WHAT DOES PBC GURU OFFER CLIENTS?
We imagine that you, like those of us at PBC Guru, value lifelong learning. As a team with a diverse background, from Higher Ed to people operations, we understand that creating long-term, strategic, and intentional virtual programming is a heavy lift, especially for those working in alumni relations, learning, talent and development, and human resources, who are already dedicating hours to numerous other projects and tasks.
That’s where we step in.
PBC Guru offers lifelong learning community clubs, primarily focusing on virtual book club programs. We help build communities by connecting through a mutual love of reading in asynchronous, private online forums. Members can join the discussion when it fits within their schedules and they are not beholden to rigid meeting times.
We discuss approximately five books per year, with each discussion lasting ten weeks, a timeframe we refer to as a reading period. Many reading periods conclude with an “After the Book Discussion” that includes an Author Talk with the author of the current book club selection. Please note that Author Talks are only included with PBC Book Picks, not custom requests, which you can learn more about here.
WHAT IS INCLUDED AS PART OF PBC GURU’S SERVICE
We aim to make your book club as little work for your team as possible, which is why we manage all aspects of your program, including:
- Providing “PBC Pick” book recommendations
- Distributing weekly communications to book club members
- Collecting engagement analytics like email open rate, comment tallies, and more
- Developing in-house discussion questions for your online forum
- Curating related resources for each book club selection
- Moderating all discussions that take place in your private forum
- Organizing and moderating a Livestream Author Talk Series
- Troubleshooting and assisting members with reported issues
- Sharing pre-drafted marketing materials, including emails and social media posts before each reading period
In addition to the above, we also work with you to onboard new points of contact when/if members of your team leave, to ensure a seamless transition. Because we manage all aspects of the program, your new colleague can take time to settle in with the assurance that your book club will seemingly run on autopilot as we work our bookworm magic in the background.
WHAT ARE OUR PARTNERS’ RESPONSIBILITIES?
While PBC Guru does manage all logistics of your program, there are two primary touchpoints throughout the year, listed below:
1) We request that our partners build in time to market their program throughout the year. Before each reading period, as noted above, we will draft and share marketing materials for you to promote the upcoming book. We also highly recommend sharing a push for new members at the beginning of a new year and, for university partners, following graduation.
2) Voting option confirmation. PBC Guru provides 2-3 recommended voting options for each reading period. These voting options are based on upcoming Author Talks. When your manager reaches out to let you know your voting options, they will also share a confirmation deadline, typically one week after the original touchpoint. If you do not respond to your manager, they will move forward with the options originally provided in order to ensure that they can smoothly work through their schedule, providing all the services listed above.
Always feel free to reach out to your manager with questions regarding your program.