Introducing Reader Development
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Slides to support CILIPS Reader Development training programme November 2011 run by Liz Moffat and Elizabeth Farr, Striling Councilr
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Introducing Reader Development
- 1. Making the most of our stock Introduction to Reader Development
- 2. Mission Statement for Reader Development ‘ The best book in the world is quite simply the one you like best and that is something you can discover for yourself, but we are here to help you find it’
- 4. The Five Minute Borrower Using Space Effectively
- 10. Displays
- 11. Mixed Messages
- 12. Eye catches on approach
- 15. Victim of success! Keep filled
- 17. But you don’t need a huge budget
- 18. Marketing the Library Service in Stirling
- 29. Negative Image
- 31. Positive Images
- 39. Statistics to prove its all working
- 44. Liz Moffat [email_address] 01786 432388 And Elizabeth Farr [email_address] 01786 432389
Notas del editor
- In 2001/2002 I started to receive Opening the Book training which was paid for by SLIC. It was a two year training plan and it changed the way libraries in Scotland worked with their readers. Opening the Book came up with the concept and it was ‘ selling the sizzle not the sausage’ .This was something we heard time and time again. I guess they came up with the ideas friom things like when you are clearing out your dead stock and have a trolly load of books , the public just won’t leave them alone, will they? Or the returns trolley, people flock to it? So I received all this training and it was extended and it really revolutionised what was happening in Stirling. Before training there was only one reading group, now there are around 8 or 9 library based groups and around 30 private groups we are in contact with. I guess I have been asked to give this course today bacause of what we have done with all that training , how we have applied it and rolled it out to other staff. Reader development was a break away from the product and moving towards the reader. If you read this…you will feel that ----Thrilled!! Riveted!! Amused!! Rather than ‘this is the fourth book by Jodie Picoult blah blah blah When I did a promotion to Council offices way back, I sent an e-mail to tell people I was coming up and I also included a reader centred spiel about a couple of books I was bringing up. Guess which books moved first? I could have sold the worst book in the whole library that way! This is the power of a reader centred approach. They were all busy people but I was selling them something to make them feel better, happy, sad whatever. On that line another promotion we did was a national promotion called ‘Bite sized’ and this was little books for very busy people.
- So Reader development is Active Intervention between people and the book Open up reading choices Raises the status of reading as an activity (And this is important to us!!) We shouldn’t be selling the library as ‘More than just books’ because this infers that books are not all that great – books are still our business and we’re proud of it!! So programme today will be very interactive – I am going to get you working, give you ‘ hands on’ experience. And I hope I am not repeating too much of what you may have had at other courses in this series, but sorry in this respect we are all singing from the same hymn sheet and it is because we have all had the same training. Not the latest Man Booker winner, not a heavy classic Try Something different Whichbook.net
- All readers, including you, are entitled to their personal reading preferences, of course, but in a public service like the library you need to find a way to put these aside and deal with books more objectively Libraries are for everyone. We all say this but it needs real action to make it true. Access doesn't only mean opening the doors and having an entrance ramp. Once you actively consider how to widen choice for readers, and act on what you discover, you are making a really important contribution to equal access. How you personally promote and recommend books affects equal access to your library. If you promote a narrow range of books that you know regulars will like - only regulars will visit. The most effective thing you can do to send a strong message that the library has something for readers under 30, for instance, is to select books aimed at them and make them prominent and attractive so it’s the first thing new visitors, or passers by, see when they come into your library.
- 75% of people going into a busy library, not the small branches because they are a well known readership, but the bigger libraries. 75% don’t really know what they want, so we are organising the library for the 25% who know what they want and where to find it. Most people also only spend an average of 5 minutes in the library, studies have been done, so we need to catch that 75% and offer them something they want to try within 5 minutes. I would mention GOMA here, everything I would want in a library. Nice decor, no clutter, couches and the smell of coffee are all tactics to make you stay in the library longer than that five minutes. Galashiels has had a fortune spent on it, been refurbished but doesn’t have that cosy, welcoming feeling. Today I will hopefully show some ways to make people stay longer and also how to get the most from your book stock.
