Should Library Media Specialists use Social Media?

So many kids these days walk around with handheld devices in their hands and they depend on social networking for so much.   I really don’t see this trend going away any time soon.  As a media specialist should we just sit in our libraries and just hope the students stop by when their batteries die and they have nothing else to do?  That’s probably not a good idea.  We would get lonely and we would be missing an opportunity to meet these kids where they are.  If we can start thinking of our libraries as places without walls, then we can reach out to students instead of waiting on them to come to us.  And social media is a good place to start.

So how can we incorporate social media into our libraries?

• ·     Speak their language.  Jump on the current social media apps or websites and create library accounts like on Twitter or Facebook.  This way we are interacting with them in their environment.  Plus it’s a fast way to communicate with them.  One of our high schools has a Twitter feed that updates students on all things going on in the media center.
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• ·     Show them the library.  Take pictures of the library and show them on sites like Flickr and Instagram to highlight that the media center is a cool place to visit.  Post videos using a Podcast that gives an orientation of the library showing all the services we offer.
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• ·     Assessment.  Use Survey Monkey to gather anonymous feedback to see what patrons think and want from their media center.
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• ·     Repackage information.  Instead of students having to come to the library to research, add tools to our webpages so students can search the catalog on their own device.  We can also provide links to online reference tools on our website as well.  Some other great tools are blogs and message boards to help answer questions for students.
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• ·     Event promotions.  Interactive calendars, evites, tweets, or Facebook posts can be used to promote book fairs, classes, or workshops.  At our school we use Facebook to advertise our book fair.
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• ·     Outreach. Using social media we can reach out to students instead of telling them to call or email us if they have questions.  This goes back to meeting them where they are.
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• ·     Educating Patrons. Instead of blocking all the social media sites, use this as an opportunity to educate them on the dangers out there on the web.  We can educate parents too.
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• ·     Word of Mouth.  Is we do a reputable job on social media then students will spread the word for us.

      It is up to us to stay current with the trends so that we can be a valuable resource for our patrons and if social media is a way to reach out to students then I think we should get on board.

 

      Resource

      Courtney, N. (2007). Online Social Networking. In Library 2.0 and beyond: Innovative technologies             and tomorrow's user (pp. 81-84). Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited.