Social Media at LACMA and Buffalo Libraries

If you asked someone five years ago what makes a cultural heritage institution relevant, they would say it would needed a webpage.  Today, they would most likely point to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. The fact of the matter is that social media is everywhere and it isn’t going away and a lot of libraries, archives, and museums have recognized this need.  Two such institutions that have been trying to keep up are the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and the Buffalo and Erie County Public Libraries (herein, Buffalo Libraries).  Each of these organizations utilizes several major social media outlets, but are they doing so effectively?

LACMA has accounts on the following sites: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Tumblr, Snapchat, Instagram, and WordPress.  While statistics on WordPress, Tumblr, and Snapchat are not available, the other sites reach a combined audience of 803,448 through “likes” and “followers” (see chart below).  Even though we would like to think we don’t judge a book by its cover, we obviously do.  My first impressions of LACMAs sites are that they are clean and streamlined.  There aren’t superfluous links, hard-to-read colors, and a lot of text crowding the pages.  LACMA’s homepage has links to their Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram, and WordPress accounts.  Snapchat is missing because it is a mobile app, but YouTube is not represented.  The last upload to that site was four months ago, so it is not as if they have not been loading content there.  This is an oversight on their part that I would recommend they fix if they want users to view their videos.

On their Twitter page, LACMA does a good job of cross-promoting with other institutions and artists.  If they are exhibiting a collection, they will tag the artist and often hash tag their name.  They also visually represent themselves well on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr through frequent photographs of events and exhibits.  This is effective because it not only tells the user that a new exhibit is on display, but also shows a sample of the collection, a picture of the artist, and/or photographs from a related event.  As the tweet below shows, LACMA is also on Pinterest.  Their boards showcase common elements in their collection, with such boards as "Faces," "Summertime," and "Animals."  They also share pins of the museum through the years and photos of the museum undergoing conservation efforts. 

Their WordPress blog also showcases photos of events, collection highlights, and upcoming goings-on at the museum.  This year LACMA made the news by becoming one of the first museums to use Snapchat (username: lacma_museum).  Maritza Yoes, LACMA’s social media manager stated in an August press release that “Snapchat stems from our enthusiasm for experimental approaches to social media” and thinks that the smart phone app is a great way to “reach a younger audience.”  They may be on the right track, since the article states that 43% of 12- to 24-year-olds use Snapchat at least once a day.

LACMA does not have a social media policy posted on their website, but they seem to have a visual standard.  They have successfully utilized their logo across all of these sites so people who see it will automatically recognize the institution.  The font is uniform and their colors are used frequently throughout their posts.  Overall, LACMA has a strong social media presence and has shown themselves open to trying new social media outlets—they just need to remember to keep up their uniform look and keep relative to their user base.

Buffalo Libraries have also trying to keep up with the ever-changing world of social media—though on a smaller scale.  They currently utilize Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and Tumblr with a combined audience of 13,076 (excluding Tumblr, see chart below).  Their Pinterest page also has a separate account for their Children’s Program.  While Buffalo is a smaller city than Los Angeles and, arguably, less “glamorous” of a place to follow, there are aspects of their social media presence they could improve upon.  Their Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr account pictures are all different and none seem to represent the mission of the library.  Facebook has a rather bland photo of somewhere the inside of the library and an ugly picture of the outside of one of their branches.  Twitter has a photo of a buffalo as its icon and Pinterest has a word cloud of text associated with libraries.  A uniform design would streamline the overall appearance of their social media presence.  Their homepage has a banner across all pages and that could be a place to start, though I also suggest a new logo be developed that better illustrates the Buffalo Libraries and their place in the community.  Their YouTube page is also sadly lacking in content with 17 uploads, five subscribers, and the last post made a year ago.  If they want to reach more people, they would be wise to upload more videos.  Their calendar has a lot of events and a few of those could be appropriate to upload videos of.  Kids and parents alike would probably enjoy seeing themselves online and, therefore, would be more likely to “share” the videos with family and friends through other social media sites.  If the site continues to be dormant, I suggest the page be taken down for fear that they will appear uninvolved and, consequently, uninteresting to the public.

