Davenport Public Library gets an M+ for marketing cooperation

It takes a library to market its services, a fact that's not lost on librarian Angela Campbell, Public Relations & Programming Coordinator at the Davenport (IA) Public Library. Angela formed an interdepartmental marketing team called MarketingPlus (M+ for short). The group meets once a month to brainstorm on PR issues and plan events. On a PR listserv, Angela noted that having representation from many departments and administration helps to keep everyone on the same page and to generate innovative ideas for improvements. I contacted Angela and asked her to describe in greater detail how M+ came to be, how it operates, and what projects it tackles. The following is the description she gave me in full. If you have any questions about this approach, Angela provides her contact information. I'm very grateful to her for taking the time to share her efforts! I hope M+ will spark some further thinking on internal marketing approaches. From Angela:

"Public relations and programming efforts at the Davenport Public Library used to be spread across many departments and people. The Youth Services Department did their thing; Reference did their thing; and Special Collections did their thing. There was no cohesiveness to the Library's publicity and programming efforts. Due to the retirement of a few key staff in 2004, Library administration re-evaluated some of the job descriptions and also began working on building plans for two new neighborhood libraries that would open in 2006 and 2009. The focus of the two new neighborhood libraries would be to offer leisure reading materials, homework help, and excellent programming; with the goal of becoming the neighborhoods' community center. Because of this change in focus, administration decided it was time to centralize PR and programming efforts; thus creating the PR Department in January of 2005.

I had worked in the Reference Department ever since I graduated from graduate school in 1997. I have a MLIS and a BA in Corporate Communication. When the PR/Programming Coordinator position was announced, I was up for the challenge to be a one-person PR machine.

First task – updating all internal and external forms and publications. Before I was hired the Library had an "old school" graphic artist who did excellent work – but did it all by hand. Nothing was digitized. I did a major inventory of all our forms and publications. Each department went through their "department-specific" items and either threw them away; told me to keep them the same; or made notes for updating. I ended up digitizing all of these items by redoing them on Microsoft Publisher; I then pdf'd the items and indexed them in a joint folder on our computer network, so that they were accessible to anyone at any building. Finally, I reprinted everything with our new logo; contact information; and a standardized look, to aid in our branding efforts.

Second task – the MarketingPlus Committee. The internal MarketingPlus Committee (M+) used to lack direction and focus. I was on this committee while working in the Reference Department, and I speak from experience that it was one of those meetings I dreaded going to. They used to be weekly, and last for hours. One of my personal goals in this new position was to reach out to supervisors and have them assign an interested staff person from each department. I wanted committee members who wanted to be on the committee. I thought everyone would want to help – who doesn't want to market the library? I was wrong. It was actually hard to get people to volunteer because of past practice and perception. It took almost two years to create a reliable core committee. We now have representatives from each of the following departments: reference, special collections, youth services, customer services/circulation, administration, branch(es), and public relations. As the PR/Programming Coordinator, I head the committee, which meets the third Thursday of every month at 2:15 p.m. at the Main Library. The consistency of the meetings is important because of the scheduling issues and the diversity of the committee-members. The meetings last no longer than 3:30; and we have a proactive agenda that everyone can contribute to via the computer network. The meeting agenda lists the topic; the person responsible; the projected outcome; and a due date. Even though it is a highly structured meeting, it's also a lot of fun (especially the sharing of treats)! The departmental diversity of the members really adds to the brainstorming sessions, and the communication channels have really opened up. M+ Committee members are encouraged to share their experiences during their department meetings, not only to help create staff buy-in, but to communicate what is going on at both Libraries. For example, at one meeting, a staff person from the Customer Service Department told us that the staff was unhappy about all the handouts laying around on the service desk. Was there any way to combine these into one master handout? From that initial discussion, and after many revisions, the PR Department came up with a monthly 11 x 17 calendar format that would be easy to read, have the same amount of info (if not more!) as the flyers, and become less of a time-commitment to the PR Staff. This never would have happened if it weren't for the M+ meetings. Patrons and staff both benefited from this wonderful idea. Another example of the M+ productivity came during the planning of the Summer Reading Program. Our frontline folks expressed concern over the size of the program's finishing prize - that there was not enough room to keep the prizes behind the Customer Service desks. Because of concern, the Youth Services and PR staff found smaller (and even better!) prizes to offer to our patrons. Again, this would have never happened if it weren't for the M+ Committee, and is a good example of how important it is to communicate with all departments on a regular basis.

Third task – Get some help! It took only a few months for the Library to realize that even though I was doing a great job, I needed some help. Administration decided it was time to hire on another PR professional. My full-time assistant was hired in June of 2005, and we've been a two-person department ever since. Because we are responsible for all media communications, internal communications, graphic arts, most partnerships, special events, and ongoing adult programming, we’ve divided up our tasks by our strengths. My assistant (who has a BA in journalism) works on all written publicity – writing press releases, posting the releases to online community calendars, and compiling the releases onto a monthly calendar we hand out in the Library. She is also responsible for distributing printed items to staff and the public. I am responsible for portraying the programs and events graphically, on posters and handouts. I also edit two bi-monthly newsletters Main Entries (a general Library newsletter); and Booktalking, a bi-monthly readers’ advisory newsletter. I'm also responsible for media relations and placing stories; building partnerships; looking for grant opportunities; and coordinating the rest of the Library's programming efforts, including Reference computer classes, Youth Services programs, Special Collections' programs, and large "all-ages" special events that we do on an annual basis. Finally, when our budget allows for advertising, I look for the best deals in our local media outlets that can get us the most reach and frequency for the least amount of money.

We are never bored! Last year our Library offered more than 300 programs between the two buildings, with more than 15,000 people attending the programs. My goal is to continue getting the word out so our statistics continue to increase. This includes library use statistics, walk-in statistics and programming statistics.

If you have any questions about implementing a PR Department from the ground up, please don't hesitate to email me at: acampbell@davenportlibrary.com; or call at 563-888-3371."

Thoughts and prayers go out to VA Tech

I can't say enough how saddened we are at VCU over yesterday's tragedy at our sister school, VA Tech. I definitely have you all in my thoughts and prayers.

The good of customer service

After all my talk about Delta's horrific customer "service," it's worth noting that great service is not dead. One of the best service encounters I've had recently took place at a Famous Dave's restaurant. Our initial interactions with the staff began well. They greeted us pleasantly and promptly and seated us right away. While the service to this point was good, it was not exceptional. What made it so was our waiter and the extra attention the restaurant gives first-time customers.

It was a slow time of day for the restaurant, but rather than be discouraged by the lack of tips, our waiter used the opportunity to talk in-depth about the menu. This was my first visit to Famous Dave's, and I was unfamiliar with the food. Knowing this, our waiter sat down next to us and discussed his personal favorite items and got to know my tastes and preferences so that he could make a recommendation. I asked him all kinds of questions about the meats and BBQ sauces, and he was able to confidently answer each of them. He really seemed to be passionate about his love of the food served there, which in turn made me more enthusiastic about the place as well. In fact, he was so knowledgeable and attentive that I made it a point to tell the manager about what exceptional service we received.

To top off a great meal, Famous Dave's does something that I thought was remarkable. They give each "first-timer" a free bottle of their best BBQ sauce (it's not sample-size either!) as well as a packet full of information about the company's history, it's catering service, and menu. The envelope that contains the information reads as follows:

"Dear First-timer,

Was it as good for you as it was for us? We hope so. Because as far as we're concerned, this is just the beginning of a long and happy relationship.

We want to see your smiling face at our door for many years to come. So, be sure to tell us if there's anything we can do better to keep you coming back.

In the meantime, check out the information in this envelope. We'll be waiting for your next visit with open arms and mouth-watering 'que."

Those few short paragraphs speak volumes about the company's brand and personality. This personality even carried over to the phone survey I was prompted to call on my receipt. The recording reflected this casual, conversational tone and whimsical attitude that now defines Famous Dave's for me. Notice too that the letter solicits feedback and emphasizes the notion that dining is more than transactional, it's a relationship.

To keep the relationship-building momentum going, the restaurant has a P.I.G. Club (Pretty Important Guest). By signing up, members get e-mails with important news, free gifts, and a birthday message (kids get their own birthday gifts).

