marketing with financial valuation data: best practices in a library setting

This marketing case study discusses how financial concepts used in the business world, such as cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and return on investment (ROI), a CBA metric, can be used to add value in promotion of and advocacy for library projects. The study describes how financial analysis is used to evaluate two acquisition projects and share best practices for marketing the benefits received within different outreach contexts. Specifically, the study highlights the financial analysis and subsequent best practices in marketing to the College of Staten Island (CSI) library’s stakeholders that could be utilized for its open educational resources (OER) and patron-driven acquisition (PDA) programs. It also conducts a survey of these stakeholders, from both academic and public libraries, to gauge their views on whether traditional library data or financial valuations could potentially have a greater marketing influence. The study is a retrospective review on how financial analysis data can be used to advocate for funding, promote sound resource decision-making, and market various projects within an academic library.