Starting Conversations

“It was just a get-to-know-you lunch. Yet, unbeknownst to us, as we sipped soup and ordered sandwiches, we were laying the groundwork for a long, fruitful partnership.”

— Kathleen Baxter and Susan M. Haggberg

Approaching a potential partner

When you first approach your partner, you can bring a partnership idea to the table, but be flexible — you may not know all their needs and capabilities at first. If possible, get a feel for how they work, what they’re doing, and what their needs are by attending community meetings or events they hold. Make sure you can speak to how the library’s vision is complementary to your potential partner’s mission.

Don’t underestimate the value of starting small, with informal conversations, a small pilot program or a trial collaboration. Starting off with a small or one-off collaboration can be a great way to test the waters of a partnership. A formal partnership with a larger organization may require paperwork and managerial support, but smaller efforts are easier, less time-consuming, and can be evidence in support of a more extensive partnership if they go well. One way to start small is by finding community events that are already in the planning stages, and offering support or involvement from the library.

Remember that you can start building relationships with other organizations without a concrete or even a vague goal in mind. Networking with people who have a different perspective on the youth in your community is valuable in and of itself. It’s also a good idea to have an idea of what other organizations are doing for youth, so you don’t duplicate efforts. Informal relationships are often the catalyst for creative partnership ideas born out of simply chatting with each other about your work.

A community partnership should benefit all stakeholders — the library, the partner, and the community. When proposing a collaboration, it’s important to understand and articulate how the project will benefit each of these. Developing an “elevator speech” for your library or specifically for your youth services department will help you when you approach potential partners. Elevator speeches or pitches are “brief opportunities—maybe one minute or less—to interest anyone whose ear you’d like to bend about libraries.” The elevator speech should be specific to your library, and maybe even a single branch, and should highlight the unique contributions the library can bring to the partnership and the impact it can have on youth. Although you may need to tailor the pitch for each potential partner, crafting a flexible, reusable template will save time when you set up future partnerships.

YALSA’s Partnering to Increase Your Impact toolkit (2017) is full of tips and resources to help you form partnerships and obtain funding, including sample partnership letters.

What if they say no?

“People are afraid of the ‘no,’ and that’s truly the worst that can happen. I have been shut down so many times I’m like, ‘Alright, well, there’s five more ice cream shops on this block, so I’ll find something.’”

— Focus Group Participant

No matter how persuasive and well-crafted your pitch is, you may be turned down. Don’t take it personally. Turn it into a learning experience by understanding why the potential partner wasn’t on board. Did you start the conversation with a fully formed concept, without letting them share their input and expertise? Maybe it’s just bad timing, and you can bring the idea up again in the future. Accept critical feedback with grace and an open mind, then determine if it is worth adjusting your approach moving forward.

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