- OK what do we have Staff Amenability and profitability are linked, it has been proved, take care of the former and the latter is guaranteed. Publishers are now realising that libraries and librarians are connecting with their readers in a way that bookshops don’t manage. In the past they have always dealt with bookshops exclusively. I was at an event in the Mitchell library for the reader development co-ordinators. Publishers had asked to meet us along with half a dozen authors and The Reading Agency, who are doing a lot of work to connect writers, publishers and readers.Libraries are carving a unique role in offering reader centred activity.Waterstone’s now want to work with us and seek us out Our libraries have had a few events with new authors launching their books. The publishers provide the food and drink and the author. We just provide the venue. Our staff know their readers and are not afraid to get out from behind the desk to go and talk to them. Wide range of products Internet Services, Know UK etc., Downloadable Audio, Pro Citizen, Theory test online, languages online, e-books Good back catalogue of stock, not just authors current titles We have the consistent access to readers so reader centred approach is a natural fit for us.
- We can’t really do anything about buildings and location without huge investment Book Festival has helped to change the profile of libraries. Many people thought it was the Tolbooth, Albert Halls and MacRobert putting on these events. We certainly let everyone know it was libraries. We have raised the profile by showing our professionalism and polish. Banners are excellent! 16 days of action leaflet, amazed and pleased with the quality of our input to the campaign and buzzing around Viewforth We have stemmed the decline in issues since these courses and with the introduction of the Mystery shopper, librarian’s wish list etc. Not just this course but stock management system, stock promotion policy etc. working through notes, realised we have come a long way. We have also changed the negative image of being boring
- First impression is the Transition Zone, then there is the power spot, the counter area, displays, then guiding signs. Sometimes the counter is right in the power spot and this is wrong. St Ninians is Ok - to the side Our last impression should also be of the power spot, book display, so it has to be right. Transition zone - from outside to inside, relaxing customer on the way, WOW factor, no posters no clutter. If you watch someone coming in to the library, you will see that they keep moving, they don’t stop dead the minute they are inside the door. They are slowing down, adjusting their eyes to the light in the space, their senses are analysing sound and smell, feeling warmth or cold . It is a few seconds before they are actually here, so it is pointless putting anything up or laying out posters in that transition area. I bet people still ask where the toilet is? If you were to say ‘Can I help you’ during that few seconds the answer would definitely be ‘No’. People need a landing strip. Create an ambiance, with smell, colour etc. There is nothing like the smell of coffee for making you want to stay. Make the space spacious, give the customer room. GOMA -- SIGNAGE Nottingham - Counter area- de-clutter to give a more streamlined professional look. In an ideal world it would be better to have a very small counter with staff more on the shop floor rather than behind counters. Staff pleasant and smiling and always there for the customer first, rather than their own work (Laura Ashley v Disney Store ). Counter has to show this. Not in your face however, but we’ll come to that in a minute. Some of our libraries are going to be doing away with the counter altogether, we will have RFID for circulation and small area for enquiries. This leaves staff free and accessible.
- St Ninians is a good library and always has good displays up, but as an exercise: When you go back to your library, look with a fresh eye or go into another branch in your authority and see what points you could improve on. Just going on what we have been discussing, critical comment, no slagging. And see the difference.
- Returns trolley Leave the paperbacks and the books for readers under 40. A Returns area that is constantly re-shelved and empty is a wasted promotional tool. 1 One thing you will notice is how few people read hardbacks. Book industry research says that practically nobody under 40 would choose a hardback over a paperback. A paperback is portable and much more convenient for most readers. 2 A reader centred promotion will make topping up easier. Read all about it. Journeys The latest Tesco Summer Read = Books to make you laugh Here’s the first tip for picking books for popular promotions: 3 When you pick books for a promotion, have a wide concept, makes topping up easier 4 Separating books on age appeal in this way does not stereotype readers, it is simply a way of making choices clearer. Older readers with young tastes are free to choose from a younger-appeal display and vice-versa.Young Offenders… trying to escape the traditional read usually offered in that genre. They will have covers that don’t use the expected images or colours and employ different graphic styles from the mainstream books in the genre. Look in your poetry section for the popular contemporary anthologies and new, accessible poets. It’s worth mixing in one or two to get them noticed. rescue them from their Dewey classification
- Show books here with authors larger than titles etc. (activity) Reading cover signals Cereal - Sugary(sweet, romantic) – Cornflakes(run of the mill) – Muisli(something a bit more interesting) Checkout girl has to display all cereals, even ones she doesn’t like, not just the type she has for breakfast. Cornflakes don’t need much advertising and it is difficult to supply demand if you want them, you want them – same with Catherine Cookson, so why promote them. Restaurant menu too Acetate stands, display units, 360 degree displays - Look at books to display - cereal analogy. Face on displays. When Edinburgh City Libraries started to put most of their books on face on displays, their issues increased Non Fiction 25% increase, fiction an incredible 90% increase. The most reliable zone for display is just above eye level to knee level. Anything above or below that is wasted unless someone has a specific to look for. Large clear type in high contrast ` works best To pick a good range of books, you need to bring books together from all over the library to catch the eye of browsers. You could agree that the reason that some types of books don't issue in their library is that few people who would like them actually come in Catch 22 . The reason that those kind of readers don't come in is because they don't think that there is anything in the library for them.
