Virtual Communities Resource Center

Like Facebook, Twitter is already a highly used community. It also has a very gentle learning curve, and allows users to slip in easily and get as minimal - or as complicated with the Twitterverse as they like.

There are a number of ways in which libraries can benefit from making use of Twitter. The first is the use of hashtags. While these have recently been adopted by Facebook, Twitter was the first virtual community to introduce a global conversation through use of “tagging” tweets. Twitter users can easily follow news about their favorite sports teams, books, or politics through tags like #UNCBBall, #HarryPotter, and #Hillary2016.

By creating and managing hashtags, librarians can procure interest in patrons about things like #SummerReading, #BookClub2015, and #WhatsOnYourLibraryCard.

My own account.

I was pleased with how many libraries - both local institutions and large global library systems - are already comfortably established on Twitter. I found that by seeking out these libraries, I was able to find and enjoy library-related content that might not be strictly related to that institution itself, but which had a much wider width of interest.

I especially enjoyed learning about new and interesting library tools and utilities, many of which I wasn't at all familiar with. By browsing through different library's Twitter feeds - especially those from nationally known libraries - I was able to expand my own interest and knowledge of many facets of librarianship.

My major experience with Twitter is that I use it much more for curating content than spreading it. Going through my Twitter account, I don't have any retweets or favorites - but, I would still consider it one of the main social media outlets I use to inform myself - both in the world of librarianship and beyond.

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