This talk was given at the 2014 Public Library Association Conference in Indianapolis on March 14th by David Vinjamuri. It covers self-publishing, readers advisory and specific recommendations on visual merchandising for libraries with data from the Tulsa City-County Library system and Anythink Libraries in Adams County, Colorado
3. 3
The mission of The New York Public Library is to inspire
lifelong learning, advance knowledge, and strengthen our
communities
The Seattle Public Library brings people, information
and ideas together to enrich lives and build
community.
The Denver Public Library connects people with
information, ideas and experiences to provide
enjoyment, enrich lives and strengthen our community
A mission statement exists on a piece of paper
5. 5
brand
noun
1. A promise of unique,
authentic and consistent
expertise delivering a product
or providing a service.
.
6. 6
A Brand Positioning Statement
Especially for …
Brand X is the …
that …
because only Brand X …
Angst-ridden suburbanites and their fragile, precious
children
station wagon
is safe enough for your child
has a 40-year dedication to safety
12. 12
5.3
* Institute of Museum and Library Services
5.3:
Library visits per American in 2010*
2.9%
of Americans discovered their last
book at a library
Are we Missing an Opportunity?
13. 13
Number of Books Published
0
200000
400000
600000
800000
1000000
1200000
1950:
11,022 total
2012
Bookspublished
391,768
books self-
published
270,743
e-Books
traditionally
published
316,190
books
traditionally
published
44. 44
Results from The Librarium
0
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
300,000
Volumes Circ 12/13 vs
12/12
Square Feet
255,953
106,774
135,000
18,000
65,263
22,000
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
Circ per Square Foot Circ per Volume
0.79
0.42
2.97
3.63
Central Library
Librarium
Commentary:
*
*
*
45. 45
Results from The Librarium
Central Library Librarium % change
Volumes 255,953 18,000 -93.0%
Circ 12/13 vs 12/12 106,774 65,263 -38.9%
Circ per Volume 0.42 3.63 769.1%
Square Feet 135,000 22,000 -83.7%
Circ per Square Foot 0.79 2.97 275.1%
46. Deep Display With Normal Inventory: Clustering
Pick books to
display
Cluster:
Deep display
in one
branch
Rotate
Displays
between
branches
De-cluster:
books into
normal
inventory
There’s an opportunity because bookstores aren’t helping as much these days and Amazon has not picked up the slack
The next challenge is the explosion in the number of published books – the average library could buy 14,000 books annually in 1950 – and only 11,000 were published. In 2012, nearly a million books were published
Books aren’t as expensive as they used to be. Discovery may be a bigger issue than acquisition, so …
So why not be a showroom? Libraries can no longer archive books: it’s impossible. Do you care if your patrons buy instead of borrow?
The biggest opportunity for libraries comes at the intersection of collection development, reader’s advisory and visual merchandising