Understanding public libraries’ challenges, motivators, and perceptions toward the use of social media for marketing

2018 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Namjoo Choi ◽  
Soohyung Joo
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Library Marketing

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify challenges and motivators to social media adoption for marketing purposes in public libraries and to investigate how these libraries perceive the importance of social media marketing. Design/methodology/approach A nation-wide online survey on public libraries in the USA was conducted to carry out this study, and a total number of 470 responses were used for data analysis. Findings This study determined a range of challenges and motivators to implementing social media for marketing in public libraries. The results also showed that public libraries perceive social media as an important tool for their library marketing and intend to increase their use. Practical implications The findings from this study can serve as a guideline for public libraries when employing social media for marketing purposes in their libraries. Originality/value This study assessed the current state of social media use for marketing in the public library context, a context that has been under-researched in the literature, from three perspectives: challenges, motivators, and perceptions.

Library marketing via social media

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. 940-955 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soohyung Joo ◽  
Namjoo Choi ◽  
Tae Hyun Baek
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Media Content ◽  
User Engagement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Open Coding ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Library Marketing

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is twofold: to explore what kinds of social media content public libraries create to communicate with users online, and to examine the relationships between social media content types and corresponding levels of user engagement.Design/methodology/approachThe sample comprises 4,637 Facebook posts collected from 151 public libraries across the USA. The authors identified ten types of Facebook posts based on the open coding, and calculated the degrees of user engagement for each type of Facebook post, represented by the numbers of likes, shares and comments. Also, The authors examined the effects of the inclusions of images or video clips on user engagement.FindingsThe authors observed that the most frequent type of post was related to announcing upcoming events held in libraries. This study also found that posts about community news or emotionally inspiring messages elicited much engagement from users. Posts having an image or images tend to receive more user engagement.Practical implicationsBased on the findings of this study, the authors discussed practical strategies for public libraries to effectively use social media to better facilitate user engagement.Originality/valueThis study is one of a few attempts that examine the relationships between the types of social media content and the degrees of user engagement in public library environments. Also, the authors have proposed a coding scheme useful to analyze social media content in the context of public libraries.

Burnout in emergency medical technicians and paramedics in the USA

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Celia Sporer
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Maslach Burnout Inventory ◽  
Personal Accomplishment ◽  
Screening Tools ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Emergency Medical ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Individual Variables ◽  
Use Of Social Media

PurposeThis study was designed to examine burnout in US emergency medical services (EMS) providers. It examined burnout scores measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) on a convince sample of US EMS providers as well individual variables associated of burnout in this population.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a convince sample, recruited using social media, of EMTs and paramedics and engaged them in an online survey to obtain information on burnout in this population. The responses were analyzed using stand statistical approached in order to determine MBI burnout scores, as well as which individual variables were influential in contributing to burnout in EMS.FindingsThis study found that most EMS providers had high levels of depersonalization and medium levels of personal accomplishment and emotional exhaustion. Gender differences were found as they were differences based on agency type and response area.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation is the nature of sample recruitment. The use of social media for the recruitment of this type of study has not been done before. Furthermore, it is a convince sample. This issue has limited impact on the results and the ability to apply them more generally because despite the convince nature of this sample, the sample is similar to those used in other studies as well as reflect that national statistics on the make of this population. The second major limitation of this study is that it does not include job specific and organization specific factors that may contribute to burnout. The findings for the variables used in this study suggest that future works should encompass these variables as well.Practical implicationsThis study sets a clear foundation for further examination of US EMS providers and burnout. It helps to establish key ideas that can be followed up. Difference and key issues among US EMS providers need to be understood on a more comprehensive level before the assertion that they are similar to EMS providers worldwide. Ultimately, there is a need to develop better screening tools to assess burnout in EMS as well as to develop prevention and intervention programs based on clear empirical data.Social implicationsBurnout EMS provides are a harm to themselves as well as the organization that employ them. The cost of burnout EMS provider crosses over to patient care and provision of care.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first to examine such a large US-based sample of EMS providers using the MBI. Other studies have used smaller sample or other tools to assess burnout in providers

Analysis of content topics, user engagement and library factors in public library social media based on text mining

2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 258-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soohyung Joo ◽  
Kun Lu ◽  
Taehun Lee
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Text Mining ◽  
Topic Model ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
User Engagement ◽  
Linear Modeling ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Summer Reading ◽  
Use Of Social Media

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore topics of Facebook posts created by public libraries using the bi-term topic model, and examine the relationships between types of topics and user engagement. The authors further investigated the effects of three library factors, namely, staff size, budget and urbanization degrees, on Facebook content and user engagement based on multilevel generalized linear modeling. Design/methodology/approach This study suggested a novel method, a combination of the bi-term topic modeling and MGLM, to enhance the understanding of social media in the context of public libraries. Findings The findings revealed that posts related to community events, awards and photos were likely to receive more likes and shares, whereas posts about summer reading programs received relatively more comments. In addition, the authors found that a larger staff size and the inclusion of multimedia had positive impacts on user engagement. Originality/value This study analyzed the content of public library-generated social media based on text mining. Then, the authors examined the effects of contextual library-level factors on social media practice in public libraries. Based on empirical findings, the study suggested a range of practical implications for effective use of social media in public libraries.

