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1 – 10 of over 165000Anna Kaushik and Shweta Pandey
Marketing concept is being widely used in all disciplines including library and Information Science domain for disseminating the services, resources and products to the target…
Abstract
Marketing concept is being widely used in all disciplines including library and Information Science domain for disseminating the services, resources and products to the target audiences. Thus, this study aims to define the marketing concept and how libraries can do marketing of their services, resources and products using marketing techniques and tools, such as 7Ps of the marketing mix. This study further pointed out the important internet resources available freely on the marketing of library services on the Internet which can be used by library and Information Science professionals with regard to getting the ideas how to market the library services and resources to the targeted users.
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Zhixian Yi, Damian Lodge and Sigrid McCausland
The purpose of this paper is to examine how Australian academic librarians marketed their services and resources, which marketing approaches were most effective, and the factors…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how Australian academic librarians marketed their services and resources, which marketing approaches were most effective, and the factors influencing the perceptions of the approaches used.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was sent to 37 academic librarians in Australia. The response rate was 54.1 percent. The information sheet and consent form for phone interview participants were e-mailed to 17 participants and ten signed consent forms were e-mailed back to the researchers. The response rate was 58.8 percent. The qualitative data were analysed using content analysis. The collected quantitative and qualitative data were analysed using descriptive (frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations) and inferential statistics (correlations).
Findings
Academic librarians were involved in a variety of marketing activities and had varied perceptions of the effective approaches used to market services and resources. Correlation analysis confirms that demographics, human capital and library variables play significant roles in predicting librarians' perceptions of the effective marketing techniques used.
Research limitations/implications
Because of very small sample size, the results may lack generalisability. Future research is a large-scale study.
Practical implications
This paper provides a better understanding of academic librarians' attitudes, views and effective techniques with regard to marketing their services and resources.
Originality/value
Librarians may use the results to reflect on the effectiveness of the marketing approaches used, to balance the weight of the factors' influences, and to better understand various effective marketing approaches to enable them to market academic library services and resources more effectively in the future.
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Access to learning resources in higher education is a prerequisite for effective learning. The purpose of this study is to investigate how marketing of library resources can…
Abstract
Purpose
Access to learning resources in higher education is a prerequisite for effective learning. The purpose of this study is to investigate how marketing of library resources can influences library usage of students from the University of Education Winneba and University of Cape Coast in Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach
The study was grounded in the pragmatic paradigm and guided by the mixed methods research approach. The sequential explanatory design was used in that, quantitative data was collected first, followed by the collection of qualitative data. The respondents were selected using the multi-stage and purposive sampling techniques. A total of 1,170 students were involved in the quantitative study, and the qualitative study comprised 12 students and 6 librarians. The quantitative data were analysed descriptively using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), while the qualitative data were analysed thematically.
Findings
The study found that the marketing of library resources and services increased awareness and motivates students from the University of Education Winneba and University of Cape Coast to use them. In addition, the study found no relationship between competencies in information literacy and the use of library resources and services beyond developing students’ capacity to use library resources The study further established a positive relationship between improved learning activities and the use of library resources and services by students at the University of Education Winneba and University of Cape Coast in Ghana.
Originality/value
The study is unique in its scope and focus and will lead understanding to the use of library services and resources to achieving positive learning outcomes in Ghanaian distance learning institutions. Thus, the expanded benefit to students’ use of library services not only will improve their academic activities, performances, retention, programme completion, employment opportunities and lifelong learning but also is important for institutions to increase students’ enrolments, increase university world-wide visibility and influence national development.
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Ishewakatipa Muzvondiwa and Ngoako Solomon Marutha
This study aims to investigate a framework for improving library services and resource usage in a private higher education institution in South Africa. Marketing of library…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate a framework for improving library services and resource usage in a private higher education institution in South Africa. Marketing of library services and resources has a great impact on their usage. If marketing is not properly applied, libraries can turn into the unused institution, render useless or unused services, no matter how good their available services and resources are.
Design/methodology/approach
This multi-method study used questionnaires to collect data from both staff and students at the private higher education institution concerned. The questionnaire was augmented with data collected from staff using group interviews. It is unfortunate that the target institution approved the conducting of the study only on the condition that their name could not be disclosed or used in any study reports. On this basis, the institution is referred to as Campus A for the purposes of this paper.
Findings
The study discovered that Campus A lacked key marketing tools, such as a marketing policy for the library, and that it also failed to take advantage of new platforms such as social media and other available computer software and technologies. This has resulted in its users being unaware of certain important services and resources rendered by the library.
Originality/value
The study proposed a framework for library marketing practices to improve services and resources usage as a benchmark for libraries. The study also recommends that the management of Campus A library come together to gather information for the development of an appropriate library marketing policy and also ensure that their marketing strategies take advantage of the latest technology, including social media, by means of which their clients may be easily reached.