- Displays - less is more, don’t need a lot of money. By making a prominent display of books for readers under 40 that can be seen from the entrance or through a window creates a showcase that aims to surprise all those people who pass by or pop in who think the library won’t have any books to interest them. The most effective thing you can do to send a strong message that the library has something for readers under 30, for instance, is to select books aimed at them and make them prominent and attractive so it’s the first thing new visitors, or passers by, see when they come into your library. To attract new users, to interest current users in a wider range of stock, it needs to be visible, to be rescued from the spine on shelves and displayed so that readers can discover them. Books to make you laugh!! These will mostly be books that make you laugh and will appeal to other readers who enjoy the same kind of humour that you do. That leaves out lots and lots of readers who don’t find those books funny and therefore won’t find your promotion attractive at all. To widen the appeal, you would need to widen the range beyond your own preferences. You would need to go back to the shelves and look at the cover clues on the books. The blurb on the back and the endorsements are a good indication of whether the book is intended to be humorous or not. The style of cover illustration or image will also give the reader a signal. By using these simple clues – and the fact that you wouldn’t touch them with a bargepole - you could find an equal number of books that don’t do much for you, but will succeed in attracting a wide range of readers who are different from you.
- Don’t put aisles too close, leave plenty of space around displays. No-likes the bum brush feeling and will move away if they feel there is a chance of that happening. A lot of displays are flat against wall or shelf end and most people are approaching from right angles, so would only see the side of the dumpbin. Research shows that people start browsing displays from about 20 feet away, so they can already decide what to take, so it is important that they see the covers on approach, so that this additional browsing time can happen. It has also been discovered that same colour displays don’t work very well. Opening the book started this phenomenon, but have backtracked since then. If you have all red books together, all blue, all green etc. , it makes it difficult for the eye to pick out one title that is interesting. This also proves research is being done all the time - no definite answer - constantly evolving, constantly correcting
- Design wise this type of dumpbin is not ideal anyway, we have dumped them for good quality wooden display furniture. Books sit too far into it. There was recently a free offer from the Reading Agency for the old cardboard type dumpbins – I didn’t even apply for these as freebies, we don’t use them. If you need to use the cardboard ones it is best to plump out with books behind, so that the books in front are more visible
- Everything’s coming up roses We have really good quality headers and a small design team working on them all the time. We have a Stock promotion group and a stock promotion policy which states that each library will undertake at least two face on displays a month. Librarians and Library Officers can feed in to the stock promotion group what designs they would like so everyone is generating ideas. Stock Promotion Group meets quarterly and makes sure the policy is being adhered to . It is updated annually too.
- Staff commitment to refill Difficult in a one person branch, but important. Better to take the display away for a while than to have it like this Have a wide concept!! Again, the header could be more inventive. If you have a specific themed promotion it would be better to have a spare header like ‘Quick Reads’ or something for in between times A Bite to Read
- Face on issues again 90% fiction 25% non-fiction Incredible difference Buy the feature fillers from Opening the Book, with comments etc on them Shelf fillers are quite cheap. Staggered book shelf displays for differing eye levels, but could create interest in themselves
- You can plump out the face on with books behind. Again you need staff commitment Two or three titles face on amongst spine on shelves. Use acetate stands, feature fillers or books behind to plump out RIGHT Exercise!!!! I have headers here and split into groups of four again – choose a header and have a go at making up a display going on what we have just been discussing
- Ask for ideas – what are you already doing? Promoting the service in a positive fashion to raise the profile of the Service, increase issues and library use
- Original Marketing Plan produced in 2003, nothing done with it. Revised 2006 and is currently being updated to reflect the role and importance of marketing the Library Service. The remit is responsibility for: Surveys and customer feedback Market research Customer Care Maintaining the appearance of libraries Mystery Shopping Campaigns Publicity Marketing is an integral Action within the Service Plan and at the quarterly Scrutiny Group meetings, members of the Scrutiny Group have the opportunity to ask for a progress report and to suggest revised timescales. This keeps it as a “live” issue. Marketing Group – all levels of staff and from the Community Libraries and Library HQ Established a Design Team, invested in specialist software and trained the Team in its use. Made the commitment that these staff would have the time to produce the publicity as part of their working day. Ensured that all publicity is now done by this Team to a required standard – no more “home-made” posters or Word Art
