Crowdsourcing as an Approach to Customer Relationship Building in Academic Libraries

Authors

Lisa A. Ellis, CUNY Bernard M Baruch CollegeFollow
Aisha Pena, CUNY Bernard M Baruch CollegeFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Fall 2015

Abstract

Library initiatives to first-year students not only present an opportunity to offer information literacy instruction for student advancement but they also serve a key marketing function by communicating the library’s ongoing value and building customer relationships. Library orientation tours are an example of how to effectively market to first-year students. Combining peer-to-peer learning and user-generated content via social media known as crowdsourcing, Newman Library sponsored a contest challenging first-year students to create a video sharing a useful library tip. The contributions and benefits of this co-creation approach to fostering relationships are examined and the implications to strengthening other library-user bonds are explored.

Comments

This is an e-verson of an article published in Ellis, L. A. & Peña, A. (2015). Crowdsourcing as an Approach to Customer Relationship Building in Academic Libraries. College & Undergraduate Libraries, 22(3–4), 273–295. https://doi.org/10.1080/10691316.2015.1076364. College & Undergraduate Libraries is available online at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10691316.2015.1076364.