Advocacy

Part of OCLC's responsibility as a cooperative is to give back to the library community. Our advocacy efforts are meant to raise the visibility and highlight the viability of libraries to their funding bodies.

Advertising

Making the case for libraries
OCLC has developed an advertising campaign on behalf of libraries, aimed at library budget decision-makers.

The campaign consists of a series of national print ads and similar posters that can be downloaded and customized by libraries. Click the image below to see a full-size PDF of each ad.

Public ad	Public ad	Academic ad	Local poster
School ad	Special ad	Public ad

Why we’re doing it
Through the advocacy campaign, we hope to raise awareness of critical library issues, enable more informed dialogue, and ultimately help libraries demonstrate their value. Our goal is to raise the visibility of libraries. Learn more about the specifics of each campaign for:

Public libraries

Academic libraries

School libraries

For more information about why and how we developed the campaign as a whole, read how it happened.

Grassroots ideas and resources
Download the local poster PDF and customize it with your library’s name and logo. Use the poster as a handout at your next library board meeting.

Learn more about what you can do

Continuing the movement
As a validation of the OCLC Advocacy program, OCLC has received a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a potential national marketing campaign. The campaign will increase awareness of the value of libraries, and emphasize the need to support libraries at the local, state and national levels. Target audiences include both consumers and public elected/appointed officials in city and county governments. Leo Burnett USA serves at the agency partner for the project, as well as many library partner organizations such as ALA, PLA, ALC, ULC, IMLS and others. Outcomes of the grant will be available by September 2007.