I may be a pushover, but I was blown away by the entire experience. They nailed every aspect of service quality including Responsiveness, Assurance, Tangibles (the décor was very fun!), Empathy, and, well, I'll evaluate Reliability on my next visit. Furthermore, the little extras for first-timers are the definition of word-of-mouth moments (I'm telling you all about it after all!). They truly made me feel appreciated as a customer. It make me think about what we do and don't do for first-timers in our libraries. What can we do to communicate to patrons that we want a relationship with them? What kind of a welcome can we and should we give these patrons that will make them want to come back again? At my school, I'm involved with freshman orientation, but what about those who wander in for the first time? On numerous occasions, patrons say to me, "This is my first time in here..." I usually say "Welcome" and give them a map of the building, but perhaps we could have prepared materials that include vital library information and contact information so that they are encouraged to reach out to us with future questions. When someone identifies themselves as new to the library, we should recognize what a great opportunity we have to make a good impression that could last a lifetime. A light bulb should turn on reminding us that we need to make a special effort to make our fist-timers feel important. Thanks for the lesson, Famous Dave's!

Guest post from Emily Clasper on reaching connected moms

Thank you to librarian Emily Clasper for her recent commentary to the post "Mom power." In her response, Emily mentioned that she could relate to the experiences of on-the-go moms and their use of social networks to stay connected. I asked her to tell me more about her perspective and how librarians can do a better job of reaching out to moms like her. Fortunately, she took me up on the offer and contributed this guest post on the subject, which I'm copying in its entirety here (with permission, of course):

As a parent of a young child, I definitely use social networking a lot as a parenting resource. I started when I was pregnant and joined a forum for mothers with a February 2006 due date. About 40 of us from all over the world got to know one another, and it's still going strong as we now all have children the same age and can relate to one another really well. These ladies are now some of my very best friends and I don't know what I would have done without their advice and support!

From there, it was a slippery slope...I've also gotten involved in the "Mommy Blog" (or Daddy Blog!) subculture that is thriving online. We post pictures of our little ones, along with our thoughts on the trials of motherhood, and a lot of advice and information that's helpful to other parents (we hope!). I am constantly researching parenting topics online, everything from developmental milestones to the best toys for a one year old (I've come to rely on recommendations from other parents for that one). Being involved in online parenting communities has enriched and informed my offline life immensely!

So how can libraries use the power of online social networking to reach out to young, modern mothers...not only to provide them with more and better services, but also to take advantage of the word of mouth buzz such ladies can give your library?

In her post on Mom Power, Jill summarized the important aspects of providing services for savvy Gen-X and Y moms well: "Make services for this group quick, convenient, and online if possible by creating more specialized online content and taking advantage of the social networks they rely on for quality information."

Some tips for attracting young mothers to your library (and keeping them there!):

1. Provide programs and services that interest Gen-X and Y parents.
Children's programs are terrific. There is nothing like a good storytime! But I don't often see programs that are geared towards the parents of young children and the issues that we face these days...and I'm not going to take the time to participate if I'm not really interested. What about programs on juggling work and family? Or choosing a good childcare situation? Or dealing with food allergies? Or using social networking to get support and information from other parents? And why not hold one of these really good, topical programs for parents at the same time as a children's program so that both the children and parents can participate? Bibliographies of parenting resources are found in most Children's rooms...why not take these a few steps further and publish a wiki for your patrons? I’d love that!!

2. Make us aware of these services.
My library's monthly newsletter generally goes directly into the garbage with the junk mail when it reaches my house. It's not that I'm not interested in my library or what is going on in my community, but we are (like most people, I think) completely bombarded with junk mail each day and it's hard to make a distinction. Therefore, putting a mention of an upcoming event, program, service, or collection targeted at mothers is going to completely unnoticed in my house. Libraries need to find other ways to reach out to busy young parents. Go where we are, and speak our language. I'm more likely to notice a library event on the local newspaper's online events calendar, or from a brochure at the pediatrician's office (sometimes the only place I ever get to sit down and rest for a second!). If your library has a blog, publicize it and encourage patrons to subscribe...but give us something interesting to read while you plug your programs and services, and encourage us to participate in the conversation! A blog that reads like a string of press releases won't hold our interest for long.

3. Go by our schedules, not yours.
One of the main reasons why online social networking appeals to me more than the "live" Mommy group has to do with time. With the hectic lifestyle most young moms find themselves leading, it's nice to be able to participate when we can - whether that's for fifteen minutes at 11:30 at night or at work while we take a lunch break. Scheduling programs for young moms (especially for those who work) should respect the difficulties many of us face in squeezing anything extra in. In addition, providing online resources and opportunities for online participation are great because we can access them at any time that is convenient for us. That great parenting program you had last week? Put the video up online so that those of us who couldn't make it can still participate!

4. Put it online!
I do not bring my son to library programs. There are too many rules, signups are a pain, and I can't fit the programs into my schedule as they're all when I'm at work. So I take him to music classes on the weekends instead. We were able to sign up online, pay online, and we can schedule makeup classes online. I got my references for the program online, too. If the library would give me the same options, I'd be there in a flash. Until then, I can't be bothered. IM or email reference help is a good idea, but often seems a second thought and is not often consistent. Not only that, but it is generally pretty poorly publicized, and I don't know that I would be aware of these services if I weren't a librarian myself. I think good library blogs, wikis for resources on topics that interest me, and more consistent online reference (paired with marketing to raise awareness) would be a great way of catching the attention of parents these days. It would also be great if libraries could help parents create online communities as well. With all of the YA departments getting involved in MySpace, etc for the teens, this seems like a natural direction for libraries to go. We talk a good game these days about libraries as community centers...why not libraries as community creators?

5. Make us want to come again.
I've often heard that the most effective marketing tool we have is customer service. If you can give us a good experience while we are in the library, we will come back. And we'll bring friends. But if we don't have a great experience, you're done. We won't be back, and we will tell everyone we know how awful it was to boot. This goes double for online content. If we find what we need, it's interesting or useful and easy to access, I just might come back. Especially if there's a way to subscribe.

I appreciate Emily's insights and am grateful to her for sharing these useful ideas. She touches on a lot of themes addressed here, and it's nice to see a personal account of them in action. As you probably noticed from her post, Emily has no shortage of ideas and is a terrific writer. That's why I was glad to find she started her own blog, Library Revolution: The Status Quo Most Go (nice title!). Though less than a month old, the blog is off to a great start and I'm looking forward to watching it develop.

Good luck in your efforts to reach those busy moms!

Calling all law librarians: Your insights needed!

Hello, law librarians! I'm going to be giving a talk to a law library association in June and I'm doing some "market research" in preparation. I'd like to know what marketing topics keep you awake at night (or, at least those that would keep your interest for an hour!). I'm also curious to know about your work environment - what kind of library you work in, what pressures you face, what communication channels you use, and anything at all that would be of help. Also, what do you wish you knew about marketing and what would you like your marketing to accomplish for you? I have a pretty good idea about the academic setting, though I welcome input on that front as well, but I'm less knowledgeable about other settings such as law firms. I'm finding some useful information in my research, but there's nothing like some personal anecdotes to help me put things in perspective. In a nutshell, I'm looking for some insights into the life of a law librarian and any feedback would be much appreciated! Please leave a comment, e-mail me, or let me know a good time to call you. THANKS!

Read this first: The big balancing act

Traditionally, marketers (librarians) and customers (patrons) have engaged in turf battles, of sorts. Both sides want more control over end products and processes. An obvious though simplified example is price: Customers want the lowest possible prices, and marketers and their companies want profits. Today, this tug-of-war is taking center stage on the Internet. Customers are sharing their ideas, media, and complaints/compliments with the wide world and their voices carry a lot of weight. Overall, this is a good thing, but it does raise some issues about how to balance organizational goals with customer needs and wants. If this is a topic you think about too, take a look at a post I wrote on KnowThis where I take an initial stab at this topic from a broad marketing perspective. I'm going to follow up that post with one here on LM that takes a closer look at this "balance of power" topic from a librarian point-of-view. It's truly an issue that I've been bandying around in my mind quite a bit and talking with marketers about to get their take. I hope you'll share your ideas on this too!

Become a pro at promotion

About.com offers a piece on planning a promotional camaign in 7 "easy" steps. I'm always suspicious of claims that marketing functions can be done in easy steps (they're not easy at all!), but this summary isn't bad. I'll add a couple of additional notes, and feel free to do the same.

When determining your budget the best, but probably most rare, way to do so is by determining what you want to accomplish and then developing a budget that will let you reach that goal. Instead, I'm assuming that most of us, unfortunately, have a fixed promotions budget. To stretch those dollars, consider the lifespan of the promotion vehicles you select. For instance, a patron might keep a flyer for a day or so, but she may hold onto a pen for months. If your campaign is intended to raise awareness for an upcoming event, a flyer might do. If, however, your goal is to increase the visibility of your library in general, put your dollars into something with staying power. Since those items will cost more, be sure to carefully target your intended audience to get the most bang for your buck.

