One of my goals when designing for libraries is to simplify the ad copy as much as possible. Libraries have so many great services to offer, but it can be a challenge to promote those services without overwhelming the public with information.

In these two ad examples, I focused on library benefits (targeted to specific users) and simplified as much as possible. The “What’s Online” ad is targeted to college students. Instead of listing all available library resources, I wanted to promote library online resources that can be used for school work (Mango Languages and eResources) and for entertainment (Kanopy and RBDigital).

The “Check It Out” ad is targeted towards parents. This ad features family services like the children’s center and teen activities, and the convenience of having eight locations across the county. The call to action for both ads is simple, visit us online at mesacountylibraries.org. 

You’ll also notice that both ads highlight the social benefits and collaborative nature of the library. The “What’s Online” shows how the library can connect people anywhere, like a dorm room, via the website. The “Check It Out” ad shows how much fun families can have when discovering the joy of reading.

This social theme is something I try to work in as much as possible as it is an important function of 20th century libraries.