Creating Your Library Brand

CreatingYourLibraryBrand

Agenda

Creating your library brand

What is branding?

Why should I care about it?

How to get started branding

2

WHAT is branding?

3

For clarity

Branding IS NOT the same thing as marketing

It IS one of the first steps in marketing

Marketing

Marketing Strategy

Planning

Marketing Tactics

Execution

Marketing

Marketing Tactics - Execution

Marketing Strategy - Planning

Story: Feeling: Tagline: Logo:

Goals Audience Branding

Promotions Advertising SalesDirect marketing

Publicity

PR

7

Defining your audienceWho do you want to talk to about your

library?

before branding

Ask yourself

When you do any marketing:

Who is my audience?

Are you talking to everyone in your community?

Or are you talking to one or more specific sub-sets in your community?

Moms & dads?

Seniors?

Teens?

People who don’t use the library?

People who do use the library?

Book lovers

Computer users?

8

Why does this matter?

If you know who you are trying to reach

You can make sure your story is said in such a way that your audience can “get” it

And you can make sure that your story is said in such a way as to be relevant to your audience

9

Would you tell a story about your library the same way to each of these two audiences?

10

But the library is for everyone!

11

What is branding?

Figuring out the storyWhy your library matters to your community

Story

Your story is telling your community - WHY DOES THE LIBRARY MATTER?

Appeal to the emotions

Don’t list services

13

Exercise: what is your library’s story? Think about “Why your library matters

in your community” (however you define community)

Two to four sentences at the most

Try NOT to list the services that your library offers

Instead, ask yourself:

What makes your library special or unique in your town?

What would be missing in your community if the library wasn’t there?

14

What is branding?

15

Identifying a feelingThat you want people to

get when they see or interact with your brand

Branding is: A feeling

16

Emotions are powerful and evocative

That’s why they are important

If your brand has an emotional connection to your library patrons then you have developed a powerful connection

Once you define how you want your users to feel about your library, everything you do should be to promote those feelings

17

EXERCISE

Identify 10 words that describe how you want your library’s users to feel when they interact with your library “brand”

18

What is branding?

Developing a taglineThat will tell your story

in a short, attention-grabbing way

Exercise: Pick the best, Pick the worst

1)Boston Public LibraryBooks are just the beginning

2)West Palm Beach Public LibraryAn oasis of knowledge

3) TysonWe’re chicken.

4)Red CrossTogether we can save a life

5)Quaker OatsWarms you heart and soul

6)The Library of CongressMore than a library

7)CameraWorld For negative people.

How to write a tagline

Start with your library’s story that you wrote out a few minutes ago and the words you used to define your brand “feeling”

Pick out the most critical words

Think about alternatives to these words

Are any of them more powerful than the original words you used?

Do the words articulate what makes your library unique?

Try putting together one sentence that tells your story, using whichever words seem most powerful to you

Ask yourself

Am I getting across my story?

Is the story compelling and interesting?

Will this story be relevant to my community?

Is the tagline easy to say?

Test the tagline

Show it to people – do they get it quickly or do you have to explain it?

22

What is branding?

Putting it all together in a logoThat you use over & over again, until

people “get” your brand without having to think

The logo

The logo is important

As a jog to one’s memory

As the repository of the feelings about the brand

The brand’s logo becomes the users’ touchstone

Every time the customer sees the brand (logo) - reminded of the brand story

A logo helps cut through the clutter – it “tells the story” of the brand without having to be explicit

24

What do you think of these logos/taglines?

26

How do you develop a logo?

I always suggest using a professional if you can fund it

They understand the need to have visual elements reflect your story

They get the use of color, design, shape

It is a lot harder than you might think

A creative design can make a huge difference in a logo

If you don’t have $ to hire a professional, I’ll give you some tips further about how you can still get a professional logo

27

Finally –Repeat, repeat, repeat Tell your story over and over and over

Be consistent in the story and the look

Why? Your audience will eventually know your story as soon as they see your brand – that’s what you want

They know why your library matters

SO…

Branding = (define your audience)

story + tagline +

FEELING + LOGO

repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat 29

We’ve talked about what branding is

Now, let’s talk about what a STRONG brand is

30

A strong brand

A strong brand has:

A story and tagline that are compelling

And relevant to the audience

A logo that conveys that story without words

The ability to get the chosen audience to respond to the logo/brand with feeling

Consistent use – over and over and over 31

VOLVO SAVED MY LIFE CLUB

The letters have been coming to us for years. Men and women writing about how they believe a car helped save their lives. The Volvo Saved My Life Club recognizes these "survivors'" faith in Volvo, as well as Volvo's dedication to building cars worthy of such admiration. In fact, the only downside to the Volvo Saved My Life Club is the condition for membership.

