On-line Outreach: 2.0 Marketing Strategies for Libraries with Sarah Houghton-Jan

EI Program Calendar Audio Conference Tuesday, September 4, 2007 1:00 pm ET One Hour Member: $54.00 Non-Member: $74.00 TECH TUESDAYS: TALKING WITH TECHIES Libraries have always marketed their services to their potential users. In this brave new world of the on-line environment, we need to rethink, or in some cases invent, our marketing strategies in this arena as well. Sarah will talk about practical ways for libraries to get the library out there where the users are on-line. There are dozens of quick, easy, and free ways to get your library listed on sites and services that your users already use on a regular basis. There are ways to make sure that the library is not isolated on-line, but rather integrated into your users' overall on-line experience. You'll leave this session with tools and a step-by-step checklist to take back to your library. Who Should Participate? Anyone interested in learning more about ways to reach out to users on-line should attend this Web conference. No advanced technical knowledge is needed--just the ability to navigate the Web in general. The Key Benefits For Participants: Most libraries don't do such a good job at marketing themselves, period. And nearly all libraries have so far failed to think about the avenues of marketing opportunities on-line. By following some or all of the items recommended in Sarah's checklist, your users will no longer need to remember to come to the library's Web site for all of their needs--the library's Web content will be right there with them at their point of need. Key Topics to be Explored: social networking services event listings on-line user rating sites free wi-fi directories search engine optimization getting video and audio content in the right directories Sarah Houghton-Jan Sarah Houghton-Jan is the Information and Web Services Manager for the San Mateo County Library. She serves on the Library and Information Technology Association’s Top Technology Trends Committee and is a consultant instructor for the Infopeople Project, a group that trains librarians on technology throughout California. Sarah received her MLIS from the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign and a MA in Irish Literature from Washington State University. She has been published widely in library and technology publication’s, has presented internationally on library topics, and writes daily for her blog about libraries and technology, LibrarianInBlack.net. Developed for the Education Institute by Darlene Fichter’s Northern Lights Internet Solutions, Inc. in Saskatchewan