Award-winning marketing campaign takes to the field for a second season

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/cycling.jpg” caption=”@ your library poster”]

An innovative marketing campaign promoting McMaster's
campus libraries last year garnered extra attention for varsity athletes
and national recognition for the team that came up with the campaign. And this
year, they're hoping for a repeat performance.

To help make students more aware of the resources available at their library
of choice, Anne Plessl, development officer, Mills
Memorial Library, has once again co-ordinated a team of library staff and
representatives from the Department
of Athletics and Recreation to create a second poster campaign that incorporates
varsity athletes and library images to promote the library's collections and
services.

Staff from the Department of Athletics and Recreation enlisted the help of
athletes from a variety of sports. In one poster, gymnasts stretch their
minds amid the library stacks. In another, a pair of soccer players takes
a break from reading in a Thode
study room. Other posters feature cycling, golf, rowing, rugby, squash, and
water polo. Shooting took place over the summer, with students volunteering
about an hour of their time to work with Hamilton-based photographer, Scott
Gardner. Click here for a slide show presentation of the poster series.

Last year's posters were a resounding success raising awareness both on-campus
and off, and Plessl is hoping that the new series continues to draw attention
to the libraries. Explains Plessl, Our main goal is to raise students'
awareness of the library and its resources.

Displayed in locations around campus, the posters certainly caught people's
attention. Several athletes who posed for the posters told Plessl that they
were recognized as they walked around campus.

The poster campaign also received recognition from the Canadian
Council for the Advancement of Education (CCAE). The poster series was named
the Best Print Ad or Ad Campaign at the CCAE's annual Prix D'Excellence,
a prestigious national awards program that recognizes outstanding achievement
in alumni affairs, public affairs, development, student recruitment, and overall
institutional advancement.

This program is quite a departure from libraries' usual ways of
communicating, says Plessl. It's important that we try new
ways to communicate with students.

The new series of posters was launched Sunday at an event recognizing donors
to the McMaster University Library. Beginning this week, the images — eight
in all — will be communicating at various campus locations, including
Mills, Innis and Thode libraries.
They are also being played on the Mactron for home football games and will appear
as screensavers on all public access computers in the libraries.

“Students are used to doing research on Google. We have to get the message
across that the ultimate search engine is @ your library', the
best place for students to get the help and resources they need for academic
research.

The “@ your library” tagline is a branded campaign launched in the
United States by the American Library Association
to promote the value of libraries and librarians.