Welcome to our brand new #WednesdayWanders ALIA SNGG Q&A with The City of Marion Libraries, Marketing and Comms Offcer, Jasmine Argent.

We thank Jasmine for taking the time to answer our questions. 

Interview:

What interested you about working at a library?

I studied Journalism and Creative Writing at UniSA and afterwards worked in social media marketing. During that time, I was volunteering at my local public library as a way to be more involved in the community. I really enjoyed the environment and realised the value of libraries, so I went back to study my Graduate Diploma in Information Management. I started at Marion Libraries on a placement and have been here ever since.

You are the Marketing and Comms Officer at The City of Marion Libraries. What does a typical day look like in your library role?

Every day is different. But typically, my day involves managing our social media platforms: so creating and scheduling content, liking and replying to comments and messages, coming up with content ideas etc. I could also be putting together our email marketing (we send out a library welcome email each week to library members and the Library Loop each month), producing our monthly podcast, creating promotional materials, helping to put together our What’s On guide or working on any other marketing tasks that come up. Customer service is also part of my role, so I’m usually out on desk 1-2hrs a day. I love working in libraries, there’s so much variety!

Our group finds inspiration by viewing the City of Marion Libraries Instagram and Facebook feeds. Who inspires you on social media?

So many accounts inspire me on social media. Some library accounts that I love are Columbus Library and Milwaukee Public Libraries. Other accounts are CSIRO and Duolingo. I love how they use humour to promote their spaces and services and are consistent with their brand.

I also follow a lot of Australian brand accounts like Fayt the Label and Remmie by Riley, who are leading the way in Employee Generated Content (EGC). To create engaging content, you need to have people in your videos for viewers to relate to, that’s why more brands are using employees in their content.

What City of Marion Libraries reel has been your favourite to create on TikTok?

Good question! I love creating videos with the team (especially Denise) it’s so much fun. I’m going to list three:

• The Keeping Up with the Librarians videos, I love a bit of drama and it was fun coming up with the scenarios and filming them with Denise
• This was very early on, but people were filming videos in a Wes Anderson style, and we did it at the library. It was fun to think of creative, symmetrical shots and to edit.
• Filming in Book Week costumes is always fun, but I’ve always wanted to recreate the ‘Olive’ scene from the movie Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging, and we did it one year. So funny!

Which City of Marion Libraries reel were you surprised went viral on TikTok?

Our most viral video is the ‘it’s not a two-person person job’ video and I was so surprised with how successful that was. I wasn’t event going to post it, because I thought the trend was over and I didn’t think it was that funny.

There’s a lesson: don’t think about it too much and post the video. It doesn’t have to be perfect!

We enjoyed reading your article in the March issue of ALIA INCITE, Vol. 46, Issue 1, and learning about the 3E’s for creating content. How can libraries follow the 3E’s – Engage, Educate and Entertain steps to build their social media presence?

The 3E’s are just a reminder for me to create content that is valuable for the viewers and for our library. When you have a content idea or you’re brainstorming ideas, it’s important to think about its purpose and who your target audience is.

Are you trying to educate people who use your library service about something new?  Perhaps you’ll film an instructional video.

Are you trying to engage with people who don’t use the library? Maybe you’ll film something fun and entertaining to get the most shares and reach.

We find most of our videos are a combination of entertaining, educational AND engaging.

Do the City of Marion Libraries team brainstorm ideas with you for possible reels?

Ideas come from everywhere! Staff, customers, other creators. Usually, I’ll come up with an idea or see something on social media that I want to recreate and then I’ll talk it out with the team, and everyone will come in with their own thoughts. It’s great to collaborate and brainstorm ideas together and to film with others. It makes the process more fun and less intimidating, especially if you’re not comfortable in front of the camera.

What best practices should libraries follow to create engaging content for diverse audiences on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok?

Know your audiences, make sure your humour is inclusive, think about accessibility (e.g. captions on all your videos). You also don’t need to hop on every trend – be selective and thoughtful.

What steps can libraries take to promote their libraries online?

Libraries are always under resourced, so first you have to think about your time and what you can manage. We’re lucky here at Marion to have a marketing team, so we have time to manage three social media platforms, create video content, send out emails, have a podcast etc. If you have limited time and resourcing, think about your targeted audiences and the best ways to reach them. It might be through email and Facebook. Or if you’re wanting to reach a younger audience, TikTok or Instagram. You don’t have to do everything, start off by doing one or two things well.

When you’ve chosen your platforms, think about how much you want to be sending out/producing. Maybe it’s one email a month and three social media posts a week. You want to be consistent with your scheduling, so your audiences know what to expect and when to expect it.

It’s also important to be consistent with your brand. On social media, our videos/posts are fun and bright, because we want to promote our libraries as fun, bright, welcoming spaces. So that’s the content we’ve chosen to consistently produce, and what our followers expect from us.

Where should ALIA SNGG visit to read and learn marketing skills?

I studied Journalism and Creative Writing, however I have learnt all my social media marketing skills on the job. I subscribe to marketing emails, listen to podcasts, read blogs. I would 100% recommend following content creators on social media, there is a tutorial for everything! LinkedIn Learning is also a great resource that you can access for free with your library card, with online courses to help build your skills.

How did the Literary Anything podcast start at the City of Marion Libraries? What advice would you provide to libraries interested in starting a library podcast?

It started before I started here! Paula, who was in my current role, wanted to start a podcast to create a bookish community and grow the library’s audiences. At the time, the marketing team sat down together and decided on the name, the format, who would feature on the podcast, how often it would go out etc. If you’re just starting out, I would recommend doing the same, find your niche, work out a format. And find presenters who are willing to be on every episode, because you want to be consistent and build a relationship with your audiences.

Make sure to give The City Of Marion Libraries a follow on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.