How one library turned event demand into deeper community engagement, fast.
Middle Country Public Library (MCPL) located in Centereach & Selden, NY, delivers over 2,400 programs annually across two facilities and has long been a hub of innovation and collaboration in its community. When demand surged and patrons struggled with fragmented registration systems, MCPL doubled down on its ethos of service by shifting to a digital-first, patron-centered outreach model, leading to three field-tested moves any public library can adapt.
Their shift to a digital first patron-centered outreach offers three field-tested moves any public library can adapt to strengthen programming and community reach.
1) Put registration in patrons’ hands
Not long ago, signing up for a library program often meant phone calls, paper forms, or navigating multi-page web links. Middle Country Public Library decided to change that. By introducing a mobile-first, single-flow registration experience, patrons could reserve their seats the moment enrollment opened, no desktop required. Today, more than half of visits to the events interface come from mobile devices, and staff spend far less time fielding calls or entering registrations manually.
This is an effective method because meeting people on the devices they already use removes friction at the very start of the outreach journey, when enthusiasm is highest.
Here are a few ways to make this strategy your own:
- Audit your registration path on a phone; count taps to completion.
- Collapse steps into one page where possible (policy, details, confirmation).
- Pre-draft “opens today” reminders sized for SMS or push.
2) Welcome guests beyond your district
Earlier, registering guests for programs meant a lot of manual coordination. Staff would take calls, record details by hand, and handle follow-ups individually. To streamline the process, Middle Country Public Library transitioned to a fully digital guest registration flow with built-in event-specific emails and reminders managed in the same system.
Now, patrons from neighboring districts can sign up whenever it suits them, and staff no longer need to retype information or spend time coordinating by phone. As Assistant Director Ryan Gessner notes, digital guest registration “has saved time for patrons and staff and made it easy for people in neighboring districts to attend programs.”
When outreach extends to nearby communities, programs fill faster and partnerships grow, without adding administrative load.
You can implement this by:
- Offering a guest path with minimal required fields.
- Template communications (confirmation, updates, reminders) per event.
- Tracking which events draw guests to inform co-marketing with partners.
3) Design for action and insight (payments + data in one place)
For years, processing payments and collecting participant details happened in separate systems, adding extra steps for both patrons and staff. Middle Country Public Library simplified the experience by introducing an integrated online checkout (via Stripe) directly within the registration flow, boosting online usage from under 10% to over 50%. Refunds now follow library-defined rules, receipts are easier to review, and there’s far less cash to handle on program day. At the same time, custom registration questions capture key details, like participant names for craft stencils, lunch preferences, or “How did you hear about this event?” and export directly to Excel, turning every sign-up into a light-touch source of community insight.
People are more likely to commit when paying is simple and in-flow. Pairing that with targeted questions gives staff the context to personalize experiences and refine outreach.
You can bring this to life in your library by:
- Keeping payments on the registration page; auto-issue receipts.
- Adding 1–2 purposeful questions per event, make sure you avoid long forms.
- Reviewing exports monthly to spot demand trends and channel performance.
What this means for your team
MCPL’s story isn’t about buying technology for technology’s sake, it’s about clearing the path between community curiosity and program participation. Streamlined mobile sign-ups, inclusive guest access, and in-flow payments/data collection turned administrative effort into engagement time. Feedback has been “overwhelmingly positive,” and the process is “more efficient and less time-consuming” for staff and patrons alike.
If you’re ready to adapt these moves, MCPL achieved them with Vega Program. Whether you use Vega or another platform, these practices stand on their own: reduce steps, welcome guests, and turn every program into insight that fuels the next one.
Book a demo and see how you can streamline registration, expand participation and strengthen community connections.
You can also read the full Middle Country Public Library story for a closer look at their transformation.