Golden Ticket Program Research

Project Work from Home

Supervisor:  Renee Kirchner

The Golden Ticket Program used by libraries seems to be highly customizable.  Size, staffing, patron demographics, and program goals determine how the Golden TIcket program functions.  While no library seemed to have issues with children (or adults) pulling tickets out of books or going through shelves hunting for those tickets, the value of the patron engagement and literacy support can be tricky to determine.  For instance, a browsing patron may find a ticket in a title they ultimately have little interest in.  Since the book must be checked out to redeem the ticket, under utilized sections may show an upswing in turnover.  Increasing a section’s budget based on this increase may not be wise however, as the numbers might not reflect a growing interest by the patrons.  The Golden Ticket program seems to be best used as a tool for attracting patrons to use the library.  

I have included links to libraries that have used the Golden Ticket program in different ways.  Bega Valley Shire Council Library used digital tickets at the point of checkout (https://begavalley.nsw.gov.au/council/golden-tickets-waiting-to-be-found-in-library-books-this-summer).  The goal was to encourage families to read together and read broadly.  Golden Tickets were digitally located in Children’s, Teens, and Adult books so that all ages could participate with the winners receiving bookstore vouchers.  Vanderhoof Public Library hid physical tickets in children's books(https://www.vanderhooflibrary.com/looking-for-more-information/golden-ticket-event-rules).  The books must be checked out and the ticket redeemed for a book specified on the ticket.  Berks County Public LIbrary also used physical tickets for checked out books (https://www.berkslibraries.org/events/31303).  The tickets were redeemed for chocolate bars and the winners were placed in a drawing for movie tickets. Other libraries tied Golden Tickets to activity logs for children who attended summer events.  Considering other programs offered by the Lewisville Public Library such as the storytime sticker log, summer reading logs, and 1000 Books Before Kindergarten, as well as current research on the importance of reading together and aloud (https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2024/04/reading-aloud-health-brain/678194/), I think the digital ticket may be the most streamlined and effective Golden Ticket execution.