Reviewed by Breanna Weston

Bite-Sized Marketing
Nancy Dowd, Mary Evangeliste, & Jonathan Silberman
Chicago: American Library Association, 2010
978-0-8389-1000-9, Paperback
140 pages, $48.00

Bite-Sized Marketing is a practical guide that blends traditional marketing techniques with new technology. The conversational language and short chapters are easy to read and useful for any librarian. The chapters focus on current trends like word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) and branding as well as familiar library marketing topics such as outreach and advocacy. Although newer technologies are discussed, they do not overpower the older strategies highlighted in the book. The award-winning trio of authors successfully relates all topics to libraries by suggesting pragmatic solutions and offering constructive advice.

Modern marketing theories are introduced in a library-centric way so librarians do not have to synthesize the deluge of marketing literature themselves. The first chapter on word-of-mouth marketing breaks down the concept and demonstrates how libraries can use influencers (the catalyst for WOMM) to communicate their message. Chapter 4, "Public Relations 101," spells out how to write and send a press release, and further illustrates the different types of releases. For example, a media advisory is a shortened version of a press release more suitable for events that might be highlighted in blurbs and community calendar listings. Since many librarians are appointed to public relations and marketing tasks as secondary duties, these quick explanations are valuable to learning marketing theory.

The book leads users to wonderful online sources (like gimp.org, a free open-source image tool similar to Photoshop). Chapter 7 is dedicated to new types of technologies like blogs and podcasting, where tips are given on how to make them successful. The authors are honest about the skepticism of both the people employing the technology as well as the audiences.

Libraries have blogs, Facebook accounts, and MySpace pages, but are we really able to be part of kids' interactive network or are we still pushing - trying a little too hard, like the kid who just isn't part of the group?" (97).

Along with the realistic vision of new online tools, the authors explore older techniques, like booth displays, in the outreach chapter. Dowd, Evangeliste, and Silberman describe how to design your booth and train your staff to promote a simple message. The balance between using newer technologies and employing traditional marketing techniques is refreshing.

Bite-Sized Marketing could have been an even stronger contribution to the field of library marketing if it included a bibliography for further reading. The book goes into great detail about certain subjects, like microphones for podcasts, but not enough on other topics. Nevertheless, while reading the book, librarians will start generating ideas on how to implement many of these suggestions into their own library. Usable marketing theory and the blend between the old and the new makes this book valuable to a variety of librarians. Bite-Sized Marketing can be summed up in one word: practical.

Breanna Weston is a Reference Librarian at the University of Idaho.