of which can be implemented with little to no marketing budget.
1. Segment Your Library’s Target Audiences
Your library serves everyone, but using the same marketing tactics for everyone is not effective. When you’re ready to refine your marketing strategy, start by clearly defining your target audiences and then tailoring your efforts to fit each group.
Who benefits most from your library’s programming? Outline specific demographics of these groups of patrons, including age ranges and interests.
After your audiences are defined, research the best marketing tactics to reach each group. For example, it’s easier to connect with Gen X on Facebook and Gen Z on TikTok.
Finally, segment your marketing tactics to target each audience on optimal platforms and craft messaging that fits their needs. Create email lists that fit your defined audiences to ensure they receive updates that are relevant and interesting to them.
2. Strengthen Your Brand Identity
Creating and maintaining a strong brand identity makes it easier for more people to recognize your marketing in the community and remember your messages. Ensure your library has a defined logo, brand colors, and typography and uses these elements consistently to build a recognizable visual identity. Audit your current brand presence and make updates as needed to make your brand identity consistent, from your website to existing and new social channels.
When working with community partners, make sure you have brand elements ready for them to use in external marketing efforts, including multiple high-resolution versions of your logo.
3. Focus on High-Quality, Engaging Programming
Hosting events and workshops is an effective way to attract new library visitors and showcase your services. If you’re looking to update your marketing strategy, take the opportunity to consider your programming strategy as well. Revisit your target audiences and ensure your programming aligns with their needs. Are you serving each of your audiences consistently? Are certain types of events more popular than others?
Once you consider these questions, revise your programming to more strategically target potential patrons in your community. Consider organizing book clubs, author talks, career development workshops, toddler story time, small business counseling, technology training sessions, and more based on audience needs. Request feedback from current patrons about sessions they’re interested in and information they’d like to learn.
Start small with any programming changes and marketing to support them as you test to see what works and what doesn’t. Promote events and workshops through your website, social media channels, emails, and other channels as it makes sense for your audience and budget.
4. Partner with Community Organizations & Media
For added programming and marketing support, create and maintain relationships with other organizations in your community.
Seek opportunities to collaborate with local organizations, schools, community colleges, businesses, and experts to provide unique experiences. You can host events at your library or provide guest speakers for educational workshops off-site. By organizing joint initiatives, your library can reach wider audiences and build strong relationships with other community leaders.
Form relationships with local media entities to leverage free press coverage. Regularly send press releases and information about upcoming programs, workshops, and new services to your local newspapers, radio stations, and TV news channels.
Additionally, ensure your library’s events and services are included on community calendars. These are often available through your city’s website or social pages, local media groups, and even popular local blogs.
5. Leverage Low-Cost Digital Marketing Channels
It’s no secret that library budgets can’t accommodate much paid marketing spend, but that doesn’t mean you can’t lead effective marketing efforts. Social media and other online platforms can be powerful tools for reaching and engaging with your community. Focus your marketing strategy on leveraging these low-cost digital channels to reach a wider audience with little to no cost.
Ensure your library has a strong brand presence on leading social media platforms, like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Regularly share social updates about your library’s services, events, book reviews, digital platforms, and new items in your collection. While you’re active on social, don’t miss opportunities to engage with your audience by responding to their comments and messages on social media and encouraging them to share posts or tag your library on their own social accounts.
If you’re looking for digital marketing ideas, take advantage of premade social media content from organizations like the American Library Association. Plus, explore our support site to find downloadable materials to market any of your Gale digital resources.
6. Feature Real Patron Stories & Accomplishments
When it comes to marketing, especially on social media, sharing stories and images with people from your community can help drive engagement and create buzz around your library.
Use success stories and testimonials to demonstrate the positive impacts your library is making, from students who have improved their grades to adults who have learned new skills. For example, instead of posting information about a digital platform your library offers, share a story about how one of your patrons used the resource to accomplish a goal. You can do this through video or an image, as long as the patron consents to having their story shared.
By showcasing real patron stories on your website, on social media, and in newsletters, you can inspire others to take advantage of your library’s services.
7. Get Inspired by Fellow Librarians
You don’t have to figure out all the best library marketing tactics on your own—take inspiration from fellow librarians and collaborate to learn new ways to connect with your audience.
Start by following other libraries and librarians on social media. For example, check out Instagram pages for the Milwaukee Public Library and New York Public Library. You can also find great tips by following library marketers, like Angela Hursh’s Super Library Marketing blog. For more insights, join Facebook groups and follow professional periodicals, like Library Journal, on LinkedIn.
Don’t miss opportunities to network and collaborate with fellow librarians. Attend state, regional, and national conferences to make new connections and learn best practices for your library’s marketing strategy.
8. Measure Marketing Impacts & Adjust Tactics
To create an effective marketing strategy, it’s important to measure performance and adjust tactics accordingly. Track metrics like website traffic, social media engagement, event attendance, newsletter opens and clicks, and new library card registrations regularly. Compare this data frequently with previously recorded metrics to identify trends, make note of what’s working well, and find areas that need improvement.
By measuring your marketing impact, you can strategically experiment with different tactics and channels to find what works best for your library and your target audience.
As part of your performance measurement, check in with your patrons to get their feedback. Surveys and social media polls are great tools to get patron insights about what they’re most interested in and how best to reach them with your marketing.
Take the beginning of a new year as an opportunity to refresh your library’s marketing strategy. By tailoring messages to specific audiences, maximizing the use of local media and digital channels, and measuring performance, you can inspire more people to visit the library to learn new things and accomplish their goals.
Note:
1 Femi Adelakun and Corissa Goodrich. “2024 Urban Libraries Council Library Insights Report,” Urban Libraries Council, November 2024.