Get The Word Out! New Tools to Communicate Your Media Message

In our 2-hour session today, we'll show you some new ways to let your students, teachers and parents know about the amazing things that are going on in your library or media center. Knowledge is power, and the more that your stakeholders know about your library, the more likely they will be to use the materials and resources you have to offer.

Here's the handout, complete with step-by-step instructions, links and resources:??http://bit.ly/hDIvAl

Let's go! The first step in this whole process is??transparency??- spread the word about you and your program in any venue open to you. Today, we'll take you through the process of setting up 3 different services to aid you in this, and then we'll tie them all together in the end to make you Masters of your Message!

First off, share everything you can with an easy to maintain web site or blog. Blog about new books, suggested readings, or other great things happening in your library:

• Blogger.com – For longer entries. Preview stories, discuss new offerings, publicize upcoming events, etc. Quickly create a new site and start writing!
• Twitter – Twitter is a micro-blog – great for short updates, sharing links to incredible web resources, or as a 'shout-out' to recognize the great things you see everyday. Here's an example from E-Valley.

Share your new, featured or favorite books in different ways:

• Shelfari – a virtual bookshelf. See example below, or check out my personal Shelfari page
• See how Belknap Elementary is having students share the books they love

Let's tie it all together

• Create a Blogger site to highlight your students or your??recommendations
• Create a Twitter account for sharing quick bits of information like upcoming events, new books that have been added to the library. Also, search Twitter for other topics or users with your similar interests.
• Create a Shelfari account, and add some books from Amazon or a selection of your top??recommendations??or what you are reading now
• Now, add in the Shelfari and Twitter widgets to your new site to make it all work together!
• Lastly, let your school web master know about your new site so that they can highlight it and link to it from your school site.