I was taught to develop promotions objectives so that they have a verb, a number, and a time frame. Here's a sample goal: To increase behavioral intention to try X database by 5% over 6 months. Also, be sure your target audience understands what action you want them to take.

Finally, I tend to favor using multiple vehicles to reach your audience. It may take more than one exposure in one vehicle to get the message across. Given the state of today's marketplace, those vehicles should also be as interactive as possible so that your audience can talk back and engage in conversation. Try not to think of promotion as a one-way street, but as a dialogue that respects the fact that there is a human being on the other end of the channel.

Good luck!

When things go bad: Making it right

Has it really been almost an entire week since my last post?! Yikes! Time is really flying and there's so much interesting marketing news to discuss. First, I wanted to conclude my series on the bad/ugly of customer service by outlining the steps in the service recovery process. These steps come from this book, and I think we can agree that these are sound strategies.

According to authors Clow & Kurtz, there are 4 steps on the road to recovery.

1. Firms need a recovery plan. Within our department, we certainly have procedures for handling complaints, but nothing in the way of a formal plan. A plan, in my mind, would anticipate problems and also include a means of following up. If a patron calls to complain that she is having problems logging in to our databases remotely, for example, we could correct the error, obtain her contact information, and follow-up with her within 24 hours to ensure that the problem has been resolved to her satisfaction. In fact, a key to successful service recovery is a quick response, ideally during the service transaction itself. Referring to my travel drama, Delta should have known that it was going to have a plane full of unhappy customers and sent someone to our gate to immediately put out any fires. Planning like this requires commitment from managers as well as employee training. Importantly, customers should not be shuffled to numerous departments and staff members, but one staff person should see the situation through to the end.

2. Encourage complaints. One of the worst things that can happen in a service transaction is that a patron walks away dissatisfied but never tells us about his grievances. As painful as complaints are to hear, they're the only way we can identify and remedy a problem, and so we need to make patrons feel at ease in turning to us when they're upset. It's far better that they talk to us instead of their friends and colleagues!

3. (This one is key.) Identify the problem and fix it! I'm sure all of us hear similar complaints over and over again, but what are we doing to make the source of the problem go away? By collecting data about service failures and analyzing the root causes, we can prevent problems in the first place, which should be a top priority. If the problem truly can't be fixed (for the record, I think this accounts for only a very small number of problems), then consider changing your communications to explain to patrons why the situation exists so as to adjust their expectations accordingly.

4. Finally, allocate the resources to do service recovery right. Service recovery can require a great deal of time and effort, so staff should be provided all the means necessary to carry it out. Interestingly, the authors point out the service recovery can actually become a firm's strength, which I read as "competitive advantage." Certainly, service recovery is an opportunity to showcase our commitment to and concern for our patrons, so let's highlight our responses to patrons' problems by making them our own and seeing them through with all the means at our disposal. [Update: What I mean here is let's highlight our recovery efforts in publications and other library communications and demonstrate how we take on patrons' problems as our own.]

Coming up: A description of one of my best service experiences from a customer point-of-view, what made it so great, and what we can learn from it.

Update: Brian of the UL and I must have been reading each other's minds. He blogged yesterday about being proactive in assessing how satisfied our patrons are in a post, Librarian as Quality Assurance Agent. One point I neglected to mention is that it's great to respond quickly to complaints, but it's even better to be proactive and seek out problems and suggestions. Some companies have dedicated people, like the Quality Assurance Agent model Brian talks about. Should every library have one person devoted entirely to service recovery?

The ugly of customer service: A closer look

Now that I've thoroughly laid out my grievances with Delta (aka, complained), let's pick this experience apart a little more using marketing theories and principles so that, at the very least, we can take turn this nightmare into a positive learning experience.

As we saw with the RATER model in my other post, Delta fell flat in every dimension of service quality. There are other factors too that came into play during this service failure. One factor was customer expectations. Customers expect a certain level and quality of service based on a number of factors including their past experiences, needs, promotion messages and promises, their moods, specific circumstances, social context, and so on. Clearly, customers' expectations can be all over the map and it's difficult to make everyone happy all of the time, but service providers have certain responsibilities nevertheless. These responsibilities occur during the 3 phases of purchasing a service: pre-purchase, the service encounter, and post purchase.

First of all, companies need to figure out what their target customers want and expect. It doesn't take a genius to understand that airline passengers want to get to their destinations in a safe and timely manner. Of course, the most successful companies have a deeper understanding of how to please their customers than providing the bare minimum, but that's for another post. During the pre-purchase phase, organizations need to tell customers what to expect. And forget about that under-promising and over-delivering stuff. Companies should give customers a reasonably clear, accurate idea of what to expect before they do business with them. This is exactly what Jet Blue is doing with its Customer Bill of Rights. During the service encounter phase, organizations need to communicate with their customers and make adjustments to the service as the encounter unfolds to make sure expectations are being met. (In fact, one of the nice things about services, as opposed to products, is that they are created in partnership with the customer. Take advantage of this opportunity by asking questions and listening carefully to make sure the end result is the best it can be for both parties). In my experience, this is the stage where Delta began to take a nosedive in customer service. Yes, the captain did make us aware of mechanical trouble and the status of the problem, but he set unrealistic expectations by suggesting that we would get another plane and even keep our same seat assignments. In doing so, he set us passengers up for major disappointment, which will become clearer in a moment when I discuss zones of tolerance. Instead, the captain should have been completely honest with us and explained what the next steps would be, rather than turning us loose to fend for ourselves. Finally, during the post-purchase phase, companies should follow-up with customers and address any dissatisfied people promptly. I never received a letter or call or anything to indicate that Delta has the least bit of concern that I made it home alright. They knew I was on that cancelled flight, that I never took another flight to Richmond, and they have my contact information, but they chose not to use it. Delta utterly failed to manage expectations throughout this experience which only amplified our frustration.

Speaking of dissatisfaction, its worth keeping in mind that people have what's known as a zone of tolerance (ZOT). Basically, the ZOT is the range between a person's idea of adequate levels of service (the bare minimum a person will tolerate) and the desired level (what service a person wants or hopes for). If you're below adequate, you're in trouble. By hinting to us that we'd probably get on another plane and keep our seats, the pilot raised my adequate level of service, thereby shrinking my ZOT and making me all the more upset when my expectations weren't met. There is some wiggle room within ZOT's, which Delta should have recognized. For example, I understand that parts fail and that problems arise from time to time under even the best of circumstances. I would have been much more sympathetic to Delta if the company would have made efforts to tend to my needs and provide alternate means to my destination. Since Delta took no remedial action, I attributed the entire service failure, and directed my anger, to them. (If you’re intrigued by this idea, do some reading on Attribution Theory).

What can we librarians take away from this discussion? First: communicate, communicate, then communicate some more. We need to give patrons our full attention before, during, and after their visit to the library. Second: Set realistic expectations. If you set expectations too high, you're bound to disappoint. If you set them too low in hopes of surpassing them, patrons probably won't find your service appealing to begin with. Just be honest and do the best you can. Patrons will remember your efforts and will cut you some slack if they know you at least gave your best effort. Third: A service isn't over even after it's over. Delta still could have recovered some of my good will by following-up with me after the flight cancellation, but their silence has pretty much cemented my opinion of them as an uncaring, inept organization. I know we can't follow up with every patron but when I have lengthy research consultations, for example, I set a reminder to contact the person a week afterward to check on his/her progress and make sure there are no further questions. Finally, be flexible. So Delta's plane had mechanical problems. What else could they have done? Rented a bus? Helped us find rental cars? Made hotel accommodations on our behalf? Good service providers can think on their feet and adjust the service as need be.

Next time, I'm going to talk about service recovery and what service providers can do to make sure that when things go bad, organizations respond well and fix the problem so it doesn't happen again. I'll conclude on a positive note with my Best Service Experience Ever.

Mom power

We hear a lot about Gen Xers and Yers, but what about Gen X and Gen Y moms? This influential, Web-savvy consumer segment is the topic of an Intelligence Group report, Mom Intelligence, which is discussed in a recent iMedia piece. These busy moms rely on the Internet to conduct banking and other transactions, learn about child care, socialize with other mothers, keep up with family, and get the scoop on products and services. Even though their schedules are full, they make time for using the Internet in search of people and things that will make their offline lives better, according to the research findings. They're also more likely than non-moms to spread the word on the useful services and products they encounter.

