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Most high-level library marketing goals aim to expand services into new communities and increase engagement with current users. But traditional library marketing is often geared toward reaching people who already know and love the library. Partnership marketing can help meet all your library marketing goals and it can reach entirely new audiences, while also showing a different side of the library to people who may have a narrow understanding of available resources and services.<\/p>\n
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Partnership marketing is simple, but powerful. It refers to working with organizations that can represent your services within their business activities and vice versa. Rather than paying for ads or lists, you try to understand how to help each other reach mutually beneficial marketing goals.<\/p>\n
When I worked as a producer and on-air personality for commercial radio stations, I discovered that, while money can buy limited access to specific audiences, the most effective programs are built through creative partnerships. Now that I\u2019m the Director of Marketing for the Capital Area District Libraries<\/a> (13 branches serving 23 different municipalities in the Lansing, Michigan, area), that lesson has been incredibly useful.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve ever asked a local organization to put library announcements in its publications\u2014or done that for other groups in your materials\u2014that\u2019s a very basic form of partnership marketing. But swapping email lists or social media posts is only the tip of the iceberg. Consider the following when approaching channel marketing partners:<\/p>\n Libraries are also highly trusted by many in the community. While hard to quantify, you can certainly lean into that value while making your pitch.<\/p>\nPartnership marketing can help meet all your library marketing goals and can reach entirely new audiences. #OCLCnext <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n Our work with the Wharton Center for the Performing Arts<\/a> at Michigan State University is a great example. Big shows make stops at Wharton and many library users are huge fans of the theater. We produced podcasts with cast members from Disney\u2019s Frozen<\/em><\/a>, Aladdin<\/em><\/a>, and the Lion King<\/em><\/a>. We also co-branded a special Christmas Eve Storytime<\/a> and featured it in our printed holiday guide<\/a>. In return, Wharton provided promotion for the library, including free tickets to shows.<\/p>\n Those tickets, and other promotional items from partners, help us improve our overall email marketing, too. We\u2019ve started a regular \u201cFriday Freebies\u201d item that has boosted our overall open rate by 15 percent. When we can, we schedule bigger prizes in issues that include important information about key library efforts, such as an upcoming millage.<\/p>\n As library marketers, we want to get more people to use our important resources and programs. What we offer is a community good, not a commercial proposition. But many businesses also want to support things like lifelong learning, kids programming, family time, media literacy, and career support. Think about potential partners\u2019 business goals and customers in terms of how they might benefit from a relationship with your library. You can support them\u2014and they can support you\u2014in ways that benefit everyone involved. It\u2019s a beautiful win-win.<\/p>\nTake stock of everything you can offer<\/h2>\n
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Get creative about reaching your audience<\/h2>\n
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If you want to make inroads with new users, think about all the organizations and media that they enjoy and trust. For example, to improve our reach with African American users, we pitched a local radio station with the idea to run on-air and online ads that featured the star of a popular radio show promoting titles from our digital collection<\/a>. The library isn\u2019t charged for production or the airing of radio ads, which air 20\u201325 times per week. In return, we promote the program on our webpage<\/a> and through other social media platforms, such as YouTube and Meta (Facebook). A television ad<\/a> was also created. Now in its third year, this successful partnership has evolved into the promotion of library card signup and summer reading.<\/p>\nDream big, start local<\/h2>\n
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If I told you that your public library can partner with global brands like Disney, the Olympics, and the Grammys, you might think I\u2019m overpromising. But in many cases, top-tier brands already work with local organizations. You can partner with them and take advantage of their existing relationships.<\/p>\nThe library value proposition<\/h2>\n
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