Information as currency, democracy, and public libraries

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 295-306 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Stilwell
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Access To Knowledge ◽  
Current Concerns

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to endorse the notion that information is the currency of democracy and explore the question of the public library’s role in promoting democracy through the provision of access to information. Design/methodology/approach A review of the literature and a case study are used. Findings From the early days of the public library, there has been a certain democratic paternalism in librarians’ views on public libraries, and ambivalence about the extent to which these libraries have provided information to the whole population. Despite this finding, the paper explores the public library’s role in providing information; the currency of information. Public libraries can contribute to the renewal of a democratic public sphere by providing free and ready access to knowledge and information, as well as safe and trusted social spaces for the exchange of ideas, creativity, and decision making. Originality/value The paper examines material from the dawn of the public library to current concerns about the role of these libraries in providing access to information, in revitalising citizenship and fostering democracy. It draws on the well-known example of the birth of democracy in South Africa and on discussions of public library neutrality and activism in contemporary France, describing limits on the achievements of libraries in these countries in the context of some current, promising examples from the USA, Britain, Denmark, and Australia.

Public relations in the age of data: corporate perspectives on social media analytics (SMA)

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathy R. Fitzpatrick ◽  
Paula L. Weissman
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Relations ◽  
Social Media Analytics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Management Function ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Corporate Brands ◽  
Depth Interviews

PurposeThe aim of this study was to understand how public relations leaders view and use social media analytics (SMA) and the impact of SMA on the public relations function.Design/methodology/approachThe research involved in-depth interviews with chief communication officers (CCOs) from leading multinational corporate brands.FindingsThe findings revealed that although CCOs perceive social media analytics as strategically important to the advancement of public relations, the use of social media data is slowed by challenges associated with building SMA capacity.Theoretical and practical implications – The research extends public relations theory on public relations as a strategic management function and provides practical insights for building SMA capabilities.Originality/valueThe study is among the first to provide empirical evidence of how companies are using social media analytics to enhance public relations efforts.

Immaterial labour, public librarians, and third-generation public libraries

2016 ◽  
Vol 117 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 186-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siobhan A Stevenson
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Future ◽  
Public Librarians ◽  
Policy Arena ◽  
Blind Spots

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to draw attention to one specific upper-level government policy document in which a discourse of perpetual innovation and customer service is promoted, and the kinds of questions such discursive interventions raise for the future of work in public libraries; and second, to demonstrate the explanatory potential of the concept of immaterial labour for questions relating to emerging labour processes in libraries. The concepts of “prosumer” and Web 2.0 are included as discursive resources of relevance to any discussion of immaterial labour. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a critical discourse analysis of a public policy visioning document for public libraries in Ontario, Canada, with reflections on related literatures. Findings – The concept of immaterial labour provides an additional analytic tool suitable for questions of relevance to public librarians and library scholars. Within the government text under review which deals specifically with the future of the public library to 2020, the identity of the public librarian is alarmingly absent. Conversely, the library patron as a producer and consumer is privileged. Research limitations/implications – Failure to attend to the broader policy arena within which the public library resides creates dangerous blind spots for public library professionals, educators and researchers. Practical implications – This paper demonstrates the value of a discourse analysis for uncovering the ideological dimensions of policy documents, while simultaneously modelling the method using the kind of policy text commonly produced in governments around the world. Social implications – This paper shows how failure to attend to the broader policy arena within which the public library resides creates dangerous blind spots for the public library community. Originality/value – This paper contextualizes the immaterial and volunteer labour of the public library user as producer/consumer in the context of the future of the frontline professional and waged librarian.

Democracy, digitisation and public libraries

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Skøtt
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
National Library ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Media Types

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate what democratic challenges the digitisation of the public libraries in Denmark has entailed. Using the concepts from a national library professional strategy from 2012, an analysis of 9 librarians’ experiences with digital dissemination in practice is conducted. Design/methodology/approach The paper is a part of a larger research project called “If digitisation is the answer, then what was the question?”. This sub study builds on the semi-structured interviews with library staff members, case-descriptions of two central providers of digital public library materials, as well as literature studies of missions, vision and strategies from different public library policy institutions. To frame the study, a literature review has been conducted. Findings The author detects the presence of several incompatible conditions in digital dissemination. These conditions are predominantly of an organisational nature, potentially containing major consequences for citizens’ free and equal access to information, knowledge and culture. Among other things, the Danish public libraries risk substantiating an already existing and problematic polarisation between technologically capable and incapacitated groups of people. Originality/value The digital transformation of society has only just begun. Therefore, it is important to examine the consequences of the transition to digital media types for central cultural institution such as the public libraries. The present study is an early and minor contribution to the illumination of a process requiring many more and large-scale studies.

