Marketing the Library to Undergraduates Outreach and Information Literacy

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Marketing the Library to UndergraduatesOutreach
and Information Literacy

• Marlo Maldonado Young, M.L.S.
• Undergraduate Outreach Coordinator, UCSD Libraries

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Presentation Overview

• Discuss marketing and outreach-related concepts,
  practices
• Discuss undergraduate info-seeking behaviors,
  library perceptions
• Discuss interrelatedness of marketing, outreach,
  and IL

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What Is Marketing vs. Outreach?

• Ultimately, strategic public relations that also
  integrates strategic communications activity
• Marketing is a process w/three major functions
• 1. Identifying opportunities to promote an
  awareness
• of the library to target audiences
• 2. Influencing target audience choices
  through brand
• building and promotion
• 3. Servicing target audience to develop
  loyalty, gain
• repeat business, and generate
  word-of-mouth
• advertising
• Outreach is a function or mode of marketing, and
  even instruction

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Why Market Outreach?5 Simple Reasons

• Encouraged by OCLC, ACRL, IL Best Practices,
  among others
• Supports campus and library public relations,
  marketing, and educational agendas
• Tremendous lack of awareness, competition,
• misconceptions
• 4. To educate, inform, empower, and serve
• 5. Major opportunity to re-assert, re-define
  our
• roles, value, skills, etc.

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Undergrads18-24 Years Old Net Generation
Born Wired

• Accustomed to instant information, Digital
  Immediate
• Gratification
• Embrace social software and collaborative
  technologies
• Associate computer, Web w/conducting research
• Seamless infosphere w/out boundaries between
  work,
• play, study
• Graphically-oriented
• Astute consumers heavily marketed

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Undergrads LibrariesWhat Do They Want?

• Collaborative space
• Noise-friendly and quiet spaces
• Computer friendly
• Comfortable, mobile furniture
• Food drink
• Library as Place
• Role of the library as a place to study and
  socialize was more important than place to get
  info
• Council on Library Information Resources
  Report, 2003

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Undergrads Research Behaviors

• Research online simple search engines,
• instant results
• Issues of time and difficulty of concern
• 71 used Internet as major source, 2002
• Minimal exposure to research process, terms,
• website evaluation
• Using both physical virtual library

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Undergraduate Outreach ProgramUCSD Libraries

• Mission Stimulate a greater awareness of the
  UCSD
• Libraries, its services, programs, and
  resources
• Goals
• 1. Heighten campus, particularly UGs,
  awareness and
• understanding of libraries for more
  effective use
• 2. Increase collaboration with students,
  faculty, staff
• Objectives
• 1. Provide direct, in-person contact with
  UGs, staff, etc.
• 2. Provide Libraries representation in print
  and
• electronic sources of campus info
• 3. Create networking and educational
  opportunities
• from involvement with campus events,
  committees,
• liaison roles

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Undergraduate Outreach Program

• Libraries-wide planning, communication,
  activity,
• assessment
• Committee structure w/budget, 20K
• Targets UGs directly and through student
  affairs
• support services, colleges, co-curricular
  programs,
• staff, provosts, student orgs. etc.
• Interfaces w/subject libraries outreach
• Working towards an Integrated Marketing
• Communication (IMC) approach

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Integrated Marketing Communication IMC

• Synergistic use of public relations in tandem
  with other promotional tools to influence
• perceptions and behaviors
• Strategic process used to plan, develop,
• execute, and evaluate persuasive brand
• communication programs
• Effective library outreach requires strategic
  marketing communications activity
• Creates a brand identity for the library

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What is a Brand, Branding?

• Its the definition of your library that exists
• in each students mind
• -includes their expectations, impressions,
• preconceived notions all things
• Branding is how you aspire to be recognized
• -its achieved through strategic and
  consistent
• marketing, communication, outreach activity

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Creating UG Awareness, AppealVisibility

• Regular Campus Event Participation
• -Outreach Table branding, cool incentive
• items, smiles, fun ?
• -Marketing materials make first impressions,
  too
• -Fantastic oppty to also network w/campus folk
• -15 to 20 events year

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Integrating into an Online UG Community

• Study Break http//sixth.ucsd.edu/index.php?nameP
  NphpBB2fileviewforumf29side39041d240d4738a51
  22f1e742417ba9
• -Online discussion forum re the libraries!
• -Informal
• -Two-way communication
• -Can post polls, include images
• I think this it's awesome that we have a forum
  just for the library!

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Increasing Visibility, Awareness through Online
Learning Tool

• Get Started! http//libraries.ucsd.edu/services/ge
  tstarted/
  
• -Modular learning tool
• -Linked within all WebCT courses
• -Extensive usability w/UGs 25K visits in its
  first three months
• -Internal press kit w/marketing messages
• graphics _at_ orpheus.ucsd.edu/ioc/getstarted.html
  

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Advertising the Library to Increase UG Awareness

• Representation in key UG publications
• Less text is more!!
• Student images?
• Library logo?
• Graphical designer?
• 3K/year

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Library NewslettersMore than just News

• Allow the library to regularly present itself as
  a brand and as a place
• Involves and features students
• Uses plain language
• Breaks down sophisticated concepts,
• jargon
• 4K/year, 14K/copies
• http//libraries.ucsd.edu/services/navigator/

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Incentive ItemsTheyre Powerful

• Assist in influencing behaviors, perceptions
• Communicate fun, cool
• Serve as after-the-fact reminders
• Can encourage communication
• 7K/year
• Jacquie whatsnewpromos.com/

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Co-Marketing throughCampus Relationships

• Campus Involvement
• -UCSD Marketing Council
• -Undergraduate Colleges
• -Student Affairs
• -Event planning committees
• -Student Government
• -K-14 Education Outreach Council
• -Office of Admissions Relations with Schools

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Co-Marketing through Co-Curricular Partnerships

• Orientation programs (freshman transfers)
• Tailored workshops for Student Affairs
• Programs
• Information, Speech Preparation, and
  Public Speaking
• Information Leadership Knowledge is
  Power!
• Effectively Communicating Knowledge
• Student Health Peer Health Educator training
• Student Organizations
• Exhibit, event partnerships
• Athletics

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Conclusion

• Marketing and outreach
• -Enables students to connect with and better
  understand us
• -Is a non-traditional, yet strategic form of
  educating students
• -Creates an identity for your library
• -Showcases while advocating for libs
• -Stimulates awareness and relationships
• -Supports IL on conceptual and practical levels

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• Contact Info
• m2young_at_ucsd.edu
• [phone]