What Does Your Facebook Cover Photo Say About You?

I just came across this post on Musings About Librarians, a blog by Aaron Tay at the National University of Singapore. It's called, "What are library Facebook pages using as cover photos? A Survey."

This is a "survey" as in, "I looked around and gathered info," not as in "I asked a statistically significant number of respondents." Still, it's interesting and useful to see how other libraries around the world are displaying their online personas. Many FB pics are pasted into the post so you can just scroll and see what others have done. 

On Tay's blog, I had to comment about some of the choices. Think about it -- if your FB cover photo just shows a pic of your building, or shelves of books, or book covers, or a logo, what are you saying about your library? That you couldn't think of anything else? That your org is static, not active or exciting? 

I've pasted in a couple of my favorites here, and I'll tell you why I like them. In the top one, from Texas A&M, there are 2 people just sitting there, true. But at least they're sitting with a computer, not a book. And since it looks like one is holding a "Like" symbol, that suggests the action of Liking the page. 

The other, from UTS, won't appeal to everyone, but it certainly shows something interesting happening -- something that most people wouldn't equate with a library. It makes me want to explore what they're doing there. 

To be fair, I'll show you the cover photo on my business FB page. Now I don't work in a library these days, I work for librarians as a marketing consultant & trainer. I wanted something that would reflect the fact that I actively promote libraries and recognize their value. So I chose this photo of a t-shirt I bought because it helps explain why Libraries Are Essential. (Granted, I should re-shoot to get a better photo.) Do you think it works?

Of course, FB photos will be as different and as individual as the libraries themselves. But there are a few things I think they should all convey:

The library is active and interesting.

The library is more than just books; it's technology too.

You want to be part of it, use it, and enjoy it.

So, what does your FB cover photo say about your library?