Milner Library Virtual Open House
Edmonton Public Library
Innovation Synopsis
The Milner Library Grand Opening included in-person and virtual celebrations to create awareness of the space while showcasing its features and services. Our message was “One fantastic new library. Choose your way to experience it.” The virtual event provided a first look at the space, which won the John Cotton Dana Library Public Relations Award.
Challenge/Opportunity
The Milner Library is the heart of Edmonton with over 1.2 million visits annually. It closed for renovations in 2016. In 2019, a Twitter post featured an image of it under construction, which sparked public debate. It generated hashtag #Thinktank, flooded EPL’s Twitter account and attracted international media attention. Due to COVID-19 health restrictions in 2020, EPL had to quickly look for ways to host our grand opening event both virtually and in person to showcase its revitalized spaces in September 2020.
Key Elements of Innovation
Our Virtual Open House provided a first look of our revitalized library live on Facebook and YouTube. Subject matter experts led tours that focused on key areas of our new space. Content was chosen that garnered the highest public interest with a mix of live and pre-recorded events available every hour. We facilitated engagement with live Q&A’s and a virtual scavenger hunt for a chance to attend our in-person opening event. We promoted in all EPL channels and created Biblioevents entries for searchability.
Achieved Outcomes
One-day virtual event resulted in over 61,000 views. Our 2020 top video was our Introduction Tour with over 54,000 views and growing. In September 2020, our epl.ca/HelloMilner page received over 10,000 unique pageviews with an average time of page of over two minutes. Over 300 people pre-registered to attend the virtual open house, which had optional registration. As of September 2021, our videos continue to be watched with over 154,000 views to date. The grand opening also resulted in 145 media mentions and readership.
