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Integrated Advisory

Dear Boss, 
I know that Valentine's Day is behind us, but if you're serious about getting a circulation bump in our stagnant reads, I think I have an idea.  What about treating the books like hot dates and wrapping them up for check out??  I've seen other libraries do this thing called, "Blind Date with a Book" where the titles are wrapped up in wrapping or butcher paper and labeled with just a number and a brief synopsis.  This could be just the genre or a little paragraph teaser to strum up interest.  We could even make it a little more interesting by including chocolates with the check-outs or hold a drawing for a date night for those who participated.  I also thought we could pair up popular movies with books that patrons might like... kind of an, "If you  liked _____, you should put your nose in this," display.  If you'd like me to head this up, let me know.  I think it might be wise to wrap up some kid books too since we all know children LOVE to unwrap goodies.  

 I welcome your feedback,

 Shannon

Comments

  1. DonFebruary 18, 2020 at 12:33 PM

    This was the first idea I thought of, as some of the libraries I work with are doing this exact thing with blind date with a book! It also works with mysteries, especially.

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  2. Shelby O'MalleyFebruary 19, 2020 at 11:31 AM

    Shannon, this was the most popular suggestion I found when I was researching some ideas on Pinterest. My local library did this, but it wasn't promoted much. I wish I had heard more about it when it was going on because it sounds like a fun idea! I think if you were to really promote the display, then it could be successful in getting patrons to try new reads. I also really liked your idea of pairing a book with a movie because there are a lot of people who swear they don't like a certain genre, but are willing to watch movies with the same characteristics. I think showing people that there are a lot of similarities between the two media would be a great addition!

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  3. Julie DannisFebruary 20, 2020 at 5:34 AM

    My branch did this, but it wasn't as successful as it is at our main library. Not sure why. One observation--I only saw women checking books out from our display. I wonder what could be done to draw in men?

    I would love to try this high school or YA books, but we would need to have a LOT of YA books prepared...logistically, that might be tough.

    ReplyDelete
  4. lindaFebruary 24, 2020 at 2:55 PM

    Our library does this. For some reason it was a little more popular this year than it has been in the past. (Last year we had to unwrap books to put back on the shelf when Feb. 14th passed). This year we had patrons tell us they wanted to be surprised, so don't give them their receipt. The staff enjoyed the challenge of coming up with just enough information on the comments to pique interest, but not too much. I also would like to see more men drawn in.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Erin CataldiFebruary 27, 2020 at 8:38 AM

    I love your idea of also putting some chocolate and having a program that people can attend the books they ended up with. Great new takes on a popular idea. Full points!

    ReplyDelete

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