A Social Networking Primer for Libraries

Social networking is rapidly infiltrating the information environment, and it is essential that librarians understand how best to use these sites and tools with their work to better serve their users and reach people who have never before used the library. "A Social Networking Primer for Librarians", part of Neal-Schuman's "Tech Set", gives librarians a start-to-finish guide to the basics for using and maximizing popular social networking sites in all types of libraries. From planning to implementation to best practices to evaluation, author Cliff Landis provides highly practical, easy-to-follow guidelines for using MySpace, Facebook, and other prominent sites as a way to expand and improve crucial library functions like instruction, outreach, service delivery, and marketing. Landis also provides additional recommended print, online, and interactive resources to help further development. As with all the "Tech Set" guides, the discussion is accessible to the novice who wants to learn the technology and how to implement it, as well as the seasoned pro charged with translating 'best practice' examples to the local setting and quantifying the results.