4 Blog Posts
By Leahann Pasquariello
Social networking is the use of websites or applications to connect other users through common interests. Users join a social network by building a personal profile online and finding new friends with a shared interest. In the past the actual library has been at the center of serving its community of patrons. As advances in technology continue to grow, so do the digital resources that are now accessible outside of the library walls. “Social networking sites are being used by libraries to establish an online presence in order to tap into the new generation of library user.” (Osborne, 2009 p. 47). There is a growing number of teens that use social networking online. Libraries can use this opportunity to promote their services to this population of patrons by networking with them in the same manner these young patrons connect with new friends.
Librarians need to play a proactive role and utilize social network tools as a form of outreach. It is up to the library to reach out to the teenage population, and not wait for them to appear. Many libraries have established a presence online by providing links to popular social network sites. Patrons are now able to access sites, such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as YouTube, from the library’s homepage. Librarians are able to create different types of FB Group, Profile, or Organization pages. Their goal is to engage their patrons, build or expand into larger groups, and to further enhance the connection they have with the teenage library user.
Work Cited
Balas, Janet L. "Social Networks and the Library Community." Computers in the libraries, vol. 28, no. 4, Apr. 2008, pp. 40+. EBSCOhost.
Young Adult Library Services Association. (2009). Teens & social networking in school and public libraries: A toolkit for librarians & library workers. Retrieved from http://www.ila.org/netsafe/SocialNetworkingToolkit.pdf
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