The document discusses how social marketing techniques used in public health campaigns can be applied to promote libraries. It outlines the history of social marketing and explains why it is relevant for libraries. The document then provides a step-by-step process for developing a social marketing campaign, including choosing an action, target audience, rewards, message, messenger, channels, timing, and partners. Readers are guided through each step and prompted to apply the techniques to develop an initial marketing plan for their own library.

1. Can Libraries be Sold
Like Soap?
Mary Evangeliste
Yvonne Mery
Palinet
March 16, 2009

2. By the End of This Session You Will:
• Recall the history of social marketing and its relevance to
libraries
• Identify contemporary social marketing campaigns
• Recognize the elements that make social marketing campaigns
successful
• Apply social marketing best practices to libraries
• Create an initial social marketing plan

3. Why apply Social Marketing to libraries?
• Because usually we are
not selling a product like
toothpaste
• Instead most of the time
we are selling
complicated things like
literacy, critical thinking
and civic awareness

4. Social Marketing addresses the same
types of issues as libraries
Complicated issues like
preventing forest fires

5. Why apply Social Marketing to libraries?
“There is no nobility in preaching to an audience of
one. Those of us working for the public good have
an ethical responsibility to be effective and
efficient in reaching as many people as possible."
-Katya Andresesen
Robin Hood Marketing

6. Why apply Social Marketing to libraries?
"We should stay true to our mission representing
ourselves honestly , and promise only what we
can deliver In that way we gain a competitive
advantage.... We have credibility and sincerity on
our side and we should never lose sight of that "
--Katya Andresesen
Robin Hood Marketing

7. Three caveats before we begin:
• More complicated than regular marketing
• Realize that benefits of our libraries are not self
evident
• Transform ourselves into effective communicators

8. Social Marketing by any name
• Non-profit Marketing
• Cause-driven marketing
• Value-based marketing
• Development communication
• Socially-responsible marketing

9. History of Social Marketing
• Why Can't
Brotherhood be
Sold Like Soap? -
G.D. Wiebe (1952)
• Kotler & Zaltman
(1971) coined term
“social marketing”

10. War Bonds - An early Social Marketing
Campaign

11. Public Health Embraces Social Marketing

12. Social Marketing Today

13. Your Turn
• Name, Where are you from?
• Why did you come to this workshop?
Think of a social marketing campaign that has affected
you
• What was the visual imagery?
• What was the message?
• Why has it stuck with you?

14. First step: Choose an action
Go beyond awareness to action
that is:
Specific
Feasible
Simple

15. TMI-Too Much Information?
We need to understand we are
in the persuasion business, not the information –
dissemination business.
-William Novelli

16. A simple easy to do action

17. What is the action?

19. What is the action?

20. Your turn: Choose an action
Keep in mind:
• action must be easy to do
• action must be feasible and
realistic
• action must be tied to your
target audience

21. Second step : Choose
narrow target audience

22. Two different narrow audiences
Teenage girls Pickup drivers

23. • Most people begin
smoking before age 18 so
they choose 12-17 years old
• Street level research-
staffers went out and spoke
to teenagers with video
cameras

24. Target Audience?
Different Delivery, Same Event

25. Target Audience?
Potential Donors

26. Your turn: Choose your target audience

27. Third Step: Do Research-Get to
know your audience and their values

28. Teens want to rebel
In Your Face campaign

29. It’s about your audiences values

30. Wyoming State Library

31. Wyoming State Library

32. Your Turn: What is important to your
audience?
• Research, research and research
• Choose a value that connects to your action

33. Fourth step: What is the reward for
taking your action?

34. Are benefits obvious?

36. Your Turn:
• Brainstorm five rewards/
benefits for taking your
action
• Pick the reward that best
matches the values of your
target audience.

37. Benefit + Action = Message
Now, write your message

38. Fifth Step-Craft your message
Your message should communicate the
reward that you are offering in exchange
for the action
More than a slogan

39. A Mind Is a
Terrible Thing to
Waste

40. Sixth Step: Choose a messenger
Messengers should be appeal to the
audience and be reflective of them
Messengers can be:
• Peers
• Authority figures
• Experts
• Inner circles (family members)

41. Messenger as Peer
• No adults, no authority figures
• Only adult is the enemy
• The Truth Campaign

42. Messenger as Family

43. Messenger as Authority Figure

44. Who is your messenger?

45. Your turn: Choose a messenger
• Write down three possible messengers:
peer, authority figure, expert, inner circle
• Keep your audience in mind
• Choose a messenger you believe will best
appeal to your target audience

46. Seventh step: Choose the channel
• Channel: The “thing” you’re using to
get your message out
• Examples: Billboards, blogs, TV/
Radio PSAs, magnets, door hangers,
post-it notes, brochures, post cards,
book marks

47. Shuttle buses

50. Your Turn
• Choose three possible channels for your
message
• Do not rely too heavily on traditional
channels

51. Eighth step: choose an optimal time.
As place
As time
As emotional state

52. Time as Time
New Year’s Eve Prom/Graduation
Super Bowl July 4th
CPS Week Labor Day
Spring Break Back-to-School
St. Patrick’s Day Tailgating
BUA Week World Series - Halloween
Alcohol Awareness Month Thanksgiving Holiday
Cinco de Mayo 3D Month

53. Time as Place

54. Time as Emotional State

55. Perfect time

56. Perfect time

57. Your Turn
• Choose the optimal time or times to
deliver your message
• Remember to match channel with time

58. Ninth Step: Partner, partner, partner
• Partnerships will help extend the reach of your message
• A partner can be any organization that is also trying to reach your
same target audience – private and non-profit
• Partnerships need to have a mutual benefit for both
Philanthropic
Financial
Image change or enhance
New market access

59. Private partnership

60. Partner Non-profit
• Hospitals
• Clinics
• Birthing Centers
• Federal agencies – WIC

61. Co-sponsors: EPACC, Friends of
Musselman Library, Center for Public
Service, Eisenhower Institute, Divison
of College Life, Johnson Center for
Creative Teaching, and the
Environmental Studies and English
departments

62. Your Turn
• Brainstorm possible private and non-profit
partners that could help you to deliver your
message
Ask yourself:
• Who else is trying to reach my audience? –
include those that are working on different issues
with same audience
• Is there a benefit for both partners? – If not, do
not choose them
• Choose your top three

63. Congratulations
• You are now ready to create and design
your materials and your slogan