- Opposition – Supermarkets, Media – TV, DVDs, Music shops, Car boot Sales, Markets, Cinema, Sports Centres, the internet. Bookshops can also be the opposition – BUT set up a partnership with your local bookshop and work together. We have developed a very good partnership with Waterstones in Stirling and they come to all our author events. When they can’t come, they send us the books to sell. Mystery Shopper – what it’s purpose was (NOT to judge the staff) – questionnaire. Money was spent updating furniture, buying new display features, like dumpbins – but not in cardboard – display units, signs. Tatty posters were taken down and replaced with new, laminated ones Standard styles were developed. We also invested in banners – generic ones and for Off the Page. Portable, eye-catching, not too bulky when raised. The next stage is to look at doing the mystery shoppers with other library services. This is under discussion. Some already do this & we plan to work with them
- It’s all common sense & you may feel I am preaching to the converted How do you like to be treated when you enter a shop? That welcome (or lack of it) is what stays with you. Greet people as you like to be greeted. If necessary, apologise for the delay in attending to them - done automatically in M&S, regardless how long (or not) you have been waiting. It makes you feel that you have, at least, been noticed, that the assistant is aware of your existence Sunday’s experience in Boots Remember, if you are having a bad day, you can’t let the library users see it.
- Be aware of what your customers are doing. If someone looks as if they need help, approach them and ask if you can help Be ready to listen if someone wants a chat. You might be the only person they speak that day If they complain about something, eg to pay fines, maybe they have been having a bad day & being asked for this, is the last straw Listen, but know how to disengage if someone else needs assistance. Don’t make that first person feel they have been a nuisance. Be pro-active As I said, it’s all common sense.
- Work with your Council Design and Communications Team. Contact them at the early stage of a project. They can refine ideas and sometimes help with funding Next few slides will show the results of this
- Festival brochure – recognisable brand image. Festival logo and the Heart of Stirling brand – this ensures that the publicity receives national distribution with other Council publicity and this can be with little cost to the Library The Council Design Team input helped to ensure better publicity
- A selection of posters, promoting different aspects of the Service and incorporating the Council brand. The map picture – when we produced a calendar, this was the cover for it. It was taken by a Council Employee and permission given to use it.
- Make use of any free papers in the area. We find that they are better at publicising events and activities than the main local paper. Target what publicity you send to them to the area where they base themselves. Often they will send a photographer to an event, then publicise it. And that is the publicity you cannot pay for. Off the Page publicity was sent all over the place to every paper and news organisation. Two years ago that paid off, when the Fred McAuley Show featured the Festival.Last year the Book Café highlighted Off the Page This is when it can pay off doing your own publicity – often going out under the Council Press Office heading can be a disadvantage How you start your press release is important. You need to catch the reader’s attention with the first sentence.
- Use of the website to let the public know what is happening in the Service. This may need working round any Council restrictions on web style. Flickr is a good way to let the public see what events have been taking place. We put the pictures from our events onto it. This year we developed a FAcebook page for Off the Page and we are now looking to develop it more widely for library information. We also used Twitter extensively and with these, we developed a communication with our authors, which worked well. We have a WiKi for the different Reading Groups and they go in and add their comments about the books they have read and have discussions with members of other Reading Groups.
- Lessons learned
- Negative image What message does this give? This was taken more than several years ago & 3 of the people featured are no longer working with us. But we keep it in to show you all a negative message.
- Positive image
- Positive image
- Positive image As you will see, we have developed an image for the Book Festival. Banners are portable and much more effective than displays. Have banner, will travel. And then you have the …………….
- How do you know your Marketing is working? Don’t be afraid to make changes if something you have tried doesn’t work. Eg Evaluation forms for the Book Festival showed that the radio campaign was the least identified method of people finding out about the Festival. This was despite a series of adverts throughout the day on all the programmes. So we stopped using local radio and concentrated on other methods of advertising. Free DVD offers Potential of using local firms for sponsorship in a joint competition
- Evaluation is necessary to assess the success of whatever you are doing. surveys feedback forms evaluation forms word of mouth Be proactive in seeking evaluation – you may already be doing this Have evaluation forms at all events. Have them on people’s seats, hand them out. Have pens ready for people to complete the forms. Keep them simple and quick to complete, then you have a better chance of getting a good return Have staff there to collect them Take heed of what is in the results Surveys and questionnaires, on an annual basis, about specific topics, eg the state of the buildings, the stock Don’t be afraid to seek outside help. We have done two in-house mystery shoppers, but recognise that to get unbiased feedback can be more beneficial to the service. Eg. Library authorities could visit each other and do mystery shoppers – but ensure your staff are aware that this will be happening.