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The chapter focused on quality assurance and marketing of library services and products at the Midlands State University (MSU). The chapter's main objective was to identify the…
Abstract
The chapter focused on quality assurance and marketing of library services and products at the Midlands State University (MSU). The chapter's main objective was to identify the quality assurance mechanisms at the MSU Library. The major findings of the research were; the MSU library was practising quality assurance, staff was trained on the latest trends in the profession, the collection was multidisciplinary and in different forms, and that there were Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) used in enhancing service provision. The researcher recommended that the library needed to continuously train librarians on issues to do with quality, improve the infrastructure, introduce Research Data Management to enhance the Research Support Services and improve on the Information Literacy Skills training programmes. The author identified some areas for further research and the major one was that there is need for clarification on the concept of the 4th Industrial Revolution.
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Suha AlAwadhi and Sultan M. Al-Daihani
The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of social media in the marketing of academic library resources and services in Kuwait and identifies the factors related to the use…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of social media in the marketing of academic library resources and services in Kuwait and identifies the factors related to the use of social media applications in marketing academic libraries.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative data-collection approach using a paper and online questionnaire has been employed to elicit the opinions of librarians working in academic libraries in Kuwait in both private and public institutions. In total, 89 valid questionnaires have been analyzed using descriptive (frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations) and inferential statistics (factor analysis, correlations, experimental analysis and regression).
Findings
The study shows that the academic librarians have a positive perception toward the use of social media. The identified factors relating to the use of social media for marketing library information resources and services are the usefulness of social media tools in raising awareness and in providing needs analysis and satisfaction assessments. However, management support for the use of social media for library marketing is poor.
Practical implications
This study provides insights into the factors related to the use of modern social media platforms to promote information resources and services at academic libraries to provide outreach services to current and potential users.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the field of information studies as it highlights the importance of using social media platforms in marketing academic library information resources and services. Library administrators could use the results to develop social media marketing plans to effectively promote their library resources.
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Md. Anwarul Islam and Muhammad Jaber Hossain
The purpose of this study is to address and analyse the current status of university library websites in Bangladesh. Particularly, it is focused on all universities accredited by…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to address and analyse the current status of university library websites in Bangladesh. Particularly, it is focused on all universities accredited by the University Grants Commission (UGC) of Bangladesh. The purpose of this paper is to describe the marketing initiatives taken by university libraries to promote collection and services to their clientele.
Design/methodology/approach
For this study, university library websites were examined using a checklist of criteria developed from earlier studies and present websites. A total of 57 university library websites were examined and most of the websites were visited at least two times during the assessment, which started by checking the availability of direct and non-direct links from the home page of the parent institution followed by website assessment against the checklist. The paper also draws upon the authors’ personal experiences and observations.
Findings
The study identified that the websites are not fully utilized for marketing library resources and services, and that university libraries are not maximizing their promotional activities. A majority of libraries did not make any effort to provide online literacy courses, live support, copyright documents, online user surveys, networking, and so on.
Research limitations/implications
The study is limited to Bangladeshi university libraries and generalization to others is to be cautioned, but there are important lessons to be learned.
Practical implications
This paper will be helpful to libraries planning to implement a marketing strategic plan to improve outreach to users and enhance the image of the library.
Originality/value
The present study is new in Bangladesh and reveals several marketing strategies that may be useful to other academic libraries.
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Why does the idea of marketing generate such negative reactions from many in the academic library world? Research on the word “marketing” in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED…
Abstract
Why does the idea of marketing generate such negative reactions from many in the academic library world? Research on the word “marketing” in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) reveals that usage of the term can be traced back to 1561 when it meant simply “to buy or sell” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2004, http://dictionary.oed.com/). As early as 1884, the meaning began to change to “bringing or sending (a commodity) to market,” which encompasses not just the selling of a product, but the “systematic study of all the factors involved in marketing a product” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2004, http://dictionary.oed.com/). Is it the idea of “selling” that offends so many in libraries? Or do some dislike the suggestion of libraries having “products” much as companies do?
Considers the role of marketing in an increasingly profit‐orientedlocal authority. Discusses the problems involved when a public serviceespouses marketing principles, but…
Abstract
Considers the role of marketing in an increasingly profit‐oriented local authority. Discusses the problems involved when a public service espouses marketing principles, but concludes that only marketing can make most effective use of the scarce resources available to local authorities.
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Rosemary Maturure and Donald Rakemane
Marketing is an important component of libraries and other information centres. In the past, few approaches where used for marketing library collections and services. However, the…
Abstract
Marketing is an important component of libraries and other information centres. In the past, few approaches where used for marketing library collections and services. However, the use of social media tools in marketing library collection and services have over the past many years promise to be an important channel for marketing library collections and services. The purpose of this chapter therefore is to dig answers on the challenges and opportunities of using social media technologies in marketing library services and collections in 21st century environment. The chapter start with a snapshot overview of the importance of marketing library services and collection, highlight social media tools that can be used for marketing library collection and services. In addition, the chapter examines and presents the challenges facing libraries and other information centres in marketing the collection and services in 21st century environment. The methodology that will be used for this chapter is literature review comprising of journal articles, books, conference papers and newspapers articles.
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