Lisa Ann Brown

Library Social Media Series

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by

Lisa
in

Lorain Public Library System (LPLS) Social Media Series
Lisa Brown
Department of Communication, University of Delaware
COMM735: Social Media Management
August 28, 2022

Background

The Lorain Public Library System in Ohio is ready to start using social media to promote their services, but is unsure of the best way to do this. 

Content Calendar

Cadence

RivalIQ does not have specific benchmarks for public libraries, so I looked to similar industries. According to All-Industry Social Media Benchmarks by RivalIQ, higher ed posts 6.9 times a week to Facebook, and nonprofits post 7.6 times a week.

  1. Based on this, I think posting on Facebook once a day would be ideal for the Lorain County Public Library.
  2. Post categories
    1. Program promotion
    2. Memes
    3. Book recommendations
    4. Librarian spotlight
    5. Community-building
    6. Informational

According to All-Industry Social Media Benchmarks by RivalIQ, higher ed posts 3.5 times a week to Instagram, and nonprofits post 4.5 times a week.

  1. Based on this, I think posting on Instagram 4 times a week would be ideal for the Lorain County Public Library.
  2. Post categories
    1. Program promotion
    2. Memes
    3. Book recommendations
    4. Talking to & featuring librarians

Six Native Posts

Post #1

  • Post Date: Tuesday, Jul 5, 2022
  • Event Date: Sunday, Jul 10, 2022 (National Teddy Bear Picnic Day)
  • Category: Program promotion
  • Platform: Instagram
  • Target Audience: Parents and caregivers of children ages 6 & under
  • Caption: Celebrate National Teddy Bear Picnic Day with us! Bring your favorite fluffy friend and join us for games, snacks, and fun at the North Ridgeville Branch on Sunday, July 10 from 11am-noon!
  • CTA: Click Here to Sign Up
  • Hashtag(s): #lpls #lorainpubliclibrarysystem #teddybearpicnic #picnicparty #library #publiclibrary #libraryprogram #NorthRidgeville

Post #2

  • Post Date: Thursday, Jul 7, 2022
  • Category: Memes
  • Platform: Instagram
  • Target Audience: Avid female readers, age 18-49
  • Caption: Words of wisdom from Lemony Snicket. 
  • CTA: Click Here to download the Horseradish eBook!
  • Hashtag(s): #bookstagram #bibliophile #booklover #lpls #lorainpubliclibrarysystem #libraries #publiclibrary #quotes #QuoteOfTheDay #LemonySnicket

Post #3

  • Post Date: Wednesday, Jul 6, 2022
  • Categories: Book recommendations, community-building
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Avid female readers, age 18-49
  • Caption: Today’s request is from @Olivia Jade. She says, “I recently read Where The Crawdads Sing, and really liked it. It’s the first book I’ve read in years. I really liked the mystery of it, as well as the isolated seclusion.
  • CTA: Any recommendations on what to read next?

Post #4

  • Post Date: Monday, Jul 4, 2022
  • Category: Informational
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Library patrons, age 18-49
  • Caption: All LPLS branches will be closed today, Monday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day.

    Looking for something to read? Download ebooks, audiobooks, magazines and more at https://www.lorainpubliclibrary.org/elibrary!
  • CTA: Download ebooks, audiobooks, magazines and more at https://www.lorainpubliclibrary.org/elibrary!

Post #5

  • Post Date: Saturay, Jul 9, 2022
  • Category: Program promotion
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Library patrons, age 13-18
  • Caption: Join us for a July scavenger hunt at your branch library! 

    1. Pick up the checklist at the front desk.
    2. Take a photo of each item. Get creative!
    3. Bring your completed list & photos to the front desk to get your prize!

    Be sure to tag us #LPLSFound on social media!
      
  • CTA: 1. Pick up the checklist at the front desk.
    2. Take a photo of each item. Get creative!
    3. Bring your completed list & photos to the front desk to get your prize!

Post #6

  • Post Date: Friday, Jul 8, 2022
  • Category: Librarian spotlight
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Library patrons, age 18-49
  • Caption: Alice Andrews
    Library Associate-Children’s Services
    North Ridgeville Branch

Currently Reading:
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (Download at: https://bit.ly/3y9OE3H)

Favorite Book:
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
(Download at https://bit.ly/3OcTHpP)

Favorite Movie: Singin’ in the Rain (Watch at https://bit.ly/3N9jUUY)
  

KPI Close-Ups

Customer Engagement

  • Category: Community-building
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Lorain County residents who are avid readers, female, and age 18-49
  • Caption: Anyone else looking for something new to read this summer? 🌞 Leave a comment & let us know – what’s your favorite book of all time?
  • CTA:  Leave a comment & let us know – what’s your favorite book of all time?
  • Hashtag(s): #lorainpubliclibrarysystem #whattoread
  • ROI: From this content, we’re expecting to have a 1000% increase in comments compared to last week’s mean. 

Leads

Only 34% of senior citizens have used the library in the past year. This program is designed to make it easier for them to get to and use the library. 

  • Category: Program promotion
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Lorain County residents who are senior citizens age 55+
  • Caption: Join us every Tuesday for Lunch at the Library! A shuttle leaves from the Senior Center at 11am. We enjoy lunch in the library, then have free time until the shuttle leaves to go back to the Senior Center at 1pm!
  • CTA: Click Here to Sign Up
  • Hashtag(s): #lorainpubliclibrarysystem #publiclibrary
  • ROI: From this content, we’re expecting to have a 25% increase in senior citizen library program attendance compared to July 2021’s average attendance. 

Sales
While book sales can be a great source of income, patrons are often only looking for certain types of books when they attend. By breaking up our yearly book sale into twelve monthly themes, we can better target people based on their interests and increase our overall sales.

  • Category: Program promotion
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Lorain County Library patrons age 18-49
  • Caption: July we will be featuring children’s books at our monthly book sale! We’ll have everything from baby books through high school level. Stop by at the North Ridgeville Branch from Friday July 8 to Sunday, July 10 from 11 am to 5pm.
  • CTA: Click Here to download flier.
  • Hashtag(s): #lorainpubliclibrarysystem #booksale
  • ROI: This year, we want to double our book sale income from last year’s annual sale. Since we’re switching to a monthly sale, we’re calculating a 200% increase, divided over 12 months, which will give us 17%. So, from this content, we’re expecting to have 17% of the sales generated at last year’s total book sale.     

Customer Loyalty

I think the way to create customer loyalty is to create experiences for patrons. “A study by Harris Group found that 72 percent of millennials prefer to spend more money on experiences than on material things.” (Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/05/millennials-are-prioritizing-experiences-over-stuff.html) So, I’m proposing the Lorain Public Library System create an Adventurer’s Club. Each week, the “club” (open to anyone who attends) gets together to participate in a bucket-list type activity. I think it will be an excellent way to create loyalty around the library, as well as be a great source of word-of-mouth advertising.  

  • Category: Program Promotion
  • Platform: Facebook
  • Target Audience: Lorain County residents, ages 21-40
  • Caption: Looking for some adventure? Tag a friend & join the LPLS Adventurer’s Club for a hot air balloon ride on Saturday July 23! 
  • CTA: Click Here to Register
  • Hashtag(s): #lorainpubliclibrarysystem #lplsadventurersclub
  • ROI: Our goal is to have 50% of attendees who previously attended an Adventurer’s Club program.