Taylor & Francis Collaborate with Choice
This year, Taylor & Francis collaborated with Choice for the first time to produce a whitepaper titled “Marketing Academic Library Resources and Services.” This collaborative effort has proven beneficial in bringing forth and encouraging conversations that enhance customer service and values. At the 2018 Charleston Library Conference, T&F teamed up with Choice to host a Lively Lunch Session promoting this latest whitepaper, which was Choice’s first time presenting at Charleston. Below are all the relevant details on both the whitepaper and Lively Lunch Session, which illustrate the many benefits that a solid partnership between two organizations can have within the industry.
What is the whitepaper all about?
The latest whitepaper is a result of a close collaboration between Taylor & Francis and Choice. The topic was decided upon by T&F and the survey questions were jointly developed. The whitepaper/survey project is a new initiative with Choice, and Taylor & Francis is pleased to play such an integral part in its execution. The initiative has helped to solidify the partnership between the two organizations and will also mark the first time that Choice has presented at the Charleston Library Conference. Choice will be using the recording from the Lively Lunch Session for a 4-part podcast that will be aired on The Authority File, a weekly program featuring in-depth conversations about contemporary trends, best practices, and case studies important to academic librarians. Hosted by Choice’s own Editorial Director, Bill Mickey, the show spotlights authors, librarians, and other prominent industry leaders.
The findings of “Marketing Academic Library Resources and Services” support many of the activities that Taylor & Francis undertakes in supporting our customers to drive awareness of the resources each library provides its students and faculty. The results also correspond with our prior whitepaper series “Communicating the Library’s Value.”
What were the main takeaways of the Lively Lunch Session?
The Lively Lunch Session with T&F and Choice is an excellent example of an industry event where instead of having a primary voice in the conversation, Taylor & Francis assists in evoking conversation within a forum that promotes and focuses on solutions. Over 150 people registered to attend the session and it was recorded by Charleston Library organizers. Key takeaways were:
- Marketing for librarians is a broad term and has a different meaning depending on who you speak with.
- The resources and capabilities for each institution are unique and are not a one-size-fits-all.
- Some librarians are put into a position of learning marketing tactics while other institutions may already have marketing support accessible to them.
- Librarians have a rising need to consistently and efficiently share their services, programs, events and available resources with faculty and students.
- While outreach may involve collaboration with external marketing for some librarians, for others it means communicating to a broader reach; community or region.
- The challenge for most librarians is their lack of marketing experience.
- As Sabine shared from Lynn University, her position offered no historical information of marketing and therefore she felt the need to create a marketing plan.
- Librarians emphasized that their roles often include responsibilities that challenge them in prioritizing in a way that successfully gives all their programs the attention they need.
Quotes and Picture
“It was fantastic to work with y’all and you definitely made it easy for us to succeed.”
— Lisa Martin, Coordinator of Outreach & Business Librarian at MD Anderson Library, University of Houston
“Choice has had an overwhelming response to our presence due largely in part to the “Marketing Academic Library Resources and Services” whitepaper and panel presentation. Quite honestly, we could not have worked with a better group than Taylor & Francis. Thank you so much for putting your trust in us with this project. It was a great leap of faith on your part and we appreciate it very much.”
— Pam Marino
Panelists from Lively Lunch
Marketing Academic Library Resources and Services:
How Marketing and Outreach Support a Library’s Value Proposition—and an
Analysis of Current Practices
Left to Right: Lisa Martin (University of Houston), Jennifer Park (Mount Saint Mary College),
Sabine Dantus (Lynn University), Michelle Rivera-Spann (Taylor & Francis), Bill Mickey (Choice)