Once it's determined that an accident was severe enough that the performance of a Volvo did, indeed, help save the lives of the passengers, they become members of the Volvo Saved My Life Club.

And, while we're very proud to be able to sponsor an organization like the Volvo Saved My Life Club, we hope for the day when potentially fatal car accidents will be a thing of the past.

Until then, we end with this heartfelt wish and advice: Drive safely.

Tastes great

Less filling

Lite Beer from Miller: Everything you've always wanted in a beer. And less.

Remember – a strong brand has:

A story and tagline that are compelling

And relevant to the audience

A logo that conveys that story without words

The ability to get the chosen audience to respond to the logo/brand with feeling

Consistent use – over and over and over 35

WHY should I care about branding?

36

We aren’t the only game in town anymore

37

It’s a very noisy world

38

If we can’t tell our story, why should anyone care?

39

41

HELPS WITH FUNDING

Facilitates teamwork

42

Brings more people in the door

43

44

Case study

45

Brand audit

Our story

Our core audience

Library users, seniors, parents

People who are community oriented

Interest in “the common good”

We developed our story

Curtis Memorial Library matters because we offer “possibility” to our community

Community pride = possibility

Library as antidote to closure of naval base and economic depression

We open doors to the world

“A world of possibility”

46

Tagline

Possibility was “the” word

Curtis Memorial LibraryCreating a world of possibility

47

Our logo

Our logo was old and out-of-date

No one understood why the ship

48

What does “possibility” look like?

What does “A world of possibility” look like?

68

How to get started

How to get started

69

1. Do a marketing audit

How to get started

During your audit

Ask yourself these questions: Can I tell by looking at

these materials what role my library takes in its community? What is my story?

Am I telling that story in a compelling way with a tagline?

Does my brand evoke a feeling?

Does my logo accurately reflect my story & emotion?

Am I telling the story the same way over and over so people learn the message and get it without thinking too much?

70

How to get started

71

2. Talk to your constituents

How to get started

72

3. Compare audit & conversation

If there is no playback of a consistent story, then you need to start by working on that

If there is playback but it is confusing, make sure your story is clear

If the story is there but no feelings are be evoked, you need to revisit how you are trying to articulate those feelings

If playback is consistent, then move on to the next step…your brand tagline

Writing a tagline

Review your story

Start with the ten words that you identified as summarizing the “feeling” that you want people to have when they interact with your brand

Reduce your story to one sentence

Try using different words to get the right feeling

Look at what other libraries/brands have done

What you end up with should answer the question “why does the library matter”

Come up with 3-4 options. Try them out with family and friends. Do people “get it”? Keep it simple.

74

Inc. Magazine article:

http://www.inc.com/guides/201101/new-rules-of-writing-a-memorable-slogan.html

http://www.inc.com/ss/5-tips-for-writing-an-effective-slogan#0

Tagline generator

http://www.yudkin.com/generate.htm75

Designing a logo

Unless you are a design artist – don’t try to do it yourself

A logo needs to reflect your brand via its visual elements: color, shapes, energy

Good article about how designers think about developing a logo – very useful

http://www.netmagazine.com/features/10-steps-perfect-logo

KISS

http://www.marketingsource.com/articles/view/2011

76

Ways of getting design work done – for free (or almost)

Local high school or college art class or business class project

Do it yourself (http://www.logoyes.com/, http://www.logoease.com/, http://www.logomaker.com/)

Use web options (not free but cheap)http://www.logoworks.com/, http://thelogocompany.net/

Find pro bono expertise through your Board

77

Support each other

Get together with other library folks and work together – make this a project for a group

Share ideas, solve problems together

Branding is:

Common sense

Focus on the story

The first step? Jump in

Have some fun – it is a creative process!

80

Click to edit the outline text format Second

Outline Level Third

Outline Level

Fourth Outline Level Fifth Outline Level

Sixth Outline Level

Seventh Outline Level

Eighth Outline Level

Ninth Outline LevelClick to edit Master text styles

Second level

Third level

Fourth level

Fifth level

You can develop smart and interesting branding

And it will have a real and positive impact on how your community views your library!

GOOD LUCK!

81

Creating Your Library Brand

Education

Transcript of Creating Your Library Brand