Because community engagement has value, involvement of library volunteers from the communities includes benefits for volunteers in terms of enhancing their confidence, skills and levels of employability.
People prefer to live near a public library if they have a choice, and often perceive library access as part of an enhanced quality of life, although it is rarely a direct factor in home purchase decision making.
Users who stop at the library while completing a longer list of errands report "halo" spending at firms and establishments close to the library. Although this spending is not part of an economic impact statement of Minnesota's public libraries, it is also true that proximity to a library increases spending for those businesses located near the library.
This includes computers and Internet access, specialized equipment for the disabled, online content, specialized databases, which possibly constitutes the only means of access for lower income families and individuals.
These include interlibrary loans, classes and special programs, availability of home delivery, services for the disabled, assistance with resumes and job searches, tax forms, children's programs, bookmobiles.
stakeholders, inside and outside the library represent library users with children or grandchildren; employees from the community at large, who check out materials for use at their workplace, as well as job seekers; library users who contact public library reference libraries for information; and technology users with a need for Internet access.
The social return on investment from Minnesota public libraries is greater than simply the measureable return on investment. Other benefits of significant value include the collection of materials itself, and the many services of the library; the educational programs, as well as the educational benefits of the library's mission including literacy of the citizenry; technology for use in the library; the expertise of the library staff; the library facility as a community gathering place; the "halo" spending by library users at establishments close to the library; and the value of a library's enhancement to neighborhood real estate and community partnerships.
Monetized impacts and other benefits from annual operations in 2010 delivered a payroll impact of more than $260.8 million dollars, a sales [services] impact of more than $366.4 million dollars, and an employment impact of an estimated 3,674 jobs to the State.
Reference Transactions – The basic methodology for calculating the value of reference transactions is based on estimates made for the recent Wisconsin library study (2008), but here inflated to 2010 dollars. Bibliostat reports reference transactions numbering 3,591,200. These are valued at $4.32 each, resulting in a total value of $15,513,984.
Public Internet Computers – The basic methodology for calculating the value of computer and internet access is based on estimates made for the recent Wisconsin library study (2008), but here inflated to 2010 dollars. Bibliostat reports traffic estimated at 7,070,855 access events, valued at $4.32 each, resulting in a total value of $30,546,094.