If these women are among your target patrons, this report offers lots of service ideas for you. For example, why not provide online tutorials, blogs, or webcasts to teach parents how to identify and evaluate quality information on child care? Librarians could also sponsor reading groups (online or in-person) that focus on childhood development issues and that perhaps draw in local service providers. The key, it appears, is to make services for this group quick, convenient, and online if possible by creating more specialized online content and taking advantage of the social networks they rely on for quality information. Is anyone currently reaching out to Gen X/Y moms with stories to share? Post them in a comment!

Note: The Intelligence Group offers a free daily newsletter on its Trend Central site (registration required). The focus is on youth culture, and recent topics include smartpox, gaming theaters, and popular music artists. This newsletter looks like it would be particularly great for you youth services librarians in the crowd, or those interested in pop culture.

Update: I just found a Trend Central report on Teen Websites to Know - neat!

The good, the bad, and the ugly of customer service

Today: The bad UGLY!

In the past couple of weeks I have experienced the absolute best customer service I've ever received and the absolute most horrible. Each example teaches us something value about how to treat and not treat our patrons. I'm starting this discussion today with the bad so that I can end on a positive note. Plus, it'll be cathartic because I'm still in shock about how poorly I was treated by the company in question! Without further ado, here's the story from my viewpoint:

Last week, I traveled to San Diego for a conference without incident, that is, until the return trip. The first leg of the trip, a red-eye Delta flight to Atlanta went off without a hitch. We were not so lucky on the second leg. We boarded the flight from Atlanta to Richmond promptly and on time Sunday morning. After being seated, the pilot informed us that the maintenance crew was investigating a mechanical problem and he would update us shortly. After about 15 minutes, the pilot declared that there was a fuel leak that was outside of established tolerances and that we'd have to de-board. He assured us that Delta would try to find us another plane and that we could even retain our same seat assignments. However, no sooner did we all step off the plane then we heard that our flight had been canceled and that we were to proceed to the nearest service desk for assistance. This is where all the fun began. We formed a seemingly-endless line at the Delta service counter. Behind that counter was not a friendly service staff member, but a telephone. My understanding is that we were to use the phone to call for help, though some passengers in line used their cell phones to do so only to be greeted with a recording that stated their call would be answered in about 8 hours. My perception is that the line never actually moved forward, but that people simply left the line to find an alternative means of transportation, which gave the illusion of progress. In addition, there were no available one-way rental cars and we heard through the grapevine that the next available flight would be Tuesday. We were fortunate in that we were able to get a ride to Richmond with two generous strangers ahead of us in line who happened to be able to obtain a one-way car rental through their special membership. Were this not the case, I would have been stranded in Atlanta with no help from Delta whatsoever. The icing on this cake of mishaps was that my fiancé spent 3 hours on the phone with Delta and Continental (a Delta partner, apparently) trying to obtain a refund, only to be bounced back and forth between the two companies, each denying responsibility. (My ticket, by the way, stated, "Delta flight.")

To be fair, we were not the only passengers with travel trouble last weekend, and we were lucky, relatively speaking. There were some passengers in line who had been trying to get home since the previous Friday! I'm sure Delta had trouble locating a plane with all of its tie-ups in the Northeast. However, these circumstances do not excuse the terrible lapses in customer service that resulted after the flight was canceled.

In order to understand what went wrong here from a marketing perspective, it's useful to analyze this experience using a customer service model referred to as RATER. RATER stands for:

• Reliability – Doing it right each and every time
• Assurance – Making the customer believe you can do it right each and every time
• Tangibles – What the physical evidence suggests about the quality of your service
• Empathy – Caring about customers
• Responsiveness – Taking the initiative to help customers and anticipate needs

(Note: If these sound familiar, the LibQual survey attempts to measure service quality in each of these areas).

In reviewing each piece of the model, it's clear to me that Delta failed in each and every aspect. Individual customer will weight the importance of these components differently, but for me, I was most shocked by Delta's lack of empathy. Most of us were exhausted, under time pressures, and without any means or assistance to get to our destinations and no one cared! In my next post, I will go into more detail about customer service principles as they apply to this case and how Delta got it wrong. I'll also offer suggestions for how the company could have done a better job, which I hope will provide a useful example for evaluating our own services. I'll conclude with my experiences with a company that got it 100% right and the inspirations I took away from the experience.

Serving patrons with disabilities

I returned to work yesterday after a harrowing journey back from a marketing educators conference in San Diego. The trip provided material that will be the subject of 2 upcoming blog posts: 1. What makes good customer service? (Hint: My return trip is an example of how NOT to please customers!) and 2. How marketing can make students better researchers (I co-wrote an award-winning paper with a VCU Marketing professor on a topic related library marketing, which I presented at the conference. I'll discuss what the paper's about and what our next steps will be).

As usual after a long trip without Internet access, I returned to volumes of interesting marketing news and information, which I'll be working to get up shortly. In the meantime, I'm grateful to Matt Navitsky who contacted me today on behalf of the National Library Service, or NLS. I'm grateful because Matt highlighted an important segment of patrons that I've neglected so far on this blog -- patrons with disabilities -- and informed me of tools to help reach out to this diverse group with its own specialized needs.

The NLS offers library services for those who are blind or otherwise physically handicapped through its network of regional and sub-regional libraries. Specifically, it delivers braille and audio books along with playback equipment to patrons free of charge via its Talking Book Program. Most impressive to me is that the NLS offers talking book clubs where patrons can get together with other patrons physically, by phone, or online, and they're geared to all age groups from kids to centenarians! These clubs give patrons an important lifeline to others in their communities and help them to form new friendships. You can check out the NLS' press release for more details.

I admit that though I work with patrons with disabilities, I was unaware of what the NLS has to offer. This example reminded me to think about ways in which we can engage this audience with our materials and services. In my role, I've brought in speakers who work primarily with people with disabilities to educate our staff on the perspectives of patrons who have varying physical limitations and how we can make the library more inviting. There are a few of key things I've learned about disabilities services that have influenced my work. First, by making the library more accessible to people with disabilities, the library space tends to become more accessible for everyone. For example, adjustable-height tables can accommodate wheelchairs, but they can also accommodate patrons of varying heights. Second, we all have limitations of some kind or another and it's important to remember those experiences as we approach service and space design. If you've ever sprained an ankle and had to be on crutches, you have some idea of what it's like to have to navigate flights of stairs and carry armloads of books, or wait for someone assist you. It can be frustrating! Imagine having to deal with that frustration on a regular basis and consider how we can reduce some of those aggravations in our libraries. Finally, just as with any other segment of patrons, it's necessary to seek out and understand the points of view of those with disabilities in order to best serve them. Last year, a member of my undergraduate advisory group used a wheelchair and it was very enlightening to hear from her what it's like to get around the library. Her perspective was completely different from mine and it helped me see the library in a new light, which I could not have imagined on my own. If you need help getting an outside, professional view, consider contacting local agencies such as departments for the blind and vision impaired. When I did so, a representative offered to come to the library to identify problem areas we may have free of charge.

My role and experience in this area is somewhat limited, so I would appreciate knowing what you've done to reach out to patrons with disabilities with library facilities, equipment, and services, as well as any other insights you may have.

Update: Alice Hagemeyer, Founder and President of FOLDA (Friends of Libraries for Deaf Action) posted a note to some listservs about a PBS documentary airing tonight (3/21) called Through Deaf Eyes (9pm EST). The filmmakers intended to portray the variety of stories and issues in the deaf community, including the role of technology in social change. Please post your comments about the film if you watch it!

A marketing metrics primer

Since I'll continue to address marketing metrics here on LM, it's important to have an understanding of when and how to use metrics, generally speaking. To that end, there is a concise summary of the characteristics of helpful metrics in the MarketingProfs article, Five Fundamentals for Useful Marketing Metrics (free registration required). The author argues that metrics should focus on these 5 areas:

1. Essential metrics criteria
2. Customer-acquisition metrics
3. Product "wow" metrics
4. Customer-retention metrics
5. Strategic accountability

It's important (and a bit of a relief!) to acknowledge that you can't and shouldn't measure everything. We need to be selective about what we measure in the context of our goals and go from there. This article helps focus metrics on only the most significant aspects of our work. We should keep this in mind as we continue discussing marketing metrics. Happy measuring!

Give this a squeeze

I finally finished reading the popular book on creativity, Juicing the Orange: How to Turn Creativity into a Powerful Business Advantage. I reviewed the piece and highlighted some interesting points about creativity on Designing Better Libraries. I mention it here because creativity is directly related to marketing. In fact, the authors of the book contend that creativity is one of the few remaining ways to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. In my opinion, this is especially true of services like ours which compete with a number of alternatives and lack large marketing budgets. Necessity is the mother of creativity after all, right? ;-) I do recommend reading it (it doesn't take very long), with special attention to the Lessons Learned section at the end. If you've already read it, please share your opinions!

