Melissa Grygla LIBR 283- Marketing of Library & Information Services Spring 2010

 Established in 1916, final merger with Herbert Kraft Free Library in  At it’s peek the library had 32 staff members, and approximately 16 branches. In 1986 “Woman in the Box” trial cut the library back to a staff of 7 with 3 branches. The library still has only 7 employees and 3 branches.  Organization Centered Mindset with no marketing budget.

 Current Mission Statement: “Our mission is to provide for the informational, education, and recreational needs of the citizens of Tehama County and to serve as an archive for the rich historical resources of our area” (Tehama County Library, 2010).  Goals and Objectives: At present the Tehama County Library does not have any goals or objectives, as the Head Librarian does not see them as a necessity.

 Recommended Mission Statement: Our mission is to provide for the informational, educational, and recreational needs of the citizens of all ages through reading and technology, and also to serve as an archive for the rich historical resources of our area.  Goals and Objectives: GOAL: The residents of Tehama County will have the computer and information literacy skills they need to successfully manage and analyze information.  OBJECTIVE: 200 adults a year will attend basic computer classes taught at the library.  OBJECTIVE: The library will provide computers to at least 2000 users annually.  OBJECTIVE: The library will provide 8 classes a year on database use.  OBJECTIVE: 1000 people a year will access online databases providing information on a variety of topics. GOAL: The library will have a collection of new and popular fiction, non-fiction, periodicals and audiovisual materials.  OBJECTIVE: 9,000 items of current interest will be circulated annually.  OBJECTIVE: Library staff will annually review periodical subscriptions, adding and eliminating titles based on use and cost. (Shasta Public Libraries, 2010).

 Staff tends to neglect scanning local or national resources to evaluate environmental influences.  Possible forces of the macro-environment, which can most likely affect this organization, are the physical, competitive, and economic. Physical: Large County area, little public transportation, three library branches open very few hours. Competitive: Local bookstores, Tehama County Department of Education, has many similar free programs, Local Churches with their own libraries, and two other county libraries in large communities with a one hour drive of Tehama County. Economic: Nationwide economic crisis. Reduction in county funding equates loss of state funding.  The current internal forces which can affect the library are staff and volunteers Staff: Abrupt with users, sometimes rude, expect users to know how to use services. Volunteers: Very helpful, assist patrons and make them feel welcome.  Since the Tehama County Library staff currently only monitors the local newspaper for environmental influences, there can be several changes made by staff to promote better environmental scanning and analysis.  Possible Resources: Primary: Surveys and focus group studies can give the library necessary insight to make productive changes. Secondary: Newspapers, journals, periodicals, the U.S. Census, the World Wide Web (WWW), local and regional government documents, geographic data, school statistics, traffic counts, and the Chamber of Commerce (Koontz, 2006). Local resources which the Tehama County library should consult are the Red Bluff Daily News, the Record Searchlight, the Tehama County website, the Red Bluff and Corning Chambers of Commerce, and the Tehama County Department of Education

 There is no list of stakeholders, although a formalized list may be useful in the event of staff turnover.  Six Identified Stakeholders: Library Staff Library Customers The Tehama County Board of Supervisors Friends of the Library The Wheeler’s, an individual donor Baker and Taylor, the library’s largest vendor.

 Strength Large group of Volunteers Experienced Staff Relationship with Customers Dedicated Children’s Librarian Strong relationship with Tehama County Department of Education.  Opportunities Grants Technology costs are reducing. Marketing to the public. Online database availability thorough North State Cooperative. Staff training in policy and customer service.  Weakness Internet policy, inflexible. Small staff. Increase in staff burnout and stress related illness and/or injury Lack of funding Not all staff members are following policies and procedures.  Threats Reduced funding. Rapidly changing technology. Loss of current employees. Internet, research no longer requires traveling to the library. E-book readers

 Currently, Tehama County Library, only collects registration card data for new cards. They do not use this information for any other purpose. Recommend plotting address data on maps The library should consider collecting addresses as a contact method.  Recommended Sources Census Data Local paper & Chamber’s of Commerce US Public Library Geographic Database

 Geographic Marketing- Use the library card registration information.  Demographic Information- From recommended sources collect geographic information to identify characterizes of the community and identify target markets.  Identify currant usage habits- Utilize Library staff who interact with customers.

