Date: Thursday, March 26, 2020
Time: 1:00 PM – 6:30 PM (4 1-hour sessions with 1/2-hour breaks)
Place: Online at https://library20.com/page/crisis
Presenters: Panel listed below
Cost: Free (just need to join Library 2.0 – also free)

This special pandemic mini-conference features 4 1-hour sessions… join one or join them all. Topics are:

1. Self-Care During a Crisis : Breathe, Think and Grow
   1:00 PM – 2:00 PM
   As libraries deal with the global crisis of 2020, staff have many difficult choices to handle every day. From deciding whether to stay open to managing the constant flow of information, the work can be all-consuming. In this webinar, we will talk about how to take time out of your day to focus on yourself and to nourish your own growth.

   Participants will:

   • Learn methods and exercises for staying in the moment and remaining mindful while dealing with stress and uncertainty
   • Spend time discussing their challenges and how they are working to handle them, while planning mindfully for the future
   • Focus on healthy self-care activities
     
     
2. Why and How to Promote your Online Services During the Quarantine
   2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
   We are certainly “living in interesting times” … and working in them too. Even if your building is closed, your library is still offering services—but are you telling people that?

   While it’s tempting to look at these pandemic-related closures as much-needed downtime, librarians don’t have that luxury. People still need you. In fact, people who haven’t used libraries in years need your boredom-breaking services and your long-trusted guidance, too. So it’s vital to keep marketing your libraries now, for three reasons: 1) telling people what’s available online and how to get it; 2) being the trusted source of info that people expect; and 3) proving your value to retain funding after the crisis.
   
   In this webinar, specially created to help your library be as useful as possible during the current Coronavirus pandemic, library marketing maven Kathy Dempsey will share her best advice on these topics:

   • Working at home (Dempsey has worked at home for 10 years)
   • Turning today’s chaos into a Crisis Communications Plan in the near future
   • Exactly what services and products to promote (some might surprise you)
   • How to get the word out, beyond your own social media followers
   • How to approach messaging in trying times
   • Why today’s promotion will help secure next year’s library funding
   • Why to scratch out mini marketing plans to make your work effective
   • Resources for self-care and for social sharing

     In a time where everyone is inundated with information, the world still needs their librarians and librarians. The “new normal” will likely have super-tight budgets, so proving how essential you are during this crisis may well determine whether your organization survives the virus.

3. Serving Patrons in a Crisis
   4:00 PM – 5:00 PM
   Helping people make decisions based on facts and evidence is what libraries of all types do everyday. With libraries closing to the public and reducing services because of COVID-19, how can we continue to provide the facts in this fast-paced changing environment? And how can libraries provide the services that their communities will need to remain vital to the health and welfare of their communities?
   
   This interactive and informative webinar will help attendees find the latest resources and information available to help them serve their patrons and communities, as well as looking into how libraries are responding to community needs of today and will focus on the work ahead as we shape the future of library services after the pandemic passes.
   
   
4. Preparing your Digital Branch for Increased Use
   5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
   As libraries engage in social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are placing new emphasis on our online services. Is your organization ready?
   
   In this interactive and Informative program, we will discuss how to prepare your digital branch for an influx of users, and examine best practices for virtual reference and digital collections as you work to meet your community’s needs.