“It’s Your Library!” promotes services and encourages a sense of ownership

Beginning with a “Welcome Back” banner hung in front of the building, followed by handing out “6 Thing we can help you with TODAY” bookmarks and our newest library pens at New Student Orientation, and adding a subtle update to the library website (and library staff email signatures), the Milligan College Library launched its “It’s Your Library: …and so much more!” promotional campaign for the 2013-14 academic year.

“It’s Your Library!” is the brainchild of User Services Librarian, Jeff Harbin and Library Director, Gary Daught. “We will be hanging new banners throughout the year,” said Harbin. “We want to keep the consistent ‘It’s Your Library!’ branding, but highlight different library services we think our users find most valuable–things such as research assistance, study spaces, and MCSearch. The ‘and so much more!’ aspect stresses that the whole is greater than the sum of any one library service highlighted at the time. Plus there’s the relational aspect we value and are trying to promote. All library services at some level are delivered to our users by competent, helpful, and caring staff.”

“That’s right!” added Daught. “We wanted to create an attractive promotional vehicle to enhance the visibility of the library to Milligan students and faculty while also encouraging them to take a greater sense of ownership in the library. The library exists for our users. So we figured, instead of talking about ‘what the library can do for you’ we would talk about ‘what your library can do for you.’ It’s a small but important change. The services are the same, but the relationship with our users is strengthened.”