Turning the Page –Public Perceptions of Libraries

It was a busy 2 days in Nashville and by mid-day Friday I started getting behind on my blogging.  So many interesting sessions, so little time!  I left beautiful sunny Nashville Saturday afternoon vowing to write a wrap up and now that I’m back home in snowy Chicago (yes, sigh, I did say snowy) I’ll share highlights from the Spring Symposium Turning the Page sessions I attended.

Following the welcome and getting started sessions, TTP attendees fanned out to attend the smaller sessions of their choice on a variety of topics that will help them advocate for their libraries including building relationships; effective public speaking; telling your library’s story; public perception research; tips for making funding requests; project management and plan implementation.  Here’s a sampler of sessions.

The “Public Perceptions:  What research tells us” session led by Jill Bremer kicked off with Bremer asking the group what the word “perception” meant to us and why perceptions are so important.   She reviewed the results of the Gates Foundation-supported research which reveals that while people hold libraries in high regard, they are unaware of our funding challenges.

Bremer spent quite a bit of time reviewing the breakdown of type of library supporter/non-supporter:  7.1% of those surveyed are library super-supporters, they’ll support us no matter what and include trustees, friends, library staff.  Probable supporters are 32.3% of the sample.  They use the library (moms bringing their kids to story-time; “just for fun” users who check out DVD’s and hang with their friends; consultants who use the library as office; residents proud of their communities and their libraries). If actively asked, the probable supporters will most likely support us.

The next group consists of the 34% who have barriers to support, they may be financially strapped, they don’t use the library or see its value or relevancy.  The remaining 26.6 are chronic non-voters.

Bremer advised us to especially focus on the probable supporters.  They use the library but need extra attention and we need to reach out to them.  Probable supporters support us to some degree but their vote is not a given as they lack the passionate attitudes of super supporters.  They are less likely to believe in both the transformational power of the library or that their librarian is passionate about the library.  This group needs to be educated/informed.  Identify and reach out to these folks.  They may be:

Parents of afterschool kids
Storytime moms and dads
Homeschoolers and charter school students
Computer homesteaders
Avid borrowers
Local political officials
Teachers
Bookmobile uers
Meeting room users
Senior center/community partners (park district)

Take Aways:
Library supporters are not driven by frequency of visits to library.