Mobile marketing grab bag

For many reasons I won't bore you with, I'm still working on my series on mobile marketing. In part, this is due to the ever-changing nature of the medium. Everyday, there seems to be some new development to consider, which means I change my views on this topic often. In preparation for the series, I'm presenting some of the recent news on mobile marketing, and I encourage you to take a look at the articles that interest you. These lay a pretty good foundation, which I'll build on in the series:

• Mobile Marketing: Back to the Basics, ClickZ
  A good, brief description of what mobile marketing is.


• Mobile Marketing: A Balancing Act, DestinationCRM

  "A new report finds that as advertisers' interest in mobile marketing increases, carriers must find a way to increase mobile advertising while keeping customer trust."

• On Advertising: Mobile phones are new frontier in advertising, International Herald Tribune
  

  "Now, with the next iteration of the Internet, the mobile Web, spreading around the world, publishers and other content providers are trying to keep up, lest they get in late on another advertising bonanza."

  For more on mobile advertising, see Mobile ads: The next Internet gold rush?, InfoWorld


• Social Networking the Mobile Way, E-Commerce Times

  "The real momentum and industry hype didn't start building until mid-2006. It was around that time that MySpace, a unit of News Corp., launched a mobile portal to its gigantic online community through Helio, a wireless service geared toward a younger crowd that's willing to spend more than the typical cell user."

  You may also want to look at any of the articles in E-Commerce's M-Commerce section.

I have some evolving ideas about what libraries can do with this medium, but the bottom line is that we need to pay attention to the mobile world and find our place in it. Hopefully, the upcoming series help spark some discussion on possible approaches.

Marketing metric: Attitudes

One fun way to measure attitudes is by using a Semantic Differential Scale (at least, I think it's fun). This scale is used by marketers to measure things like attitudes toward a brand. If you're interested in finding out what patrons' image of your library is, this could be the scale for you.

It works like this: Subjects make judgements about your library based on a series of 7-point scales (Note: Some scales have more or fewer points). On either end of the scales, there are polar-opposite adjectives, such as "Fast"/"Slow", "Modern"/"Old-Fashioned," and so on (example). Patrons indicate how strongly they relate to these concepts by marking the point on the scale that most closely matches their attitudes. You could also ask patrons to evaluate your library and a competitor of interest to see how attitudes vary.

You would score the scale by assigning scores (7,6,5,4... or +3...0...-3) then take the mean or median to compare results with a competitor, if you'd like. (There are other statistical tests you can perform also, but I would recommend getting a book on the topic for details).

I terrific and concise article, Considerations When Constructing a Semantic Differential Scale by Jayne Al-Hindawe delves into more detail, including how to pick appropriate adjectives, how many pairs of adjectives to present, etc.

It's nice to share

Sharing is not only a good marketing strategy, it's good blogging practice too! I've been adjusting to using Google Reader as my aggregator of choice and I'm loving it. One nice bonus is that the Reader makes it very easy to share what I'm reading with others. Now on my blog you can see what I'm reading on the sidebar, or you can subscribe to the feed. I'm glad to do this because I often read so much that I want to discuss with all of you but I can't always find the time. This way, at least you know I'm thinking about it! Since I'm still getting used to marking things to share it's a fairly short list now, but it'll grow. The real trick is keeping up with it all! Hope it helps.

(By the way, if you're sharing your cool finds through Google Reader, let Library Stuff know about it).

Spoof this!

Granted, I watch too much T.V., which is why I derive a lot of marketing inspiration from television programs, for better or worse. I happen to be a big fan of the Discovery Channel, and I particularly like the shows Dirty Jobs, It Takes a Thief, MythBusters, and generally anything narrated by Mike Rowe. Last night, I watched a Discovery show consisting entirely of viewer-created videos called You Spoof Discovery (also hosted by mikerowe!). What I liked about this special is that Discovery could poke fun at itself (as the ads state, "Discovery Channel discovered its sense of humor"). The shows are the Discovery's bread-and-butter, but it still allowed viewers a forum for having some fun with them. There's also a message board where viewers can chat about the spoofs. Even the individual fan sites like this Dirty Jobs one, for example, allow viewers to get involved by talking to the host, posting programming ideas, and reacting to episodes through their discussion boards. Discovery leads off the discussion board with this statement:

"Discovery Channel is a huge fan of message boards — it's not only your chance to talk to us and each other, but it's also our chance to communicate with you and to hear your ideas."

This is a good example of open-source marketing in practice. Here, Discovery lets viewers have a say in the product (the shows), facilitates community-building (letting viewers talk to each other in a company-sponsored forum), and builds relationships between viewers and the talent (mikerowe! - Did I mention I was a fan?).

Librarians can learn a thing or two from this example. Our profession is rife with stereotypes and misperceptions. Why not make fun of them and get patrons in on the act? Rather than try to ignore or get huffy about the things in our profession that are irritating, let's engage those nuisances through our patron communities and open discussions.

Update: I wrote a post on the KnowThis.com Marketing Blog today on the topic of social media and marketing that fits with this discussion. I propose some ways in which marketers can interact with customers in these venues. You may also be interested in the free social media PR templates I mention offered by Shift Communcations. I'd love to hear your thoughts on how, when, and why we librarians should use social media marketing.

What will it take to get real with marketing?

I've been really thrilled with some of the great commentary on LM of late. This comment from Anonymous in response to a post about metrics really snagged my attention:

"In the business world marketing routinely reports to the CEO because it is deemed very important function. Yet, in the library world marketing is at a low level within the organization, almost an afterthought. Until the library directors of the world recognize, understand, and support a true marketing function, little will happen in the way of change."

I can't say that I disagree with this position. The question that I'd like to raise is, what would it take to get real marketing entrenched in libraries, and what does "real" marketing mean? To me, real marketing is:

• Pervasive. Marketing should be entrenched in all aspect of library service design and delivery. In other words, marketing is NOT posters and press releases.
• Iterative. Marketing planning is ongoing and marketing plans must be revisited on a regular basis. Staff at all levels should participated and be involved in marketing activities.
• Measurable. Marketing is meant to accomplish something. Measurements are needed to determine of those goals were achieved or if a different approach is required.
• Proactive. Marketing isn't something to fall back on when times are tough. It's a way of doing business that gets libraries from Point A to Point B using strategy and environmental analysis.

My question for you: How will we know when libraries have achieved real marketing, and what does real marketing mean to you?

Update: Shame on me for not mentioning another important characteristic of real marketing: meaningful. Real marketing derives from patron wants and needs and delivers relevant services in a meaningful context. In short, real marketing matters to patrons, not just us.

Learning from marketing in unlikely places

I'm going out on a bit of a limb here, so please bear with me and give this idea a chance. One strategy that I strongly advocate is that we should learn about marketing from every source available. Sometimes ideas come from businesses, other times they come from Psychology literature, while other times they come from non-profit organizations. In fact, we can often learn from marketing in unexpected places. Today, I want to discuss what we can learn from church marketing. Now, I'm specifically not getting into any discussion of religion or advocating any one religion or another, but there are some lessons we can glean from what's going on in modern churches.

The marketing of churches crops up in the news all the time, and it's as controversial (if not more so) as in the library world. There's actually a blog devoted to the topic called Church Marketing Sucks. In doing some reading on the site, I found that there are a lot of similarities between church marketing and library marketing:

• Like libraries, churches are often trying to expand their reach in their communities to draw in non-users.
• Monetary profit is not the ultimate measure of success for libraries or churches and there is usually no direct cost for services
• Both libraries and churches are "selling" what is, for some, an unsought product.

Surely, there are more similarities, and plenty of differences, but overall we have enough in common to learn from one another. In fact, take a look at Church Marketing Sucks' definition of marketing and see if it doesn't strike a chord with libraries. I especially like this definition:

"Marketing is the study and practice of better, faster, cheaper and friendlier. "Making things go more smoothly," as I put it to my students. The product or service a company provides is the "what" of its existence. Marketing is the "how."'

Also, under the section "Is Marketing a Dirty Word?," the author argues,

"Likewise, the process of marketing happens no matter what. We can either realize that and make sure our marketing doesn't suck, or we can ignore it and live in ignorance."

And,

"Remember that the goal here isn't to introduce slick and polished business marketing that ruthlessly targets pockets and cashes in on souls. That's marketing that sucks. Lousy clip art and typos are just as bad as glossy photos of people prettier than your congregation. The goal is being authentic and effective."

