CLEVELAND PUBLIC LIBRARY

MARKETING
PLAN
CREATED BY:
LANECIA SMITH
LIS60609
CONTENTS

03
BACKGROUND

04
PURPOSE

06
TARGET

07
GOALS

8
BRANDING/PROMOTION

9
PROJECT PLAN

10
METHOD OF APPRAISAL

BACKGROUND
Over the past 150 years, the Cleveland
Public Library has implemented a
variety of services to the patrons of
Ohio. To build a community of social
engagement, literacy, and learning, we
tailor our services to meet the needs
of our users. The resources of Youth
Services is a result of our efforts to
provide more than a library
environment. Currently there are 27
branch locations in the CPL system.
Professional youth staff tailor services
and resources to match the needs of
youth in that particular community.
There are a variety of youth services
and materials that contribute to our
information environment.
Our juvenile services and materials
include, story-times, free after school
lunch, tutoring, e-technology, STEM,
afternoon arts crafts, and much more.
"The resources of Youth
services is a result of our
efforts to provide more
than a library
environment."
We are also collaborators and
providers for educators, youth leaders,
and academic organizations in the
community. "Our partnership with
Greater Cleveland Food Bank ensures
that children across the city have
access to summer lunches and after
school meals at many of our branch
locations". At CPL there is no limit to
the possibilities of youth success. In
the future we will continue to uplift
and inspire the community,
PAGE 04
 PURPOSE

According to Barchas-Lichtenstein et
al(2018), "For us to fully appreciate the
value of libraries, our public discourse
needs to move beyond that image and
recognize the full spectrum of services
and programs that libraries provide".
Throughout the years, CPL has been more
than just a place of books. We are
continuously evolving as the digital age
progresses. What was once known as a
room of 5,000 books has become a
national treasure worth knowing about.
For this reason, it is our intent to create a
greater awareness that speaks to the
potential of our youth services.
We want to reach current users as well as
non-users in the community who may
not be fully aware of the services we
provide. Many may already be aware of
the youth services we provide. But what
can we offer to create a more in-depth
awareness? As the vision of CPL continues
to grow in the future so must our user
awareness. We want to encourage our
staff about the importance of youth
library marketing. Marketing to youth not
only shows them the value of who we are,
but it also establishes what we do to
uplift the community. We are not just a
place of books, we have a fulfill a
responsibility to the community.
Mentorship, education, well-being, and
freedom is what we offer. In order to
guide our users awareness to the fullest
extent, we must strive to prove who we
are.

PAGE 03
 >68K
Registered juvenile borrowers.

11K
Children's programs reported in
the 2017 State of Ohio Public
Library Statistics.

PAGE 06

TARGET
Our target market for this marketing plan
will be the youth of Ohio between the ages
of 4-17. The focus will be to appeal to the
needs and interests of Pre-K-12 grade. We
also plan to target immediate areas such as
the inner-city, inner-city suburbs, and rural
areas with in the vicinity of CPL. Though CPL
does serve all residents of Ohio, we will try
to keep our reach more reasonable since
there are areas in Ohio that are beyond the
CPL locations. We will target areas within 30
miles, then compare the youth services
offered at libraries within those areas. The
purpose of this initiative will serve as a
guide to discover areas where those
libraries are lacking. Then we can decide
areas of services that would fulfill that need.
The main user target will be youth in Ohio
in areas within reachable proximity.
SMITH
STATISTICS
According to the the
U.S. Census Bureau
(2018), youth account
for more than 30% of
the Cleveland
population. Though
CPL tailors services to
meet the needs of the
Cleveland community,
services are open to
all residents of Ohio.
The U.S. Census (2018)
states that youth also
account for more than
30% of the
population.
We will also focus on youth organizations,
educators, and leaders in the community.
MyCom is one of the organizations we plan
to collaborate with to build an awareness of
our youth resources. MyCom is a community
organization that provides services for youth
throughout the areas of Cleveland, Shaker,
Cleveland Heights, and many other areas of
Ohio. We want to reach educators of
academic institutions to encourage them to
use our marketing materials to distribute
and display. The overall message will be
that CPL youth services is a valuable asset to
the community. We offer a variety of useful
services and resources for youth that goes
beyond just the physical material. We are
here to provide an environment of learning
and civic engagement for our youth in the
communities we serve. We are targeting
awareness of our services and the best ways
to implement our mission.
PAGE 05
 OJECTIVES

According to Levinson and Lautenslauger

(2014), "Marketing goals should fit into and
support your overall business goals.
Just like any other goal, marketing goals
should be measurable. Goals must be
specific and realistic as well" (Levinson &
Lautenslauger, 2014).
There are several major objectives of this
marketing plan:

Increase community awareness of our

youth services and programs.

