making the most of our stock, reader development and marketing in stirling

Making the most of our stock

Reader Development and

Marketing in Stirling

Mission Statement for Reader Development

‘The best book in the world is quite simply the one you like best and that is something you can discover for yourself, but we are

here to help you find it’

Strengths

Staff - positive attitude and strong customer focus

Wide range of productsComputer serviceGood back catalogueAccess to readers

Weaknesses

Library buildings, poorly builtLocationsLow profileIssues are decliningNegative public image of librarians -

boring

Improve Presentation

• Transition zone - First Impressions• Counter area• Power spot - Bit in the middle • Both above - Last Impressions

Displays

Mixed Messages

Eye catches on approach

Dump the dumpbins

Victim of success!Keep filled

Small feature filler

But you don’t need a huge budget

Other ways to promote stock

• Book Wobblers• Comments Cards• Reading Groups• Frontline Training Course

Walk the Walk

What is Marketing?

• Promoting the Service in a positive fashion to raise it’s profile within the community and to increase library use and issues.

What we did

Revived the Marketing Plan and updated it

Put Marketing and Customer Care as an integral action within the Library Service Plan

Set up a Marketing Group, involving a cross-section of staff

Established a Design Team

What we did, cont’dIdentified our opposition

Set up a Mystery Shopper programme in all Libraries

Prepared and costed a list of “concerns”

Agreed money had to be spent to start addressing these concerns.

Agreed that furniture colours and wood finishings should be standardised

Customer careWhat is customer care?

Ensure that the customer has the best experience they can on every visit

The first impression a person has, is the one that stays in their mind

Look up when someone comes in, smile and greet them.

Make everyone feel welcome

Customer care, cont’d

Be pro-active

Ask how they enjoyed their books or DVDs

Ask if you can help with an enquiry or with more books

Be empathetic if someone wants to talk

Branding

Develop a “Brand” – make it recognisable

Standardise poster style, colours, logos

Set up a Design team and invest in design software

Work with your Council Design and Communications Team

Publicity

Use the local paper and local radio.

Build up a network of contacts, meet with them and get to know them. Work with them.

Send information to BBC Scotland and STV – addressed to individual programmes. It works.

Publicity, cont’d

• Develop your website

• Use Twitter, You Tube and Flickr

• Have WiKis that the public, eg your Reading Groups, can feed into

Things that work

• Build up good local press contacts• Writing your own material• Keep information positive• Try different things – if one doesn’t work, drop it• Competitions• Remember ‘loss leaders’• Target age groups• Target new housing developments

Evaluation

• Constant evaluation

• Learn and adapt

• Access outside opinion

What is needed

Commitment

Pride in your Library Service

Willingness

Enthusiasm

Statistics to prove its all working

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

110%

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Stirling All Book Issues Scotland All Book Issues

More Statistics ….

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

110%

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Stirling Adult Fiction Issues Scotland Adult Fiction Issues

Elizabeth Farrfarre@stirling.gov.uk

01786 432389and

Liz Moffatmoffatl@stirling.gov.uk

01786 432391