 Opening Hour Computer Users Homeless and unemployed members of the community. Low income. Use the library as a gathering place and information center.  After School Rush School age children. Male and Female, low income families. Use the library for entertainment and research purposes.  After Work Families and Adults Taxpayers who help to fund the library. Many of these users are educated, and completed high school or college. Use the library for entertainment and research.

CHILDREN’S SERVICESREFERENCE SERVICES Product Item: Pre-school story hour Primary Customer Market: children between the ages of 1-5, with parent who are able to bring them to story hour and stay during the program Price: Travel to the library, and willingness to go on the only day the program is offered. Promotion: Word of mouth, information printed in the library brochure, and flyers put on the counter of the library at the beginning of every school year. Place: Tehama County Library, Red Bluff Branch Recommended TWEAK: Price and Place Currently the library only provides story hour on Wednesday’s at 9:30 AM at the main branch. This prevents many parents from bringing children to story hour, by adding an additional evening story hour more parents and children may be able to come. The library could also investigate the possibility of having story hours in the smaller library branches as well. New Customer Market(s): Working parents with children between the ages of 1-5, maybe some families with older children. Product Item: Volunteer Genealogy Research Primary Customer Market: Individuals interested in local history and family genealogy research. Price: Travel time, access and availability, wait time Promotion: Word of mouth, information through the Tehama County Historical and Genealogical Society website. Place: Tehama County Library, Red Bluff Branch Recommended TWEAK: Price Currently the users of this service have to come into the library when volunteers are in the library. Sometimes volunteers fail to show up during the hours that they are assigned. Investigate the possibility of an on call volunteer. Stress the importance of the schedule to the volunteer. Schedule volunteers during all library open hours and cross-train in other areas of the library for times they are not needed to assist with Genealogy. New Customer Market(s): This concept does not really open a new market; however current markets will be able to access the resources with less difficulty and more dependability. Information Products and Services Product Items: Preschool story hour, class visits, and the Summer Reading Program Product Items: Volunteer Genealogy Research, Online Databases, Reference Materials Collection

CHILDREN’S PRESCHOOL STORY HOUR VOLUNTEER GENEALOGY RESEARCH Customer Behavior Measures  Criteria- Number of Children attending Wednesday Story Hour Number of Participates attending the Evening Story Hour  Objectives- Increase attendance by 50% in 12 months.  Method(s)- Gather statics though weekly sign in sheets. Customer Satisfaction Measures  Criteria- Surveys completed monthly by Participates (1-4 Questions) Enjoyment of stories and activities Use of materials for children between the ages of 1-5.  Objectives- Customer surveys focus on their enjoyment and encouragement of the programs. Customer enjoyment by 25% Circulation statistics for materials for children between the ages of 1-5 increase in one year.  Method(s)- Surveys given to program participates and personal interviews of staff and attendees. Customer Behavior Measures  Criteria- # of individuals requesting assistance. # of materials accessed by individuals requesting genealogy research assistance. Time spent with each individual.  Objectives- Increase usage by 10%. Develop time slots, for users to sign up with volunteers.  Method(s)- Gather statistics from sign-up sheets, tally circulation records, and materials used by type. Customer Satisfaction Measures  Criteria- Usability of materials in the Local History Section. Enjoyment of center atmosphere. Confidence that volunteers will be able to assist them in locating specific information.  Objectives- Customer usability by 10% in one year. Customer enjoyment by 10% in one year. Customer confidence by 25% in one year.  Method(s)- Quarterly personal interview by library staff with volunteers assisting with genealogy research.

 Using 1 to 4 question surveys the library is more likely to receive responses, and will be better able to assess their strengths and weaknesses. Possibly used to evaluate: children’s programming, reference services, and other products and services the library provides.  Secret shopping.  Constantly monitor the evaluation of services in order to best meet the overall needs of business’ and user’s.  Begin to include a marketing plan and budget annually.  Improve the mission statement, goals, objectives, and retrain staff.

 Koontz, C. M. (2006) Environmental Scanning: Discover What’s Happening Out There and What it May Mean for Your Library. Retrieved from May 3, 2010 from the Angel Course Management System.  Shasta Public Libraries. (2010) Strategic plan  Tehama County Library. (2010). Site currently under construction.