Public libraries and public primary school literacy: a Kenyan case study

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 689-701
Author(s):  
Peter Mose
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
School Type ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Library Staff ◽  
Teachers And Parents

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explain how public libraries have been instrumental in early child school literacy teaching and learning. Most African public schools do not usually afford enough core textbooks and supplementary readers.Design/methodology/approachThis was a qualitative case study in Western Kenya amongst public library staff members, public primary school teachers and parents of library children clients. The following questions were addressed: What is the book situation in public primary schools in the study site? What school-type literacy-related services are offered by the sampled public library? and What are library staff members’, teachers’ and parents’ feelings about the public library services offered? Observations, interviews and document studies were used to collect data. Data were analysed thematically.FindingsPublic schools do not have enough core textbooks and the situation is worse for supplementary readers; the public library branch studied offers critical school-type literacies to school children both at the library building as well as at public schools registered with it; and library staff members, teachers, and parents express positive feelings about the services offered.Research limitations/implicationsThis was a case study whose findings might not apply to the larger situation and the study did not confirm actual literacy benefits of the library services amongst school children by, for instance, conducting literacy tests. The findings are, however, an index to the possible situation in the macro context.Practical implicationsThe relevant stakeholders should find ways of co-opting public libraries as associates of public schools in literacy teaching. This relationship is not straight forward in Kenya.Originality/valueThe findings reported are from original research.

A study of the evaluation of a library’s economic value based on the users’ and librarians’ perceptions

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 561-596
Author(s):  
Younghee Noh
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Job Creation ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Evaluation Index ◽  
Human Resources Development ◽  
Preliminary Evaluation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public

Purpose This study aims to develop an evaluation index to evaluate the economic value among the values of the library and also attempts to measure the economic value of the library by performing a survey of the librarians and users at public libraries. The results of this research would likely encourage the librarians to feel increasingly confident about the library, while students and users, in general, would also likely be able to realize the economic value and presence of the library in more perceptive ways, thereby contributing to the activation of the library. Design/methodology/approach This study pertains to the development of an evaluation index for assessing the economic value of the library and, to evaluate the economic value of the library, has derived a preliminary evaluation index by collectively gathering and analyzing the domestic and foreign papers on the value of the library in its first phase. The preliminary evaluation index derived was verified by conducting three phases of Delphi survey by selecting ten experts. The survey questionnaire was developed to measure the economic value based on the final evaluation index derived from this study, and the economic value was measured against the perceptions of librarians and users of the public library. Findings The economic value of the library was divided into the four categories of the local economy’s value enhancement, namely, connection with the local community, human resources development, job creation and investment value enhancement for the librarians and users surveyed for assessment purposes. Consequently, the area of connection with the local community turned out to be the highest at 4.15, followed by 4.02 of the investment value improvement, 3.58 for the local economy’s value improvement and 3.50 for the human resources development and job creation, respectively. Furthermore, the respondents demonstrated the highest level of consensus on average on how the resource sharing by libraries has helped to reduce the economic burden for the residents as a matter of social value for the public library while believing that the libraries deliver a high level of return on social investments. Originality/value There are not that many studies conducted on the economic influence or the value of public libraries in Korea, and they are merely referenced in part if and when referenced to the overall value of the library. Given that, the research that focuses only on the economic value of the library must be carried out. In this respect, this research has been quite meaningful. The evaluation index developed in this research is likely to become a basic tool that can be applied to public libraries, as well as other types of libraries. Furthermore, the evaluation index developed through this research could be applied to nonprofit organizations, such as libraries, and would likely have a social ripple effect as a research that evaluates and presents the economic value of libraries. Accordingly, in this research, we have analyzed the list presented by the American Library Association and domestic research results, and have also structured the core details and derived the preliminary economic value index. Finally, 4 evaluation areas, 7 evaluation items and 22 evaluation indicators have been developed through the Delphi survey through three phases.

scholarly journals Public libraries as an infrastructure for a sustainable public sphere

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
pp. 773-790 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ragnar Audunson ◽  
Svanhild Aabø ◽  
Roger Blomgren ◽  
Sunniva Evjen ◽  
Henrik Jochumsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Comprehensive Review ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Digital World

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the shaping of public libraries as an infrastructure for a sustainable public sphere through a comprehensive literature review. Design/methodology/approach In order to capture the whole picture of this research field, we utilize comprehensive review methodology. The major research questions are: first, to what extent have research topics regarding libraries as public sphere institutions expanded and diversified? Which theoretical perspectives inform research? Second, which challenges and topics does the research focus upon, such as: social inclusion and equal access to information; digital inequalities; censorship and freedom of expression; and access to places and spaces with a democratic potential and the role of libraries in that respect? Third, what influence has social media exerted on libraries in the context of the expanding digital world? Findings The authors identified mainly four themes regarding the public library and public sphere, such as: the importance of public libraries by using Habermas’s theory; the function of meeting places within the public library and setting those places in the center of the library in order to enhance and encourage democracy; the relationship between social inclusion and public libraries and its functions in current society such as diminishing the digital divide; and the emerging electronic resources and arena of SNS in public libraries and utilizing them to reach citizens. Originality/value Capturing the recent history of this research field through comprehensive review is valuable.

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