Teen Read Week

™ Promoting @ your library, school, community and beyond www.ala.org/teenread

Marketing – why do it?

• • • Create awareness – if no one knows about it, what’s the point of doing it? Great opportunity to reach out to community and build relationships • This will allow you to have a solid foundation and support for future projects, causes, etc.

Chance to build awareness about the unique role the library plays in the community – highlight what you offer that folks can’t get anywhere else

Three Easy Steps to Plan

• • • Decide who you’re trying to reach Create the message • • • Include relevant details Use language your audience will understand Does it need to be translated into more than one language?

Assess your resources and determine needs • • What existing communication channels can you utilize?

Do you need to reach out to the community for assistance? If so, who do you reach out to?

Get Organized

• Create a marketing plan & schedule, by identifying: • • • The best vehicle(s) for getting the message out (library web site, schools, local radio or news stations, social media, community partner resources, etc.) The kind of promotional materials you will use (fliers, graphics for web use, emails, posters, etc.) When to get the message out and how often

Implement & Follow-up

• • Implement marketing plan • Revisit and make adjustments as needed throughout the process Evaluate marketing plan • • • • What worked? What didn’t?

Did we reach our goals? Write down suggestions for next year

Engage Teens

• TRW Flier/Poster Contest • • • • • • Hold a TRW poster contest where teens create their own TRW promotional flier Flier can be of anything TRW related • favorite book, theme interpretation, etc.

Hang up entries around library/school Hold a vote to determine winner, or have local VIPs pick the winner Winner receives a free book of their choice (or whatever the library sees fit) Use winning flier to promote your TRW activities

Be Visual

• Create a TRW display at entrance • • • Have interested teens create a TRW display or bulletin board Place display in an area with high visibility and patron traffic Provide little “take home” postcards or fliers with info about TRW

On the Web

• • Place a TRW banner on library website that links to info about your TRW activities • • General TRW logo can be found on the TRW website under the planning tab TRW digital files can be purchased from the ALA Store. Create regular reminders and announcements about TRW on library website, Twitter, and Facebook accounts

Other ideas

• • TRW bookmark contest Create a TRW recommended book list • • Ask teens for their favorite titles of the year Compile the list and create a display of the books

Promoting in your community

• • Press Release • Use the press release template located on the TRW website and distribute to local media Proclamation • • Ask your local town councilor school board to make a proclamation about TRW in your community • • Bring teens with you to the meeting to make the request Be sure to get photos to post on your web site Use the sample proclamation on the TRW site

Promoting in your community

• Public Service Announcements • • • Contact local radio stations and ask them to promote TRW as a courtesy (sample PSA scripts & recordings can be found on the TRW website) Contact local news stations and ask them to promote TRW Ask schools to promote TRW using their outdoor announcement display or closed circuit TV • Make it easy for them by providing them with messaging and artwork/graphics

Promoting in your community

• • Presentations • Ask teachers and after school providers if you can visit to talk about TRW Social Media • Tweet local schools, community partners, bookstores, etc. and ask them to help promote TRW through tweets and retweets

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Other tips and ideas

Promoting • • • • Be consistent! • Make it a priority to promote TRW & create a marketing schedule Clearly state the benefits • What will schools, teachers, the community, and most importantly, teens get out of TRW?

Make adjustments as needed to the message or method Contact the local college or university to see if any marketing students can help you out

Other tips and ideas

• • • Enlist help of others on all levels • Library, school, youth focused organizations, city, bookstores, the PTA, etc.

Engage others • • Internal: recruit circulation and reference desk staff and other library staff who interact with teens External: reach out to parents, grandparents, local businesses, community centers, etc.

Don’t reinvent the wheel • Get marketing resources by researching about similar events, causes, and ‘cause marketing’

Resources

• • • For TRW planning and promotional materials, please visit the official YALSA Teen Read Week website at www.ala.org/teenread American Library Association Marketing Resources Wiki Media Relations Handbook

Resources on Creating Marketing Plans

• Know This – Principles of Marketing • Curators of the University of Missouri – Marketing • Small Business Trends – One Page Marketing Plans