Press Release

Library Communication Strategies launched

Providing creative, practical and effective communications services to libraries is the mission of Library Communication Strategies (LCS), a new consulting firm launched by library public relations and marketing experts Peggy Barber and Linda Wallace.

"We believe we offer a unique combination of communication expertise and knowledge of libraries that can benefit libraries of all types," says Barber.

"Many of our colleagues in the field have expressed a need for this type of support," Wallace explains. "Our goal is to provide the services and strategies they need ."

LCS services include marketing/communications planning, communication audits, message development, spokesperson/media coaching, fundraising, writing and production of print and electronic publications, and workshops on marketing and media relations.

Barber, formerly the American Library Association's (ALA) associate executive director for communication, managed and implemented marketing and communication programs, including external relations and membership development. She established the ALA Public Information Office, Public Programs Office and the ALA Graphics program, including the well known "Celebrity Read" poster series. She worked to implement the universal library logo which appears on streets and roads across the country. Barber also established ALA's development program and is co-author of "Getting Your Grant: A How to Do It Manual for Librarians" with Linda D. Crowe (Neal-Schuman Publishers). She holds a master's degree in library science from Rutgers University and served as coordinator for the Orange County Cooperative Library System and as a reference librarian for the Bay Area Reference Center, San Francisco Public Library before joining ALA.

Wallace was formerly director of the ALA Public Information Office, where she developed and implemented creative strategies for National Library Week, Library Card Sign-up Month and other public awareness campaigns, including "Libraries Change Lives" and "Kids Connect @ the Library." Her responsibilities included media relations for the association, training and support for ALA spokespeople, and development of the Library Advocacy Now! training program. She wrote news releases and editorial columns carried in newspapers across the country. She also wrote and produced a variety of print and electronic publications, including the Library Advocate's Handbook and The Librarian's Guide to Cyberspace for Parents and Kids. A journalism graduate of Ohio University (Athens), she worked as a newspaper reporter before serving as community relations coordinator for the Mideastern Michigan Library Cooperative in Flint, where she received two John Cotton Dana Special Awards for her work.

For more information, see the LCS Web site at http://www.librarycomm.com, call 773-989-4514 or send e-mail to librarycomm@librarycomm.com

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Library
Communication
Strategies Inc.