Provide library services and resources in

various ways to meet the needs of the
growing youth user population.

Reenvision and organize the physical

spaces within our libraries to fulfill the
needs of the youth community.

A monthly newsletter will be distributed

through the community which will
educate users about our youth services.

SMITH PAGE 03
BRANDING &
PROMOTION
According to to ALA News,
"Branding” explains what a brand is
and how to assess, develop and
utilize your brand as an important
institutional asset, with insider tips
on environmental scanning, market
research and situation analysis;"
This marketing plan strives to insert
CPL's brand throughout the
community. To do this we plan to
advertise our youth services and
resources using a various channels.
Some of the ways we will implement
this initiative is through social media
(Twitter, Instagram, Facebook,
Pinterest) posts, outside/inside
displays, media presentations, public
service announcements, and email
lists.
We also plan to discuss our brand
and promotional efforts with
community organizations, educators,
and youth leaders by email, in-
person meetings, and phone calls.
SMITH
We will also plan to get active in the
community by participating in
community youth events. Here we can
provide youth, caregivers, and
educators with information about our
services
"The CPL brand is
shaped around the idea
that we are united with
our communities and
welcome all to use our
services."
We want our youth users to know that
it is okay to use the library and provide
them with a welcoming space. We
want our users to see us as the place
to go to become successful. The CPL
brand is shaped around the idea that
we are united with our communities
and welcome all to use our services.
We will seek to interest our youth
users throughout the community by
proving that literacy is fun and offers
endless possibilities. We want to be
seen as a place that created an outlet
for a juvenile in need of mental, social,
and intellectual stimulation.
PAGE 09
 Projected Plan
14M
We will implement our
marketing plan within a 14
month period. A series of
meetings will take place to
discuss updates once a month.
The first 8 months will be
focused on strategic budgeting
(<$15,000), branding, promotion.
The next 7 months will include
assessing the results and
counting statistics.
30%
Increase in awareness within a
year after implementation of the
marketing plan.
SMITH
12M
At the 12 month mark, we plan to
meet our goal to increase
awareness among the youth in
surrounding communities.
Follwed by a final staff meeting.
At this point we will also being to
assess where we need to
improve and what can be useful
in the future CPL marketing
strategies.
25%
Increase in the use of youth
resources, circulation, and
services.
PAGE 08
 METHOD OF
APPRAISAL
As a completion of this marketing plan, a
written report will be published to discuss
the overall process. We will discuss whether
we have failed or succeeded in meeting our
goals for the stated time frame.
This document will be held in the library
archives and made accessible to the staff
and community. To ensure we have created
our brand in support of users we will
conduct brand awareness surveys. The
purpose will be to discover how youth users
and caregivers recognize CPL as relevant in
the community.   with tallying sheets.
SMITH
Measuring the level of success involves
the responsibility to ensure we are
going in the right direction. In the final
chapter we explain the assessment
approach.
We will also conduct surveys among youth
staff who participated in the marketing
strategy. This will be done to gain an
awareness of staff's perspectives of patron's
awareness.
We will consider the number of social media
engagement by including mentions, likes,
number of messages etc. Lastly, we will
measure the attendance of youth programs
and events to assess whether more youth
have become engaged. To obtain
attendance numbers, staff will be provided
PAGE 07
 REFERENCES
2017 Ohio Public Library Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://library.ohio.gov/documents/2017-
ohio-public-library-statistics/

Barchas-Lichtenstein, J., Norlander, R. J., & Robertson, D. (2018, July 25). Retrieved April 27, 2019, from
http://www.ilovelibraries.org/article/libraries-are-about-much-more-books-–-and-they-always-have-
been

Catholic Charities. (n.d.). MyCom. Retrieved April 28, 2019, from https://ccdocle.org/mycom

Cleveland Public Library. 2017 Report to the Community. Retrieved from

https://issuu.com/clevelandpubliclibrary/docs/cpl_annualreport_2017__issuu?e=32524867/60379476

Reynolds, D. (n.d.). Youth Services. Retrieved April 27, 2019, from

https://cpl.org/aboutthelibrary/subjectscollections/youth-services/

U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Cleveland city, Ohio. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/clevelandcityohio

U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Ohio. (n.d.). Retrieved April 27, 2019, from
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/oh

All photos courtesy of Unsplash.com