Bloomington and Normal Public Libraries;
A Winning Partnership

Bloomington and Normal are two of the fastest growing communities in Illinois. The two communities, "twin cities" located in central Illinois, together are more than 100,000 people. Bloomington and Normal have a diverse population and are home to industry, agriculture and education. Bloomington is classified as a city and Normal as a town. Despite the differences and the fact that each public library is its own institution with individual boards, budgets, programs and staff, we have formed a cooperative partnership in many areas.

Some of the cooperative projects the libraries have participated in over the years include cooperative collection development in the reference area and a joint summer reading programming. An ongoing project, "Book for Every Baby," is based on the desire that every child grows up to be a reader. Parents of each new baby in Bloomington or Normal receive a gift kit, including a book, bookmark and booklet stressing the importance of reading to infants and offering tips for raising children who love to read.

In fall 1997, Bloomington Public Library and Normal Public Library embarked upon their most ambitious, far-reaching cooperative program yet. The libraries and the weekly Twin City Community News joined forces in a win-win partnership to create a special newspaper supplement. "Bloomington-Normal Public Libraries: Preserving the Past...Preparing for the Future," an eight-page insert in the newspaper, was published on Jan. 28,1998, and distributed to 30,000 families in central Illinois.

The project began when the newspaper's general manager and publisher contacted Bloomington and Normal public libraries to see if they would be interested in a joint project. Remembering her amazement at the wide variety of library services offered locally, the publisher thought others would also be interested in learning more about libraries. The libraries' response: YES! We want to do it!

The pull-out section would offer the libraries the opportunity to tell their story with complete editorial control, and to reach area residents who may not be familiar with library services. This was beyond our wildest dreams, and we leaped to take advantage of it.

Planning began in earnest in early fall. The first meeting was scheduled in mid-September 1997, when the project was explained by the publisher. In addition to the libraries providing the text for the supplement, it would also offer a way for the libraries to get their message out to the public without purchasing advertising. The cost of the supplement would be carried by vendors. For companies, this would offer an alternative way to advertise products, while boosting community awareness for two important institutions — Bloomington and Normal public libraries.

The project was not without benefits for the publisher as well, because the supplement would provide Twin City Community News with interesting stories, a unique approach for contacting advertisers, and a role as a supporter of public libraries as a valuable community resource.

The first deadline — Oct. 15,1997 — was set for the libraries to provide a list of supporters and vendors to the newspaper. These would be used by the newspaper's sales force to find advertisers. The more advertising space sold, the larger the supplement would be. A list of nearly 1,000 vendors was submitted. However, the task of contacting the vendors was somewhat difficult for the newspaper, because phone numbers and contact names were available for only part of the vendor list.

The Twin City Community News produced promotional materials for selling advertising and okayed them with the libraries. The materials were actually used in January to sell the ad space. The promotional copy read: "On Jan. 28, 1998, the Twin City Community News will publish a special supplement focusing on Bloomington and Normal Public Libraries. This section will increase community awareness and

*Mari McKeeth, Public Relations & Adult Services, Normal Public Library; and Krysta Tepper, Marketing Manager, Bloomington Public Library.

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encourage participation in the many services and programs offered by both facilities. This supplement will be mailed to more than 28,000 households in Bloomington-Normal, and an additional 2,000 copies will be distributed to more than 40 neighborhood locations."

Costs for advertising ranged from $85 to $600, with the quarter-page front page ad selling for $400. We were delighted when the Friends groups of Bloomington and Normal public libraries voted to purchase the $400 front page ad. This enabled the entire front page to focus on the libraries. With the Friends buying the ad space, it was decided that the front page could contain four photos — two of each library. An article inside would tell readers about the Friends groups and how to become a member. Most people only associate the Friends with their book sales, yet the services they provide to the library are much more diverse and newsworthy. The visibility given to the Friends groups was another tremendous benefit of the project.

The second deadline — Jan. 6, 1998 — was set for editorial copy and photos. We decided that there were some topics the libraries could do jointly and others that needed to be handled separately. At the October meeting, it was recommended that each library prepare five pages of articles of differing lengths, filler materials and six to eight photos. At the time, we did not know how large the supplement would be, because the length of the supplement would be determined by the number of ads sold.

At the January meeting, priorities were set for including articles. Our first priorities were articles on the summer reading program, the Friends groups, how to obtain a library card, and "Books for Every Baby." Library hours and Web site information would be used as filler. These items would be included in the supplement no matter how long or short it would be. After that, additional articles were chosen in a very balanced manner. Bloomington Public Library selected one from its list of articles, then Normal Public Library, and the process repeated until all articles and photos were assigned a numerical ranking. To assure balance, we even agreed that one library's history could not be used unless the other history would be included too.

On Jan. 28,1998, nearly six months after the initial contact, the supplement became a reality. Eight pages, including 14 articles and 12 photos divided evenly between the two libraries, was in hand. The articles included:

• Summer reading program: 'Dive into Books' at the library!

• Your library card: don't leave home without it!

• To have a friend.. .be one!

• Read. Succeed. Use your library.

• Libraries provide books for babies.

• NPL's Children's department offers a wealth of resources.

• Library computers help you search for information or surf the Web.

• The Bookmobile: not just for kids.

• NPL's Reference LAN: the basics.

• Local history: preserving the past.

• BPL program update.

• 'Partners in Reading' at NPL

• Bloomington Public Library changes with times.

• Brief history of Normal Public Library.

We found the staff at the Twin City Community News very easy to work with. Our suggestions for the cover were used, including placing a small triangle at the bottom of the front of the supplement to read "Special pull-out section to save for future reference." Being able to write our own copy and submit our own photos was a special treat as well.

There were only two items that called attention to themselves. One photograph caption was shortened and became somewhat misleading. And one vendor was upset by a competitor's ad that contained inaccurate information.

Now that it's all over, would we do it again? Yes! And we hope to get the opportunity, as the Community News plans to make the library supplement an annual event. The supplement generated a high degree of enthusiasm from library patrons, board members, Friends and the vendors. The only cost to the library was staff time, which was considerable for the authors of this article. The vendors carried the complete expense of the supplement, with the exception of the Friends $400 ad. The libraries received extra copies of the supplement to distribute in the library; Bloomington Public Library also distributed copies from the library booth at several off-site community events.

In these times of shrinking budgets and increased demands by patrons, cooperative efforts between libraries can be extremely beneficial. Merging creativity — our two heads were better than one — saved time, money and produced a wide-reaching promotion of two libraries. Bloomington and Normal public libraries have a long history of cooperation and communication, which we know will continue into the future. We've already begun our next project — summer reading promotion in the Pantograph, the area's daily newspaper, for several area public libraries. Blooming-ton and Normal public libraries highly recommend partnerships and cooperation between libraries!

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