Explore Your Library
Branding • Illustration • Interactive Print
Why promote libraries?
For my senior capstone project, I was inspired by my experience with libraries. As I have gotten older, I mostly use libraries as a space separate from school or work, a third space, so I made sure to include that as a category to explore. The library offers so many resources, and books are only the beginning. I just recently got my public library card and discovered you can rent cake pans at my local library! You can try and learn new things for free with the library, and my goal was to promote that through this campaign.
The Stamp Rally
After talking to a friend about what she uses the library for, she mentioned the idea of having a stamp rally, and I thought this was the perfect interactive solution for exploring the library. I also recently started playing Animal Crossing and was inspired by the stamps you collect as you explore your way through the game.
The stamp rally format allows for a fun, gamified way for people to get to know their library, collecting stamps of each character in each section. After they learn about everything their library offers and collect all stamps, they can win an exclusive tote and sticker sheet, featuring the original characters.
Research
Method
I talked with three library employees, one professor, and a few of my friends to learn about their experiences with libraries, and find what would be the most important areas to feature.
What does the library need help promoting?
Through the interviews, I wanted to know about the lesser-known resources at the library. I learned that they could use help promoting the “less exciting” services such as printing, faxing, tax help, etc.
Since the stamp rally is a way to promote everything the library offers, I wanted to highlight these areas that people might not know about.
Audience
It was tricky to pick a specific demographic because libraries offer resources for people of all ages. Through the interviews, I learned that 20-30 year olds are the group who uses the library the least.
For my final design, I used bold colors, fun characters, and a sleek design which can cater to both children and adults.
Anyone can use this stamp rally booklet to get to know the opportunities at their local library.
Reflection
Creating
It was so fun utilizing so many maker tools to make all of the deliverables, including:
screenprinted totes
printed stickers
laser cut rubber to make custom character stamps
laser cut wood for stamp and booklet display
Trust the process (and the research)
I struggled in the beginning because I hadn’t done the research, and didn’t know what kind of audience I should be designing for.
Talking with friends, professors, and librarians helped me define the scope of the project.