Libraries and Social Media with Carol Apollo

Hi, this is Leah Hinds. Welcome to episode 39 of ATG: The Podcast. Today, I’m talking with Carol Apollo. Carol is a Social Media Manager and Strategist who believes that a good social media campaign has the power to change the world. She has worked mostly with non-profit and volunteer organizations to optimize their internet presence and engage their audience and has been working with Against the Grain Media for the past 6 months. She’s also a good friend of mine and I’m happy to have her on the show!  How did you get started as a social media manager?  What are the top uses of social media in the library?  Events promotion Library services promotion Resources/collections promotion Library refurbishment updates Promotion of new acquisitions  Should libraries use paid advertising? Budget vs. ROI Social media is not really free. Content creation and interaction takes employee resources. How often should you post? How do you know if it is too much or too little? Frequency of posting is king. Leverage curated content. Provide value. (80/20) How do you actually engage your community and not just shout into the ether? Engagement of community is just as important. Make sure you claim your location (Facebook and Foursquare) Use challenges and contests to encourage check-ins Highlight user polls to gain insight and increase engagement. Other than the usuals, like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc, are there other platforms we should be paying attention to? Don’t be afraid to try new platforms. NYPubLib uses Google Hangouts to interview authors (authors do not have to travel to your town) New platforms every day. Slack, Zoom - most are free to try. What are some tips to get your posts noticed? Visual posts perform better Use pictures on FB and Twitter. Instagram and Pinterest work well with promotions of acquisitions and resources. Don’t be afraid to use video or livestreaming. Youtube can be used for education. Facebook live has become one of the most influential tools recently. Most important part of Social Media Marketing, for any organization, is a strategy. What advice would you give to someone who’s just getting started, or who wants to do more with social media and isn’t sure where to start? Join groups on Facebook and LinkedIn. Ask questions. Links in show notes. Links: Library-specific Facebook group for social media: https://www.facebook.com/groups/LibrarySocial/ General information: https://www.facebook.com/groups/entertainsocialmedia/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/socialmediamanagers/ https://www.linkedin.com/groups/66325/profile Contact Carol Apollo: http://carolapollo.com/ mecarol75@gmail.com