This book has a bias towards action. However, simply rushing around doing what are believed to be ‘good things’, with the hope that in some mystical way such initiatives will generate extra visits, issues, enquiries, website hits or other important activity which will move the library towards its performance targets, is unlikely to support effective marketing. Although it is possible to strike lucky with random marketing, it is not to be recommended as a strategy.

Effective marketing is characterized by specific marketing actions which are clearly focused on helping to achieve specific targets within a wider mission and vision, together with a set of values that inform decision making on the journey. To begin thinking about public library marketing initiatives without an idea of where you want to get to (both qualitatively and quantitatively) is likely to result in an uncoordinated approach to marketing. Marketing initiatives should be chosen for their ability to deliver the type of library activity required from the segments of the market identified to receive the marketing communications. Without a clear understanding of the level of ambition of an initiative, how will any manager know how strong marketing activity needs to be to be effective?

The degree of ambition inherent in these targets will act as a very important guide to the type, level and frequency of specific marketing communications and promotional activity. Taken in the context of the potential market for library services by segment (there is more on this in Chapter 3), ambition will set the whole tone for marketing.

Key dimensions of public library ambition

Public library ambition can be thought of as having two key dimensions: