Celebrating the Best of the Best

 

By Cathelijne Kuiters
IFLA Management & Marketing Section member

As every year, the prestigious IFLA PressReader International Library Marketing Award was presented in 2024. Now in its 21st edition held on August 27th (available on our Youtube Channel), the award has honored organizations that have implemented creative, results-oriented marketing projects or campaigns for over two decades. It is a fantastic way to recognize and celebrate the most innovative and effective library marketing efforts globally. The award acknowledges the best library marketing projects from 2023, encouraging libraries to embrace marketing and providing a platform for sharing expertise and experience worldwide.

The Marketing Award is one of the “Big Three” awards presented by IFLA each year, alongside the Public Library Award and the Green Library Award. Because there is no World Library and Information Congress (WLIC) on the calendar this year, the IFLA PressReader International Library Marketing Award ceremony was held virtually, attracting over 100 attendees from all time zones.

This year, the award received a record-breaking 103 submissions, making the selection process incredibly challenging for the jury. To determine the top ten and the ultimate winners from this high-quality pool of entries, the jury evaluated each submission based on four categories: creativity, strategic thinking, reach, and metrics and evaluation. The awards were given to the entries that scored the highest across all categories, demonstrating excellence in every aspect.

This 21st edition is particularly special as IFLA President Vicki McDonald presented the awards. As a former member of the Marketing and Management Committee, she is especially enthusiastic about this year’s entries and winners. “It’s likely that everyone will walk away with ideas they want to implement themselves. It’s so important to share what we do because, so often, people still say, ‘I didn’t know libraries did this.’ The top ten projects we are celebrating today have certainly contributed to changing that perception and can rightly be called ‘the best of the best’ for 2024.” 

The 2024 Winners Are:

  1. Auckland Council Libraries (New Zealand): 100 Reasons to Have a Library Card 🥇
  2. Seoul Metropolitan Library (Republic of Korea): Seoul Outdoor Library 🥈
  3. Nanjing University Libraries (China): The Sounds of the Library 🥉

Auckland Council Libraries – 100 Reasons to Have a Library Card

Auckland Council Libraries' campaign, 100 Reasons to Have a Library CardAuckland Council Libraries’ campaign, 100 Reasons to Have a Library Card, which spans three years, addresses a globally recognized issue: the lack of awareness about the full range of services libraries offer. The campaign tackles this challenge in a playful, humorous, and effective way.

The campaign was launched in response to research highlighting a decline in new and active members, revealing that many people were unaware of the services available and perceived libraries primarily as places for books and quiet spaces. The goal was to find new ways to connect with ‘Aucklanders’, which was achieved through the overarching message, “Your Story Starts Here.” The jury particularly appreciated the campaign’s strategic long-term perspective and its creative approach, which was regularly evaluated and adjusted. For instance, it became clear that many people were still unaware that library membership is free, a point that was emphasized in the campaign’s continuation. The results speak for themselves: two-thirds of new sign-ups came through the campaign, and 66% of participants reported learning something new about the library. The creators’ favorite (and silliest) reason? “To use it as a bookmark.”

Discover your favorite reason on Auckland Council Libraries: 100 Reasons to Have a Library Card.

Seoul Metropolitan Library – Seoul Outdoor Library

Earning a well-deserved second place is the – Seoul Metropolitan Library (Republic of Korea) – with its innovative – Seoul Outdoor Library – campaign. Seoul Metropolitan Library (Republic of Korea) - with its innovative - Seoul Outdoor Library - campaignThis initiative was inspired by the lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the goal of increasing the number of library users by lowering barriers to library access through the creation of safe spaces. They achieved this by operating programs outdoors that couldn’t be implemented within the library building itself. The campaign successfully removed barriers to library services through spatial innovations, creative services, and proactive promotions.

The primary target audience for this campaign includes non-library users, with a focus on friends and families during weekends, and office workers as well as domestic and international tourists during the weekdays. The library offers a variety of easily accessible programs that everyone can participate in. The success of the campaign is evident, as the budget increase over the last two years was driven primarily by citizen demand. Additionally, the campaign boasts an impressive happiness indicator increase of 81.6% and an 80.6% score on the “feeling value of outdoor library” key performance indicator. Seoul Outdoor Library is a source of inspiration for us all. Watch their full presentation on YouTube here.

Taking third place is Nanjing University Libraries (China) with their creative The Sounds of the Librarycampaign, which surprised and delighted both their audiences and the jury. This campaign centers around a song, but it goes beyond just music, incorporating a video, online and offline posts, a singing competition, a rally dance, and more. Spanning several years, the marketing efforts have had a lasting impact. The campaign achieved remarkable results, not only in terms of reach—such as 257,000 views on a single video—but also in engagement, with over five hundred participants attending offline screenings and joining in the dance. The sound itself was composed by Nanjing University faculty members in collaboration with students, featuring an a-cappella repetition of nine distinct sounds made while using the library. The entire presentation can be viewed during the award ceremony (watch the playback).

Along with the top three winners, these seven organizations and their campaigns (in alphabetical order) were also recognized for their strategic, innovative, and successful approaches to library marketing:

  • Guangzhou Children’s Library (China): Library Cube
  • Jiaxing City Library (China): Initiating Popular Science Reading with Metaverse
  • Knjižnica Mirana Jarca Novo mesto (Slovenia): Family library card: Bridging the Youth Literacy Gap
  • Ruian Library (China): Xiao Cao’s Channel
  • Sistema Nacional de Bibliotecas Públicas / Servicio Nacional del Patrimonio Cultural / Ministerio de las Culturas, las Artes y el Patrimonio (Chile): Digital Public Library lending points
  • Stellenbosch University (South Africa): Promoting the Library via TikTok
  • Toronto Public Library (Canada): What’s at Stake?

Altogether seven more good reasons to (re)watch the award ceremony on our Youtube Channel and get inspired by their case presentations.

IFLA PressReader International Library Marketing Award 2024 press release here.

Posted: 02/Set/2024