- Commitment – from the managers, from the staff and from the Administration. Pride – be proud of your buildings, even if they are not perfect Be aware of the impression given Keep posters fresh – replace them if necessary, be selective in what is displayed. Develop a poster policy, if you don’t have one Keep flagging up problems or the need for new furnishings Make a wish list. How to use it. Be proud of the service you provide Be willing to go the extra mile – I’m sure you already do that Learn and adapt To keep the Marketing Gropup fresh, rotate the membership. This encourages all the staff to feel involved Be aware that for all the money spent on marketing the Service, publicising and promoting it, the biggest asset in marketing the Library Service is – THE STAFF. YOU are the best advert for the Library Service Be PROACTIVE, COMMITTED, ENTHOUSIASTIC.
- 2.30 Taking a restaurant as an analogy. The menu is designed to appeal to a wide range of tastes and to tempt people to try something new. The staff will know all about all the dishes, even though they may never have eaten any of them. The menu is no guide to what the staff like to eat and nobody expects it to be. The library menu – the range of books – is very varied and wide. There are many reads that are soothing, gentle, mild (for instance). But if perhaps staff prefer that kind of flavour, it should not mean that it’s the only type visible or promoted. There are plenty of books offering a spicier flavour and they should get equal treatment. Try to discover what is attractive about any book, what other people like about it. Practise talking positively about books that you dislike. Find out what is attractive about the books you haven’t read. We don't have to have read a book in order to be able to promote it, talk about it and understand what kind of read it is. Try to get a sense of what kind of read it was, rather than whether they liked it or not or anything about the plot. You could tell them that you haven’t read the book and wondered what they thought of it. Ask them what they would say to persuade another reader to give it a try. Ask what kind of read they prefer This will give you a clue to recommend stock from right across the library. If you take their age into account as well, you have a good chance of picking out something that may surprise and delight them. You could also use whichbook.net to help them to choose.Learn to ask questions about books
- Although we have Smart SM, we also have the experience of staff and have kept budget aside for that experimental buy. Something a bit different and by buying paperbacks and with supplier discounts we can afford to take a hit with this. Whichbook.net is a fantastic website that a number of the Reader development co-ordinators in Scotland are reading for. Have a look at it and encourage your readers to use the site. It is also good for picking books for reading group collections. Have a link form Library website On the reading group collections, take some advice on what your readers are after but be careful what you buy multiple copies of. There is no point in buying 10 copies of James Patterson for your reading group when the libraries are all getting a copy each anyway. Once popularity is over you can drag them all in for your book group. Its not really reader development anyway. I read the Bookseller and purchase books that are a little different. Good to get other input, not just me Working with reading groups – we ask for reviews from them and any suggestions Frontline reader development training course and a new one is being developed by Opening the Book Great for pushing the boundaries with book purchasing and promotion. Talking to borrowers etc.
- Look for funding opportunities whenever you can – Not just about money it’s a two way thing When I started in my job as Community Outreach Librarian I wanted my resders to have the same benefits as people going along to a library in the traditional sense. Adult learning team worked with them and received money for ESOL learners, improvers, Cornton Vale Prison, Gaelic provision – an invaluable partnership and not to difficult to get money from them Paul Hamlyn Foundation saw a need for a Reader in Residence in Cornton Vale Prison, ended up getting the biggest amount they have ever given out £179, 000 Disability Groups some libraries have libnked in with their Disability Officer and received funding for e-books for example it is worth a try! Creative Scotland if you run a festival yourselves for three years you can then go on to apply for funding for subsequent festivals Live literature funding – pays for half your authors fees SLIC funding has allowed us to undertake a lot of projects - the latest being The Home Key Ulverscroft will fund small projects helping the visually impaired recently got some Boom Boxes for our Downloadable Audio Had DAISY players too I look for a need as I say, have an application ready, when money is available or sourced, bang! - in it goes.
- Questions???? You need management commitment to get all staff trained We have it as a key service plan objective as is improving library look