The blog is well worth taking a look at for the marketing discussions and analysis that takes place. Again, librarians can find marketing inspiration anywhere and everywhere, so keep your eyes and ears open for opportunities to look at marketing in different lights that enrich our own points-of-view.

Check out the comments!

There have been some thought-provoking comments posted to the blog in the past week or so that I'm not done addressing yet, but the latest came in today from William in response to my post, "Genius" branding moves and it deserves some special attention. William brought up some insightful points and I did my best to respond coherently. I thought you'd like to take a look at the discussion and add your own thoughts. The topic of branding (or re-branding) libraries is an interesting and important one, so I hope you'll weigh in.

Also, if you want a crash course on branding, stop by KnowThis.com's Branding and Brand Management page, which has some excellent links, including a link to one of my favorite branding sites, AllAboutBranding.com.

Request for help answered

Nancy Dowd asked me to help her in library marketing record-breaker:

"Listen we need your help. Over here at the NJ State Library we’re conducting a marketing experiment to see if we can break the record for the most comments posted on a YouTube video. The idea is to have people post their three reasons and then pass the word to five friends. Of course what makes it even better is that it will be a library video that breaks the record! Hope you post and pass the word! Thanks, Nancy"

The 3 reasons are reasons you love the library. Here's the link to the YouTube video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZeQI25n8qPQ. You can read more about the initiative on Nancy's blog.

Ok! You know what to do. Hopefully, there are more than 5 readers out there, and I added my comment, so I've done my part. Good luck, Nancy! :-)

It's here! It's here!

The new collaborative blog project I alluded to last week is now up and running! I'm hopeful it will be a terrific complement to the marketing content on this blog since the topic is design. Designing Better Libraries addresses methods and strategies for developing meaningful user experiences. The opening post sums it up nicely:

"That's what Designing Better Libraries is all about; adapting new ways of thinking and acting that will promote the development and implementation of ideas, strategies and services that will create a better library experience for the users."

You can also learn more about DBL Philosophy here.

I'll be contributing to this blog with colleagues I have loads of respect for, including Steven Bell, Brian Mathews, John Shank, Jeff Trzeciak, and Michael J. Giarlo. For the next week or so, you can expect introductions from all of us, including descriptions of the topic areas we're going to be focusing on.

What does design have to do with marketing? I know I'm preaching to the choir when I say that marketing isn't all just making posters and putting on events. There's a lot of strategy and research that goes into developing meaningful services and coherent experiences for patrons. Design, as we're talking about it, is a methodology for addressing patron needs. For my part, I'm going to be discussing creativity and innovation (and I'm pretty sure marketing will come up too!). I'm extremely excited to be involved in this project because it gives me a chance to explore these topics and identify techniques that will help librarians come up with unique, differentiated services that precisely target patrons' needs and wants, which is what marketers are always shooting for. Other DBL authors will delve into topics like instructional design, technology, and multimedia, to name some.

I hope you'll find it useful and that you'll share your own thoughts on the DBL blog. Of course, I'll still be blogging away here on LM and tying in what I learn about creativity and innovation in the marketing context as well. Enjoy!

More on metrics

Many thanks to Judith Siess of Information Bridges International for sharing with me a previous issue of her One-Person Library newsletter on the subject of metrics. The issue called, Statistics and Library Advocacy is a useful one as it addresses not only those statistics we should collect for assessment purposes, but also those numbers we should collect for marketing purposes. Judith advises,

"Statistics can serve a valuable purpose—proving your worth to your parent organization. When presenting your case to management, you must use techniques and terms that they understand: cost-benefit analysis, unit-cost analysis, value added, and the like. Use spreadsheets to illustrate your points. By using statistics and relatively simple calculations you can show that the value of what you do easily meets or exceeds the amount your institution spends on the library (including salary and benefits, the collection, subscriptions, online services, floor space, air conditioning, water/sewer, and telephone). But you must be specific and have the data to back up your case."

Also, Judith suggests (and I agree), that you should back up stats with stories whenever you can. Doing so makes the numbers more meaningful. Ultimately, it's necessary to figure out why you're collecting statistics before you start considering how to go about it. Otherwise, you could get buried in numbers that serve no purpose and don't help your case, whatever it may be.

Judith kindly allowed me to post her articles in full (PDF), so enjoy!

In case you noticed

In case you noticed, my posting has been a little more sporadic than usual. That's because I'm working on getting a collaborative blog project off the ground that I think you'll really enjoy. It will be a nice complement to the topics presented in this blog. I hope to be able to tell you more about it early next week. 'Til then, you'll just have to wait in suspense. ;-)

A matter of metrics

Earlier this week, a colleague at a school library contacted me asking about marketing metrics - what's out there, how to select them, etc. It occurred to me that this might be a common question among librarians, so I'm throwing out this offer:

E-mail me or add a comment to this post about your marketing assessment challenges and questions. I'll do some digging into your inquiries and see what relevant marketing metrics could be of use to you and how you can employ them.

I'm just getting my feet wet in this area, but I'm very interested about learning more and have some experience, both practical and academic, that I can offer. Hopefully, it'll be useful for you too! If I don't hear from anyone within a week or two, I'll go ahead and start a series of posts featuring different marketing metrics.

Customers and customer service

Sybil of the Quality Service Marketin blog writes about her take on a Maritz white paper called "Delight or Defection: The Pivotal Role of People Inside the Customer Experience" (PDF). In it, Maritz argues that companies need a better way of understanding "people issues" to properly motivate people on the front lines, which in turn increases customer retention and differentiates the service. As the executive summary states,

"By putting "people problems" at the strategic forefront, companies can turn customer experience initiatives from frustrating flops into manageable and scalable programs – programs that, if executed correctly, create a major competitive advantage in today’s less differentiated reality."

Sybil will offer more analysis of this approach in a later post, but give the piece a read in the meantime.

To round out your weekend reading, stop by the MarketingProfs Book Club Group Review. (You can learn more about Group Reviews here and the Book Club here). The book of choice this time around is Citizen Marketers. You can join in on the conversation by signing up, or you can just browse through the discussions on social media and related topics. Either way, it's pretty interesting. I have to admit, I didn't get around to reading the book in time to participate in the Book Club, but I do want to give it a try at least once. The next book will announced mid-February. MarketingProfs is being secretive about the title for now, but promise that it will be about branding and innovation (two of my favorite topics!).

Take a whiff - Marketing's in the air

The latest MarketingProf's newsletter has an article on Scent Branding that's definitely worth a read. Scent branding is, apparently, a discipline of its own (there's even a Scent Marketing Institute!). Author Leigh Duncan explains, "Used in the right way, scent branding can enhance customer (or personal) experience in a pleasurable manner. The use of scent branding in consumer purchasing environments has been shown to be influential in driving consumer purchasing as well." She also cautions would be scent-marketers to make some considerations before heaping on the perfume, such as don't depend on scent alone to build your brand.

What I found most fascinating are the organizations putting scents to work. Duncan mentions a company called Scent Air that is a provider of "in-store scent solutions." When I discovered that one of their clients is a museum, I did a little digging on their site to find out more. The Children's Museum of Indianapolis used scents of the rainforest and dinosaur dung (yep, you read that right) in its dinosaur exhibit. Also interesting, Florida Hospital used scents to decrease patients' stress and cancellation rates when they came in for MRI's. They decorated their MRI department with a beach theme, complete with the smells of coconut and ocean.

Do we think about smells when we design our spaces? Would the eye-opening smell of citrus perk up students during late-night study sessions? Would the relaxing smell of lavender make leisure reading more pleasurable for patrons? Scent is not a magic bullet, but it's fun to think about how a subtle waft of fragrance can help reinforce and define spaces while reinforcing and shaping our image.

Update: LISNews mentions an article that describes what libraries can learn from bookstores, including how to use scents.

"Genius" branding moves

In case anyone was concerned, I didn't fall off the face of the earth after Midwinter. I'm back and bloggin'. :)

I've been thinking a lot about branding and what it means to have a strong brand. Much of this thinking was prompted by the excerpt from Peter Fisk's book Marketing Genius, called "Finding the big idea that defines you," which I referred to previously as the best piece on branding I've seen. I reviewed Fisk's work more thoroughly and considered how it might relate to libraries, which I'll discuss in this post.

