Marketing theLamar Public Library to

area Teens

Joe ArthurDebbie ReynoldsErika ZeitzLI850 Management of Information AgenciesJuly 28, 2006

Attracting teens to Public Libraries

Research– Importance of providing space for teens in

libraries (I’ll post another article soon).– Need to be able to feel free and safe to express

themselves. – Others???

Stage One: Identify Target Audience

Identify community target– Teen/Young Adults are currently 25% of the

patrons nationwide (Bishop & Bauer, 2002 p. 36)- % Teen/YA patrons at Lamar Public Library.

Distribute survey to all teen/YA patrons with Lamar Public Library cards.

– Offer incentives to target patrons who complete and return survey.

Candy bars. Coupons.

Stage Two: Goals & Objectives

Establish goals and objectives– Objective

As part of our mission statement we strive to provide services for all age groups within our community. The teen/YA age group has recently been identified as an underserved population at the Lamar Public Library.

– Goals To attract more teen/Young adult patrons to Lamar Public Library. Gain support of library board, and community to remodel current

Teen/YA space in the library. Build on popularity of teen poetry contest held in spring 2006. Create space that teens/Young adults can call their own in the

LPL.

Potential Problems with current space to attract teens to use the Lamar Public Library

No designated space for teens to hang out that is just for them.– Current space for teens shared with adult large

print books.

Limited programming offered for the teen population:– A homework/tutor help day once a week during

school year.– Teen Poetry Contest held in March of 2006.

Stage Three: Strategies, Ideas

Develop activities and strategies– Move adult large print books to new shelving within adult fiction area.– Paint mural in this section; use local teen artists.– Create space for such programs as which will be limited at certain times

to Teen/YA usage only.– Build on popularity of poetry contest.

Create a Poetry Café Program– Create additional programs to utilize space

Graphic Novel/Movie Discussion Group Create Teen Advisory Group “Library After-Hours Night”

Conduct audience assessment to tailor strategies– Allow activities with limited adult supervision.– Create small advisory group to suggest potential programs.

Stage 3 continued

Develop a plan to implement activities– Present proposal to board to create a space for teens/YA.– Seek support for programs

Friends of the Library. Grant opportunities or fundraisers.

Other Resources (support, training and information) YALSA: Young Adult Library Services Association, division of ALA

http://www.ala.org/yalsaTemplate.cfm?Section=yalsaYALSA also sponsors the Great Book Giveaway--could help collection

development.(http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/awardsandgrants/yalsasgreatbook.htm

Colorado Library Consortium (CLiC) http://www.clicweb.org/

Proposal for Space for Teen/YA Programs

Budget – Printing and distributing surveys.– Purchase of incentives.

i.e. candy bars.– Painting of walls and mural

2 gallons for walls. Pay local high school for art supplies and paint. Offer small donation for painting of mural to art program - $250.00.

Purchase furniture and posters– Furniture– Posters

Advertising Staff time Food (always a good thing when teens are involved)

Step Four - Determining Evaluation--Quantitative & Qualitative Measures

Quantitative Measures: Keep statistics on use of teen

area Statistics on program attendance Adherence to budget limits.

Step Four Continued

Qualitative Measures: Create evaluation form for programs. Exit polls and informal interviews with participants. Talk to staff: how do they see new teen programs

going? (Address challenges at a later time, but note what the challenges to staff are).

Invite city council members to be part of the fun and evaluation process.

LIBRARY PROGRAM EVALUATION FORM*

Please tell us what you thought about today’s program. It’s the onlyway we’ll ever know how to improve.

Please complete the following statements by checking the answeryou think is most appropriate.

1. This program was

______Organized _____Somewhat together ______A total mess.

2. This program was also

_____Interesting _____Somewhat interesting _____A big yawn.

3. Because of this program I’d like to:

__check out books and other materials.__use the computer at the library.__come to the library just to hang out more.__volunteer at the library.__become a librarian!

4. I use the public library

__All the time ___Pretty often ___If I’m dragged here ___This is myfirst time.

Please tell us what you liked about today’s program:

Other Comments:

*Adapted from Jones, P. (1998). Connecting Young Adults and Libraries, 2nd. ed., New York:Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., p.213.

Library Program Evaluation Form

Step Five: Analysis

Do stats reflect YA population? Did we stay within budget? Response to changes. --Staff: Any transitions difficult or easy?

--Library Users: What did people enjoy? Was the experience educational?

Step Six

Re-evaluate library usage by Teens/YAs at six months and one year.

– Modify programs as needed. Because of large geographical area

served by LPL, think of expanding to a web environment as well.– Blog– MySpace page– Consider IM availability

Bibliography

Alessio, A. and Buron, N. (2006). Measuring the Impact of Dedicated Teen Service in the Public Library. YALS (Young Adult Library Services), vol. 4, no. 3, pp 47-51.

Bishop, K. and Bauer, P. (2002). Attracting young adults to public libraries. Journal of Youth Services in Libraries vol. 15, no.2, pp. 36-44. Retrieved July 10th from Hwwilsonweb at http://www.emporia.edu/libsv/databases.

Chelton, Mary K. (2005). Perspectives on YA Practice. Common YA Models of Service in Public Libraries: Advantages and Disadvantages. YALS (Young Adult Library Services, vol.3, no.4, pp3-6, 11. Retrieved July 10th, 2006 from Hwwilsonweb at http://www.emporia.edu/libsv/databases/

Bibliography Continued

Jones, P. (1998). Connecting Young Adults and Libraries, 2nd ed. New York: Neal Schuman Publishers, Inc.

Jones, P., Gorman, M., and Suellentrop, T. (2004). Connecting Young Adults and Libraries, 3rd ed. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc.

Note: The 3rd edition contains lots of material about newer technologies and more case studies from workshops.

Taney, K. B. (2003). Teen Spaces: the Step-by-Step Library Makeover. Chicago: American Library Association.