PA Forward: Elevator Speech Redux | Compendium

FREE Webinar on April 30

by Jill McJill McConnellConnell

I’m always amazed by how succinctly and eloquently people from other non-profits are able to tell how their organizations make a difference in other people’s lives. As librarians, we believe that libraries are inherently good for society and couldn’t imagine our communities, schools or campuses without one. Unfortunately, many “powers that be” struggle to understand how libraries actually benefit their constituents, thus justifying their desire to cut our funding or ultimately close some libraries. That’s where the almighty elevator speech comes in.

In Adam Balcziunas’ recent article “PA Forward: Crafting an Effective Elevator Speech”, he extols the value of having a brief statement about how your library benefits your campus or community. He goes on to explain the steps in preparing and honing your statement so that it is most effective in expressing to your listener just how important your library is to helping move PA citizens forward in all areas of their lives.

For those of you in an academic library, the PA Forward planning committee and the PaLA College and Research Division have developed a CRD Connect and Communicate Webinar entitled “Elevator Speeches & PA Forward for Your Academic Library”. This webinar will take place on April 30th at 12:00 p.m. The webinar is free but registration is required.

With funding and budgets in the balance, now is the time to know how to tell others about all the important things your library does for your campus or community. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to learn more about how to do just that.