This week, I have reflected upon the East Hampton Library's
Facebook and Instagram presence. The Facebook posts primarily focus on adult
programming, events, and newly released books, while the Instagram account is a
mix of adult and children's content. There are posts from different departments
on the same day, which is not ideal for engagement. As Dr. Sun notes, "too
often organizations post randomly or reactively, which leads to inconsistent
results" (Sun, 2025, 0:34).
It leads me to question whether the library staff are thinking about what to post, when to post, and why the content matters, or if they are simply posting about upcoming events or tooting their own horn. Visually, the social media posts vary from full-screen headshots of performers to short reels of children participating in an activity, or a replication of a paper flyer. The East Hampton Library appears to be adapting its content based on the platform it is using. For example, since Instagram skews towards a younger clientele, most children's content appears there. Adult programming and news are primarily available on Facebook, as their target demographic is older individuals.
It does not appear that the East Hampton Library has a content strategy or a content calendar, as confirmed by one of the department heads. I suggested using a tool like Hootsuite or Sprout Social to collect and analyze social media statistics. According to Atherton, companies should devise social media strategies that incorporate the ABC approach, which includes "three elements – audience, brand, and campaigns" (2023, p. 108). The East Hampton Library's social media plan would benefit from knowing its audience, establishing its brand, and scheduling and evaluating its campaigns. Another Atherton recommendation is for businesses to identify key or recurring themes that serve as content pillars, providing a framework for social media content.
Future recommendations include taking stock of the demographics of library social media followers, asking them what types of content they would like to see, developing a content strategy and calendar, and working on engagement and shares through polls and other calls to action. A more explicit purpose and consistency will hopefully result.
References
Atherton, J. (2023). Social
media strategy : a practical guide to social media marketing and customer
engagement. (Second edition). Kogan Page.
Hi Maude, I agree that your library would benefit from a content calendar and it's awesome that you've been looking into helpful tools like Hootsuite. One of the things that stood out to me most about your post was the difference between the content the library posts on Facebook vs. Instagram. It's interesting that the different age demographics lead to completely different content being posted or heavy posting of content from one department. I'm curious if you like that or think that could be a detriment? Could parents/grandparents who use Facebook be missing out on posts about kid events for their kids/grandkids because they're not savvy on Instagram?
ReplyDeleteHello Madeline. I agree that children's department content should be posted to Facebook as well, in theory. However, approximately 90% of the children that come to the library are attending with their nannies, not parents, nor grandparents.
DeleteOut of curiosity, are your staff required to obtain parental consent before posting pictures of children to social media? We need to do this at NYPL, and it's actually something I need to take into consideration for my own Content Calendar! (I'm entertaining focusing on children's services, and had actually thought about using Instagram and TikTok to target older and younger parents respectively...) In any case, I'm always curious to know what the policies in different branches look like.
ReplyDeleteI think your recommendations are fantastic! It's definitely a good idea for your organization to consolidate a specific strategy. Perhaps specific content can be scheduled based on the day. For example, social media aimed toward adults could rotate between library resources and adult programs, with a day dedicated to highlighting a specific event (such as an upcoming author talk, a new adult display, etc), whereas social media aimed toward children could rotate between showing off popular children's books and highlighting programs (that's the approach I'm planning to take!).
Madeline's comment about age demographics got me thinking about what a fine line organizations have to tread when it comes to selecting appropriate social media platforms. If you're trying to advertise programs for younger kids, you can't exactly target them, since many will be too young to read much! You'll have to target their parents/guardians in that case, but the correct social media platform to use depends on their age. Something like Instagram might work for parents in their 20s and 30s, but what about the grandparents who often come in with their children, as you mention? Facebook is definitely the best option if the majority of guardians coming in are grandparents, though you'd have to consider the idea that many may have limited digital literacy. Decisions, decisions!