Hear from an expert - top social media platforms for libraries

A great video which looks at the pros and cons of using different social media platforms.

Fantastic post from Ella! - Best Uses of Pinterest by Libraries

Ella - Social Media Class 2015: Best Uses of Pinterest by Libraries: In general, Pinterest acts as place to collate bookmarks in a visual manner. A pin is an image, but also a link to a website. This means lib...

Libraries using Twitter

For your comp task you need to create a blog post which outlines some of the best ways libraries can use Twitter and why it might be better for some purposes than using other social media platforms.

There are loads of articles on using Twitter in libraries. I think this one by SCIS gives a good overview.Twitter is ideal for libraries who want to:

• Be able to update their members with quick short messages eg. "The library will close early at 4.00pm on 21 April to celebrate Margie's birthday."
• To link new products or news which are held on the library's website.
• To link to a website or item that is library related in some way eg. Announcement of Children's Book Week award winner.
• To provide photos and updates of library events.
• To point library users to information elsewhere that is more in-depth eg. the progress reports on a new library building.

Take a look at the Twitter feed for @EasternRegional library service. They use their Twitter feed for all of the above reasons. 

Twitter is also ideal for library staff to use to increase their professional knowledge. Staff can follow organisations such as ALIA or leaders in the industry and gather ideas about latest issues, technologies and techniques.

Twitter is quick, mobile and easy to manage.

Libraries using Facebook

Today we have been looking at different library related organisations who use Facebook and discussing why they would choose Facebook as a social media tool. I think Facebook can be used well in libraries for things like:

• Telling members about library events - like the State Library of Victoria
• Reviews of new books
• Posts where they want to include a link to another site, or images, or video - like the National Library of Australia
• To link with a very large number of people (Facebook is very popular) - like the ALIA Library Technicians Group
• To connect with adults as you have to be over 13 to use Facebook
• To gather feedback or comments from library users - like Libraries in Wyndham