Spectrum PR Column
July 2002
When There Aren't
Enough Prizes to Go Around
by Joan Shear, Legal Information Librarian, Boston College Law Library
AALL Spectrum, Volume 6 No. 10 July 2002.
What do Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Stagecoach, Good-bye Mr. Chips,
Wuthering Heights, and the Wizard of Oz have in common? They
didn't win the 1939 Oscar for Best Picture. That honor went to Gone
With the Wind. If you're as old as I am you will remember that Academy
Awards used to be presented with the phrase, "And the winner is…."
These days they say, "And the Oscar goes to…" at least
in part because they realize that a film that doesn't win an Oscar can
still be a winner.
Judging the 2002 AALL FindLaw Excellence in Marketing Awards reminded me of the 1939 Oscars, because there were so many spectacular entries. Not everyone gets to walk away with the award, but they can still be winners. They're winners because they've all executed successful marketing campaigns in their libraries or library-related organizations. I got a million great ideas just by reading the entries. Here are just some of the amazing campaigns run by law libraries and library-related groups in the past year:
Wiley Rein & Fielding Library in Washington, DC, ran a campaign called, "The Associates of Summer" that used a baseball theme. According to Carolyn Ahearn and Jeannie Sachar, the goals of the campaign were to help the summer associates: connect with individual reference librarians and have someone they could feel comfortable turning to with their research assignments; "hit the ground running" and avoid missteps by becoming familiar with the resources - and their costs - in a firm library; find the library to be a fun and approachable place; and ensure their success in all their assignments and fitting in with firm culture. On their second day at the firm Spring Training for the Associates by the librarians was followed by an reception where they met the library team, who welcomed them to the big leagues and spent a few minutes speaking with their research coaches and receiving Fan Appreciation gifts including a goodie bag filled with staff baseball cards and a Playbook containing general library research materials. The theme was carried through all summer in a variety of ways including renaming the reference desk the Dugout for the summer. The baseball cards of the library team members were a huge hit, helping break the ice and also providing ready reference to the librarians' phone numbers.
VALL wanted to let the practicing bar in Virginia know that law librarians are highly competent and that can be of service in myriad ways, so they have arranged for VALL/AALL members to regularly contribute articles to Virginia's official state bar publication, Virginia lawyer. "One of the best things about this campaign, " wrote Donna Bausch, Publications Committee Chair for VALL, "is that it promoted itself. Since every lawyer licensed to practice in Virginia receives the magazine, all we needed to do was recruit authors and develop topics of interest that practitioners would read and find useful." To see a sampling of their articles visit http://www.vsb.org.
The University of Texas at Austin held a conference Celebrating Tarlton Law Library's Millionth Volume entitled "Language and the Law". They printed and distributed flyers and press releases and received extensive coverage in various publications and newsletters. A conference website promoted the event before hand and also memorialized it afterward. Tobe Liebert explained that the campaign had the twin goals of promoting both the conference and the collections. Even if you were unable to attend the conference, you can experience some of it through the conference website at http://www.law.utexas.edu/conference where streaming video of the conference presentations are available. One of my favorite pages is the Law Dictionary Collections Bibliography at http://www.law.utexas.edu/rare/dictsweb.html.
Preston Gates & Ellis Library & Research Services, of Seattle Washington wanted to increase the visibility of the library, enhance its image, promote the online catalog, create a consistent "brand" to help identify the library as a professional unit offering a particular group of products and services, and to tie all these services together in peoples' minds. They started using their pre-existing logo on all library forms and publications, and promoted the library throughout the firm with posters, on the firm's intranet, and in a packet of materials provided to all new associates - summer and regular. Most importantly they started attending the monthly business meetings of the various departments, not as an advocate but as a player, talking to the attorneys about the sophisticated services the library could offer the firm in its various endeavors. The campaign produced an increase in library business of the type that is billed to clients. According to Elizabeth LeDoux and Brandi Ledferd, "The library is not used as a dumping ground for projects no one else wants, but is tapped for fast, efficient, and inexpensive research."
The College of William & Mary Law Library ran a campaign called "At Home in Your Law Library." Janey Janson, who chairs the library's Public Relations Team, states that the goal of this campaign is "to attract new students and patrons and keep our neighborhood of users returning to our services by making the library a more inviting and cozier place to work and study." The library staff uses the comfort of food to make the library building a more welcoming place with such draws as a catered coffee cart in the lobby or a welcoming ice cream social. The highly artistic staff created a variety of eye-catching displays during the year to present information to the student body in an interesting and fun way. But it isn't all fun and games; the library also promotes a number of charitable fundraisers. Testimonials by faculty, students and administrators illustrated that this campaign really reached its target audience.
The U.S. Court of Appeals Library - Fargo wanted to promote its Virtual Library system to judicial secretaries and assistants of the judges of the Eighth Circuit so that they would, in turn, promote this product to their judges and law clerks. Taking advantage of a training slot offered in a two-day workshop in Fargo, N.D., the library provided quality training combining several learning styles and techniques. In addition to making this training relevant and useful, they also made it fun, by adopting a theme of "Welcome to Lake Fargo," which was illustrated by their PowerPoint slides and carried through in food, décor, and dress. According to Suzanne Morrison, "Turning the learning environment into a playground not only piques interest but it also captivates the audience. Put them on the edge of their chair not knowing what to expect next and challenge them to play along."
Suffolk University Law Library ran professional quality ads for the library in the monthly law student newspaper, Dicta. Their goal, according to Betsy McKenzie, Director of the Suffolk Law Library, was to raise student awareness or library services. These eye-catching ads had library-selling messages such as: "Successful law students make their time count… Make the most of your time… Ask the Librarians. They're there. And they know." How about, "It's Sunday night, 9 p.m., and your paper is due Monday at 9 a.m. Where can you go to print it out? The attached printers in the computer labs!" Or, "It's a simple equation. Your source for FREE study aids. The Suffolk Law Library. We've got you covered on all your study needs!" And finally, "Put down your pencils and pick up your tickets to culture. Now that exams are over, take time to relax and enjoy your life! The Suffolk Law Library has passes to [museums and galleries]. Available at the Circulation Desk."
This isn't all of
the entries. But you can see how there just aren't enough prizes to go
around. And this is only one of the five categories of the AALL/FindLaw
Excellence in Marketing Award. All of these winning campaigns, plus the
five award winners, will be on display July 21-23 in the Orlando Convention
Center at the AALL PR Showcase in the Exhibit Hall. Stop by to be inspired
and to chat with some of the creators of these amazing materials during
the exhibit-hall only times in your program.
Last Updated: January 28, 2003
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