First, let me summarize Fisk's argument about the nature of branding. Fisk contends that powerful brands resonate with customers' aspirations and derive their value from their ability to engage and inspire people. He states, "A great brand is one you want to live your life by, one you trust and hang on to whilst everything around you is changing, one that articulates the type of person you are or want to be, one that enables you to do what you couldn't otherwise achieve." The foundation of these super-brands is what Fisk calls "the big idea." This "big idea" is the thing that the brand helps people achieve. The thing could be a skill or feeling of confidence, for example. As Fisk summarizes, "If brands are about people rather than products, then the big idea around which they are formed is more to do with what it does for people rather than the company." Furthermore, each brand has three components: Rational ("What you do for people"), Comparative ("How do you do it differently?"), and Emotional ("How do people feel about you?"). Once marketers hone in on the big idea that defines the brand and that appeals to people in one or more of these areas, they use every means at their disposal to communicate the idea. These means include everything from language to logos.

This brief synopsis doesn't do the piece justice, but hopefully you get the idea. I think I was so excited by reading this because it strikes a chord with my beliefs about how librarians can reinvigorate the library brand. I believe that libraries are services that provide people the tools and training to grow socially and intellectually. They're vast frontiers ripe for personal exploration. The more we can help people realize their goals, the more successful we become. Generally speaking, libraries' "big idea" could be summed up something like this: "Achieve your best through information and discovery." Of course, under this big theme, each library has its own big idea with roots in its particular community. (To uncover your unique branding big idea, Fisk maps out a Brand Definition strategy).

For too long, the library brand has been linked to stuff instead of people. Patrons are more likely to associate libraries with books, information, and facilities than with community and personal achievement. While there’s nothing wrong with books and information per se, these strong brand associations are limiting, as Fisk points out, "Of course, if you define your brand around your customers, based on a belief or attitude, a benefit or aspiration, rather than it being a descriptor of your existing business or product, then it gives you far more scope and flexibility in the future." Being aligned with objects rather than with aspirations makes our brand static and difficult to adapt to environmental changes, as we're finding.

To those who may argue that these sentiments are nice but a bit too esoteric and impractical, I ask that you think about your favorite brands and consider what it is about them that attracts you. My bet is that the appeal comes from one or more of the sources Fisk mentions, including: reinforcing your self image; helping you become what you hope to be; enabling you to do something, or connecting with others. For libraries to have a great brand, the brand needs to be based on great ideas. The practical decisions we make should stem from those ideas in order for people to care about what it is we can do for them. Without those ideas, we might as well just become information storage units.

To revitalize our brand, we need to take a hard look at ourselves and ask tough questions. For example, do our communications say, "We want a genuine relationship with you," or "We want to retain formality"? Do our spaces say, "Welcome! Come in and explore your potential," or "If you do come in, you must follow our rules"? How much of our branding efforts originate from a desire to support patrons' ambitions, and how much originate from our desire to showcase ourselves and our stuff? By turning the spotlight on patrons' success, we can in turn build more successful library brands.

I’ll be reading Fisk’s book, Marketing Genius, and I’ll report on other thoughts and findings in upcoming posts.

Best branding article...ever

Here it is (from allaboutbranding.com): Marketing Genius: Finding the big idea that defines you by Peter Fisk.

I'll have much more to say about this piece and its relationship to marketing by helping patrons succeed, once I fully digest this meaty read.

A taste of small things to come

[Note to readers: I've been working on this post for a while now. Every time I think I'm close to publishing it, I read a new article about mobile marketing that I should include. It goes to show how hot this topic is. It also goes to show that my aforementioned series on this topic will be pretty lengthy! This post is a preview of the my upcoming mobile marketing series as well as a taste of what's going on in the news.]

Verizon Wireless is opening up by allowing advertisers to push their ads to its customers' mobile phones, according to a NYT article. Reporter Matt Richtel writes, "The interest of advertisers in the medium stems from a theory that ads placed on mobile phones could create a particularly intimate bond with consumers. The gadgets are ubiquitous, personal, and messages could theoretically be tailored to individuals based on demographics like age, gender and location." Mobile phone advertising is a growing business, and like any such business, there is uncertainty. However, I do think librarians need to consider mobile marketing vehicles and their implications for our services and promotions.

In other news, Forrester Research released a report indicating that US consumers are primed to adopt mobile marketing. According to a research news report, " Although 79 percent of consumers find the idea of mobile ads annoying, early efforts at mobile marketing indicate consumer acceptance -- as long as marketers deliver valuable information or content, according to a study by Forrester Research." If you research mobile marketing long enough, you'll find this reoccurring theme: mobile marketing can be effective IF (and only if) marketers respect the personal nature of the medium and avoid spamming unsuspecting customers. After all, mobile phones are not just communication devices. Customers also view them as personal symbols of their individuality, and they understandably get a little upset if they perceive that symbol is being abused by marketers. (In my upcoming series, I'll talk more about people's relationship with their cell phones and mobile devices).

ClickZ summarizes the Mobile Marketing Association's (MMA) annual attitude and usage study on mobile marketing effectiveness (released only to members). The report yielded results somewhat similar to the Forrester report, stating, "Although mobile marketing participation rates may be down, mobile consumers are becoming more educated about the features and functionality of their devices and are engaging more frequently in mobile marketing campaigns. The mobile phone is becoming an essential element in a consumer's everyday life. This increased dependency on the mobile phone is expected to lead to increased utilization." The ClickZ article contains some excellent links to MMA guidelines and and common short codes (I'll explain all this in the series).

Finally, as these trends continue to grow, we'll see many more mobile marketing services providers getting in on the act. And I don't yet know what the impact of Apple's iPhone will be in this arena.

The series I keep mentioning is based on research I conducted for a services marketing course in which I wrote a marketing plan for a proposed new library service. Specifically, I looked at SMS/text messaging and its potential use as a library reference service delivery vehicle, although this technology is also used for promotional purposes by an increasing number of companies. The series will address the following topics (although I may change the number and/or order of these):

• Mobile marketing & SMS: What it is (the nature of the medium)
• What the research says
• Why librarians should care & the competitive landscape
• Examples and possibilities
• Libraries: Going mobile
• Resources, tools, and readings

The reason I'm so determined to explore mobile marketing is that technology is becoming integrated into our physical environment, and I believe we librarians are going to have to discover new ways to succeed in this new reality. Mobile devices offer one promising way to target interested patrons and reach people and their time and place of need. I hope you'll feel free to add your own insights and opinions, and ask questions about mobile marketing as the series unfolds.

Stuff worth reading (in brief)

I'm sorry to be so silent for much of this week. It's been a short week full of meetings and getting ready for my trip to Seattle for Midwinter. There's so much juicy marketing reading out there though, that I just have to pass it along, but I will have to do so in list form:

Making relationships work: MarketingProfs outlines Five Ways to Develop a Dialogue with Key 'Influencers'. Influencers are those hubs of product/service information who have a knack for guiding others. The article points out ways in which we can best interact with these important people and build an influencer program. On a similar note, Knowledge @ Wharton reports on study that reveals people are more likely to purchase something if they are "network neighbors" with existing customers (Network-based Marketing: Using Existing Customers to Help Sell to New Ones). Finally, another MarketingProfs article suggests that there's no such thing as a one-size-fits all online community, and that "microcommunities" are much more successful. The article concludes with a handy list of 5 questions people should ask themselves when building these communities.
Update: It's All Good has more to say on social networking.

Open-source soft drinks: Pepsi sent out a press release outlining its revamped marketing strategy that aims to increase interaction with its customers. Here's an excerpt from the release with some examples of what they have in mind: "Examples of the upcoming packaging designs and promotions: In the U.S., the first can, titled "Your Pepsi," will link to a website inviting consumers to help design a Pepsi billboard ad which will run in New York City's Times Square in April. Consumers in the U.S. will also have a chance to design a special paint scheme for NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon's car that will race later this year. In many international markets, designs will link to websites that enable consumers to create music and video that they can share with others. Consumers will also have access to packaging designs by some of the biggest names in sports and music." It'll be interesting to see how this works out and if there might be some inspiration here for those of us in library land.

Book of interest: BlogCritics Magazine reviews the book, Buzzoodle Buzz Marketing by Ron McDaniel. What interests me most about this book is that the author counters the traditional logic that only amazing, out-of-the ordinary products generate buzz. Instead, McDaniel believes that word-of-mouth can be generated by dedicated, front-line staff. If anyone has read it, I'd like to get your take, so please leave a comment.
Update: I've wanted to mention this for a while: Paul at the Idea Sandbox has an outstanding series of posts on being remarkable. The posts highlight books on the topic of differentiation, all of which are going straight to my ever-growing "To Read" list. This topic is one of my absolute favorites in marketing, so I'm excited to dive into these reads.