While their YouTube account may be sparse, their Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest accounts are not.  As of this writing, they have all been updated within the last day.  Most posts announce upcoming events and relevant news stories.  I would caution the Buffalo Libraries not to over-post on their Pinterest pages.  A lot of their boards are helpful with announcing events, but they also contain superfluous boards such as “Cookbooks,” New York Times Fiction,” and “New Music.”  Pinterest users are not using the site as a catalog and these extremely large boards only end up cluttering their page.  Their Tumblr page is exclusive to their "TechKnow Lab" with periodic posts on technology-related events and news stories within the libraries.  Another account for the Buffalo Libraries would not, at this time, be necessary, as the other social media outlets are doing a sufficient job of advertising library events and news.

On the other hand, the Buffalo Libraries do a good job of keeping in contact with their users.  After I started following their Twitter page, I was sent a direct message thanking me for following them.  This communication is important with Twitter, since users tend to expect more immediate responses on this site.  For example, if you have a problem with a restaurant’s service, a way of letting them know is by tweeting at them.  Oftentimes when they respond it is apologetic and offers to remedy the situation—an unresponsive institution appears to be the unfeeling institution.  The libraries also does a fairly nice job of cross promoting themselves.  Their Facebook account has a link to their Twitter page and their homepage has links to all their social media accounts.

Social media has been described as a “relationship,” so it is important that libraries and museums fight to stay relevant in an increasingly digital world through strengthening this relationship.  Keeping in contact with users, frequent updates, and the willingness to embrace new social media platforms are great ways for them to achieve this.  The following must be kept in mind, though, to make this relationship work:

·         Keep the user updated on changes to their sites, both physical and digital

·         Talk about challenges

·         Own up to your mistakes—don’t try to hide from them and be honest

·         Highlight individual staff members

·         Response time is important

·         Promote your pages

*information as of 11/10/14

Top 5 Thing My Future Child Will Know How to Do Before Age 10

There are some skills that everyone should know--skills that you should know by the time you reach a certain age.  Everyone knows that person that doesn't know how to, say, play Old Maid or tell a Warhol from a Van Gogh, but these things are excusable (up to a point).  The following five things, however, are not.  If I ever reproduce, my offspring will know how to do these by the time they reach age 10.  They don't have to be masters or even like doing them, but I don't want my kids being known as "the boy/girl who can't [insert skill]".  Kids have enough problems without that embarrassing stigma.

5. Make change
I'm not a math master and I still occasionally use my fingers to count, but even I know how to make change.   A skill most effectively honed working in retail, this is something that kids should know early on.  It's painful watching a cashier not know how much money to give back when your bill comes to $7.50 and you hand over $20.  You may find yourself telling them, in a frustrated manner, "I get $12.50 back" before storming off in a huff.  Therefore, just teach your kids how to count--forwards and backwards--and all will  be well.

4. Name the states
This is something that must be practiced in order to stay good at it.  Most people learned the states as a kid but now a lot of them can't identify Nebraska or Georgia on a map.  This is your country, for heaven's sake.  It's not that difficult and there are only 50 of them (forget Puerto Rico and Guam).

3. Feed themselves
Everyone should know how to make grilled cheese or an egg.  I obviously won't let my kid have free access to the stove, but they should at least know how to cook something should the need ever arise.  At the very least, they will know how to make microwave mac and cheese.

2. Ride a bike
"But, Stephanie, who doesn't know how to ride a bike?"  Plenty of people, and it's mad sad.  The above three items are somewhat acceptable to be ignorant of but nothing will earn you the furrowed brow of your fellow humans that telling them you don't know how to ride a bike.  The saying "it's like riding a bike" doesn't exist because 12 people know how to do it.

1. Swim
This is a basic life skill that everyone should know.  "But I grew up in the city!," you whine.  Do you not have a YMCA?  Is there not a body of water nearby to visit?  You can live through a situation that involves you not being able to do the aforementioned items, but you can't live through a scenario where you can't swim.