Libraries & sustainability: programs and practices for community impact

Abstract

practising and teaching strategic marketing planning and related areas. It is obvious from the content of the book that he is knowledgeable in both marketing and its application in library settings. It is a strength of this work that Kendrick is able to combine the two disciplines into one highly relevant guide. The content is organised into a logical order which can be worked through sequentially, with each chapter focusing on a different aspect required to create an effective strategy. These chapters centre on creating an overarching ambition for engagement activities reflecting on the library’s mission statement, providing a context and toolkit for understanding the wider marketplace, understanding segmentation and value, considering how wider stakeholder groups can be engaged and supported, and developing rationale and priorities. The handbook then moves on to how to make your messages for identified groups meaningful rather than informational, choosing the right informational channels including social media channels and finally moving on to evaluation techniques for your engagement activities. Pitfalls are discussed throughout, and the book concludes with final tips and tricks to assist in the whole process. While the ideal approach would be for practitioners to work through the book and develop a comprehensive strategy, it is also possible to delve into different aspects in each chapter to refine an already developed marketing and engagement strategy. For example, there is a section on creating effective surveys and other data-gathering exercises, another on rebranding services, and another on digital channels such as the library’s website social media channels, all of which could be used alone. The book uses easy to understand language and succeeds in avoiding jargon. There are examples throughout to demonstrate concepts in a variety of library settings as well as providing templates and diagrams for reuse. There is a detailed index and a list of further reading. There is a lot to like about this book. Its real strength is in applying professional marketing and user engagement principles directly to libraries. The concepts are relevant to every type of library no matter the size of the library or its purpose. The book covers topics libraries grapple with all the time: big picture concepts such as how to engage users and non-users, to the more specific topics such as preparing a survey. It manages to address these topics in a useable, practical way. Highly recommended.