Marketing on a budget: Once again, MarketingProfs has a great article, this time on the topic of online marketing on a small budget. Some of the examples include using surveys, forums, and e-mail management sites.

Managing the external internally

KnowThis.com added another section to its outstanding Principles of Marketing tutorial: Managing External Forces. The segment outlines some common external variables that can influence your marketing effectiveness, as well as ways to cope with them. Some examples include demographics, economic conditions, and cultural and societal change.

Though libraries can be a refuge, they are never an island. Marketing planning accounts for the internal and external factors that alter how you approach your target market, or even what target market you seek.

(Check out how Seattle libraries are adapting to external changes in their "Libraries for All" campaign (via AL Direct)).

Be it resolved

BusinessWeek.com has an excellent list of marketing New Year's resolutions. #1 ("I will avoid exclamation points") is a tough one for me. The rest are all terrific - worthy of posting to your nearest bulletin board. I might add some others for librarians: I will bring a positive, "libraries rock" mentality to my marketing efforts; I will see the world in terms of opportunities for librarians to apply their services; I will not get discouraged when things don't go according to plan.

Neat blog find

About.com highlights a MBOW (Marketing Blog of the Week) called CopyBlogger written by a marketer/writer. Here's and excerpt from the blog description: "Good blogging and good copywriting share many of the same attributes — plain spoken words designed to focus on the needs of the reader by using stories, education and a clear demonstration of benefit and value. In an overly-crowded marketplace, good copywriting allows you to catch people’s attention, and smart blogging allows you to capitalize on that attention by building trust, sales and profits." The blog is intended for those who want to beef up their persuasive writing skills for the Web, particularly for blogs. Couldn't we all stand to work out our writing muscles?

Influencing the influential influencers

If you're like me, you're probably excited about the possibilities presented by word-of-mouth marketing, but are less certain about how to identify the influencers who will pass along their positive library experiences. We're not alone. Marketers are trying to answer the same question. I found a few pieces that address this topic that may help:

1. ClickZ mentions a study conducted by Yahoo! and comScore Networks that found that Brand Advocates (WOM spreaders) tend to spend more time online than non-advocates conducting searches and using social media. As the article states, "Researchers believe that as these advocates are investing more time and effort into their own decision making process, they are more compelled to talk about their purchases with others."

2. On Adotas, Jim Calhoun writes about a planning tool called a Viral Marketing Matrix in his piece, "Enter the Viral Marketing Matrix: Exploring the Template to Motivate Your Word-of-Mouth Revolution." The two dimensions of this matrix are Personal Appeal and Social Appeal (high/low). Simply stated, items of high personal appeal are things people want, and those of low personal appeal are unwanted. Similarly, items with high social appeal entail a social benefit; those with low social appeal entail a stigma. By figuring out where your services fall in this matrix, you can determine how to best present your message and what incentives you may need to offer. This approach appealed to me because I think library services can easily be thought of in these terms.

3. DoubleClick Inc., a digital marketing technology and services provider, released survey results in its report, Influencing the Influencers: How Online Advertising and Media Impact Word of Mouth (PDF). The study produced a number of interesting results, including the fact that "Influencers use more of all media, especially digital media. When building a marketing campaign that aims to reach influencers and tap the potential of word of mouth, digital media needs to be a critical part of the plan. Emerging media platforms such as online video, mobile web content, and blogs are also highly concentrated with influencers." Page 9 of the report lists recommended books for leveraging WOM.

Influencers are not necessarily the patrons who use our services the most. By learning about the characteristics of the patrons who influence others, we can better identify and engage them in our marketing efforts.

Top trends

The January 2007 Trend Briefing from Trendwatching.com has been making the rounds on in the blogosphere, but belongs here as well. Take a look at what Trendwatching foresees as the Top 5 Consumer Trends for '07.

In other trendy news, It's All Good reports on the PEW Internet study, "Social Networking Websites and Teens" and adds that OCLC will be publishing a complementary report in the spring. As an increasing number of non-teens are using these sites, I'd also be interested in knowing more about their social networking behavior. The OCLC study appears to have a broader age range (14+ years) than the PEW study (12-17 years).

Another source for marketing news and analysis

Some of you may recall that I was participating in a Marketing Forum on KnowThis.com. The Forum since been replaced in favor a blog run by the site's editor, Dr. Paul Christ. I was extremely pleased that Paul asked me to continue my participation in this new project. The KnowThis.com Marketing Blog is a great source (in my biased opinion) of marketing news and analysis. Paul writes most of the posts and I have the utmost respect for his opinions and wealth of knowledge. I think you'll find some good food-for-thought here with insightful commentary. For my part, I've committed to writing a minimum of 1-2 posts per week as I feel inspired. I'm still getting my feet wet in trying to find a voice with an audience who I don't feel I know as well as you all, but I'm having fun writing about and exploring some of the general marketing stuff I'm interested in. If this is up your alley, I hope you'll check it out.

Egads! I've been tagged!

Thank you to Nancy Dowd of The "M" Word for tagging me! So now I have to think of 5 interesting things to share about myself that most people probably don't know. So I guess that means I can skip over the obvious stuff like the fact I'm a library/marketing nerd. :) This is tougher than it sounds, but here goes nothin':

1. Other than close family/friends/co-workers, not many people know that I got engaged the weekend before Christmas to the World's Best Guy - Merry Christmas to me! I have a feeling I'll be exposed to a lot of new-to-me marketing tactics as I try to plan a wedding, so stay tuned.
2. In my younger days, I displayed artistic tendencies in the form of drawing. I was pretty good at it too. Today, I don't draw as much but I am eerily proficient at wielding an Etch-A-Sketch. I managed to impress/unnerve a few colleagues with that "skill." (By the way, I highly recommend Etch-A-Sketching for stress-relief).
3. Another hobby tidbit: I enjoy decorating cakes (and cookies, cupcakes, assorted baked goods). I'm even trained (completed Cake Decorating Level 1!). I'll be putting my decorating abilities to the test when I make a cake for a colleague's wedding in the fall when I'll have to experiment with tiers!
4. I'm an Ohio State alum and absolutely loved the time I spent in Columbus. We don't have a bad football team either! While none of this is terribly surprising, what is surprising to many is that I actually lived inside the football stadium for 2 years before they took the dorms out to make room for more stands. I remember the sound of feet stomping over my head as people cheered the team on and the icky smell of sticky pop as it drained outside the stadium the day after a game. Honestly, it was great. Ah, memories...Go Bucks!
5. Pink. I really like the color pink these days. Seems like every article of clothing or accessory I buy is pink or has pink in it. I have no idea why...

Fascinating, no? ;-) Now it's my turn to do the tagging (in no particular order): Teresa Hartman, Ken Varnum, Candi Clevenger, Paul Williams and Johnathan Silberman.

Catching up on all the marketing news that's fit to blog

Today's my first day back after a pleasant, restful holiday. I hope you are all off to a great start in the new year! While I may have taken a break from blogging about marketing, marketing news and articles kept on coming. As I'm trying to dig out from under all of it, I wanted to share some of the gems I uncovered (although, it's a bit of a stretch to say that I'm getting all the marketing news that's fit to blog...):

• MarketingProfs author Stephan Spencer takes a close look at MySpace and what makes a successful business profile work. In it, Spencer analyzes what good profiles have in common (including this one from the Brooklyn Museum) and interviews one businessman who reveals how he made MySpace work for his jewelry retail enterprise.
• Another MarketingProfs article turns the spotlight on Second Life and how to win over its residents (free registration may be required for this one).
• Nancy over at The "M" Word writes about how one library system employed some creative marketing tactics to increase its awareness among residents. The best part is that it sounds like these efforts were true community partnerships!
• FastCompany profiles a Silicon Valley start up that runs on customer power. This story of one open source business highlights the challenges and rewards of letting the customers call the shots (via KnowThis).
• The New York Times article, "Online Chat Is a Grapevine That Yields Precious Fruit", Dec. 25, 2006, (registration required), discusses how two pediatricians got their baby skin care business off the ground by including their customers and colleagues in its creation. They also leveraged online message boards and parenting Web sites, all with no marketing budget. (There's a lot to learn about marketing from others involved in professional fields!)
• The Media Daily News reports on an important WOM fact: most WOM (90%!) is spoken and the Internet is a key to sparking those conversations. Advertising Age also reports on these findings: "Word-of-mouth: The real action is offline," Dec 4, 2006; Vol.77, Iss. 49; pg. 20.

I think I'll leave it here for now. I'll discuss a couple of other interesting pieces about WOM and how to influence people to spread it next.