Library adopts new logo, brand, focuses on community outreach

The Prince William Public Libary unveiled its new logo today in an email press release listing upcoming January events at the libraries.

The new logo uses the same font as the newly adopted logo for the Prince William County, Virginia Government logo, which is now shown prominently on water towers and signs at county government buildings. Library spokeswoman Rachel Johnson tells me:

The Prince William Public Library System has recently adopted a new brand to better reflect our Strategic Plan and to more closely align ourselves with the County’s own brand. The library’s Strategic Plan 2019 – 2023 brings greater focus to future-ready, easily accessible technology, community building, lifelong learning, among other strategic goals, all in support of our vision to be the hub connecting people to the transforming power of information. This has given us the unique opportunity to update our brand to represent our organization as innovative, forward-thinking, and enriching to those in the greater Prince William community.

In addition, we implemented many elements of Prince William County’s brand to reinforce our support of the county and its own strategic efforts to be a community of choice.

Over the past year, PWPLS gathered community feedback, hosted focus groups, and coordinated with the Library Board of Trustees to design and develop the brand with in-house talent, adopted by the Trustees in October 2019.

The new brand comes as the library aims to bring the services commonly found inside the library out into the community. At the December 5 meeting of the Prince William County Board of Library Trustees, library director Deborah Wright said the library plans to have a table at summer events Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center in Woodbridge where residents can sign up for new library cards.

The RELIC at Bull Run Regional Library (soon to be located at Central Library near Manassas) also provided a genealogy course and a craft fair for the seniors at the county’s two senior centers. 

Library staff has also recently visited a commuter lot near Dumfries to talk about the library system. During the pre-dawn conversations, many commuters said they had library cards but did not have an understanding of how the library works, or what services are provided to residents, said Wright.

They talked to 126 people and made four new library cards.

When it comes to serving the needs of adult library users, Wright told Trustees adults not only want more digital books and DVDs added to the collection but also want more community events to attend with other adults.