Libraries and Social Networking by Alexis Mason

  

     Social media has become an increasingly important feature of society over the last couple decades. It is used to bring together and communicate about issues that draw people together. Communities such as schools and business often use social media as much as individual users in order to promote their services. For this reason, it can be essential for engaging younger patrons and drawing people into the library setting. Social media can be a useful tool in spreading awareness not just teenagers, but everyone on social media. 

    Libraries often use social media to provide information to their communities and give patrons updates on new goings on. This is helpful because people often may not otherwise have access to this information unless they are actively engaged in the library setting or are there often. One school librarian points out that “families did not know our students had self-checkout” until she posted about it on social media (Jones). Social media can similarly be used to remind patrons of events, book fairs, and programs. To keep users engaged, many Instagram and Facebook accounts for public and school libraries often use eye-catching and humorous posts. However, these tactics can only work if they are professional and relevant to the library itself. As stated one article about the pros of using social media to promote a library, “it is not simply feasible to post memes for the sake of memes, but in service of a greater goal of eliciting sharing, generating community buzz, and bringing people either to the library or the library’s website to meet their individual needs" (Woodworth).

    One of the most popular social networking apps currently being used is video sharing app TikTok. Tiktok is a great tool for promoting the benefits of libraries in a succinct, easy to understand way while also having fun. I found this TikTok in which a user raps about the attributes of libraries, such as the information that can be found, WIFI, and basic utilities that some people may not have access to. Other popular TikTok trends among librarians include using popular sounds and trends altered to fit the context of libraries. Other libraries engage in "BookTok," a community in which people recommend their favorite books and share their thoughts about popular current readings, often working as a sort of online book club. Keeping your content relevant is essential to having a successful social media page, but that doesn't mean that the content doesn't have to be fun. As one librarian states, “If I giggle at a meme and decide to repurpose it in a bookish context because it made me laugh, that’s authentic” (Jensen).

Works Cited

    Jensen, Kelly. “What Makes These Librarians TikTok?” School Library Journal, vol. 66, no. 8, Aug. 2020, pp. 32–34. EBSCOhost, https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.palomar.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=144738674&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

    Jones, Amanda. “Using Social Media to Advocate for Your School Library.” Computers in Libraries, vol. 41, no. 10, Nov. 2021, pp. 30–36. EBSCOhost, https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.palomar.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=153273085&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

  

    Woodworth, Andy. “My Body Is Ready: Best Practices for Using Memes on Library Social Media.” Reference & User Services Quarterly, vol. 58, no. 2, Winter 2018, pp. 87–90. EBSCOhost, https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.palomar.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=134186680&site=ehost-live&scope=site.