Online library spaces and faces

I think libraries should seriously consider using social networking sites such as MySpace and/or Facebook to create an online presence.  Library patrons who are not only aware of and eager for library events and other services but also diligent about checking the library website will discover information about upcoming events, learn about special services, and search for new title purchases on their own.  The other 99% of library patrons will find out about library services by chance—a flyer about a historical society lecture might catch their attention on the way out of the library, a newspaper article might remind them that they’ve been meaning to take their children to storytime, or a friend might invite them to go to movie night together.  For those patrons who use social networking sites—61% of online adults, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project—the library can be the ‘friend’ who reminds them of movie night, story time, or the latest thriller arriving on the library shelf.

Before taking on a project like this, though, the library staff needs to consider the following questions:

1.      Do you have the staff time to commit to the project?  ‘Social networking’ is a verb, not a noun.  The library’s page needs to be active to be useful.

2.      What social networking sites do your current or potential library patrons use?  If some patrons you hope to reach use MySpace and others use Facebook, for example, will you create two library pages, or choose one site?  Which one, and why?  Quantcast.com estimates that use of MySpace is declining and use of Facebook is increasing.  On the other hand, the same estimates suggest that Latinos use MySpace more than Facebook.  If you’re trying to reach a particular demographic, you need to know where they are.

3.      What are the policies of the site you’re planning to use regarding users’ privacy and intellectual property rights?  Be sure you’re satisfied with the terms of service before signing on.

4.      Does your library already have a social media policy?  Will it need updating to cover your new activities?  If you don’t have a social media policy, consider creating one.  You might use this Policy Tool for Social Media.

5.      What other tools does your library use to communicate with patrons?  Will a social networking account reinforce or complement those other forms of communication, or might it be unnecessary duplication of effort?  How will you coordinate use of different communication methods to best effect?

6.      How will your page be useful to your patrons?  As Meredith Farkas notes in Social Software in Libraries, there’s a big difference between “being where our patrons are and being useful to our patrons where they are” (Farkas, 2007, p. 122).  Will you providing news, sharing stories, asking for suggestions and other feedback, and/or providing a portal to library services (catalog searches or chat with a reference librarian, for example)?  Do you know what your patrons would like you to provide?

7.      What objectives do you hope to accomplish with your new social networking page?  How will you assess the success of your social networking efforts? 

The pace of change in online communities is rapid.  Any decision a library makes about which tools to use will need to be re-evaluated on a regular basis. 

Farkas, M. G. (2007). Social software in libraries. Medford, NJ: Information Today.