Introduction

Building a strong connection to the public involves activities that both draw the public to the library and that help promote the library out in public forums away from the library.

Most library personnel and library supporters are most familiar with public relations activities that are conducted on a recurring basis: newsletters and publications, regularly scheduled events (such as book discussions and other library programs), and the traditional annual book sale. These activities are essential in fulfilling a library’s mission and should serve as the basis for creating additional and innovative ways of reaching out to communities and stakeholder groups.

This section focuses on two primary means for reaching your public: planning special events and creating a speaker’s bureau. The key difference with these public relations strategies is that the content of these efforts are customized for a particular outcome and therefore have the potential to have a great impact in delivering a particular message.  Furthermore, these public relations strategies involve interacting with the public outside of the framework of normal library work. These activities provide a wonderful opportunity to get the public thinking about the role of the library and the support needed to help libraries thrive.