sustainable technology in a 2.0 world
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Sarah Houghton-JanDigital Futures Manager for the San Jose Public LibraryAuthor of LibrarianInBlack.net
Sustainable Technology
in a 2.0 World
What is changing in libraries?
The Library
The Librarian
Library Users
Where do people go for “stuff”? Not the library
What kind of stuff do people want? Not the bulk of the outdated, worn stuff at
the library (nor do they want to wait for it) How do people find information?
Not at the library Do people think they need help finding info?
No, and not from a stuffy librarian, darn it
Library Users (and non-users)
brick and mortar library
users
digital library users
POWER USERS
Library Users Today
These groups are growing dramatically.This group is growing slowly.
brick and mortar library users
digital library users POWER
USERS
Library Users Tomorrow
Angry Robot courtesy of www.bohdate.com/angryrobot
Instant MessagingBlogsWikisSkypeUser CommentsPhoto SharingAvatarsGamingPodcastingVideocastingOnline Book ClubsText Messaging Updates &
Reference
Some 2.0 Services We Want in All of Our Libraries...Right Now
2.0 worthy CatalogsSocial BookmarkingTaggingSocial NetworksVOIPRSS FeedsMash-UpsWidgetsVideo ConferencingTwitter/Microblogging
The physical library
Media Stations in the Library
The digital library
What are we thinking to be attempting all of
this at once???
Planning for New Services
Advocate to Your Leadership
Library's most public face Online = your website Offline = your library staff, services, &
resources Libraries are digital resource centers Online eBranch services are available 24/7 eBranch is c-h-e-a-p to run
Highest return on investment in use vs. dollars
Why are 2.0 Services Important?
A (Wo)Man, A Plan, a...Library
Successful Library Service Planning:
1) Service Hierarchy of Needs
2) Formal 3-Year Service Goals Plan
Technology Hierarchy of Needs
Successful Projects & Plans Ask, ask, ask users, non-users,
and staff Ensure stable funding (sponsorships
& grants are fine, but you have to be able to continue)
Create a mission statement for your plan
Follow your Hierarchy of Needs Plan no more than 3 years out
Determining Users' Needs
What do our users want more of from us?
Have we ever asked? Surveys (online and print) Small focus groups Ask about online & offline activities,
information needs, and entertainment preferences
Don't ask about what they don't know
Project Planning is Easy...
Time and Money Completion Date (start date Sept. 15)
Research 10 hours, $0 September 22
Committee review 20 hours, $0 October 6
Software installation 10 hours, $35 October 13
Staff training 40 hours, $0 November 3
Can add costs for staff time, add explicit deliverables, breaking each step down further, listing who is
responsible for what.
The Holy Trinity of Successful Launches
1. Staff Training2. Soft Launch 3. Advertising
Launching New Services
Part of training is information Keep staff informed throughout project
(through a blog, email announcements, etc.)
Provide staff exposure at least 1 month before soft launch
Offer staff formal training in that time
Staff Training
Getting Staff Buy InLet staff know about the project
early.Ask staff for their input and use it.Keep everyone informed at all stages.Managers must consistently support
the new project or service.
Play with it, touch it, and learn it.Fun. Rewards. Food.Types and numbers of trainingsOpen trainings to all staff…periodMandatory of voluntary
attendance?
Training Staff on New Stuff
Scheduled LearningClassroom training (small or large
groups)Peer training (train the trainer)Daily or weekly “learn-by-email”
tutorialsUse in-house talent, vendors, or
consultants to train
Unscheduled Learning
Read a how-to cheat-sheet Review online tutorialsSelf-paced online classesView recorded webcasts,
podcasts, screencasts, or videocasts
Promote Ongoing Learning
Give staff 15 minutes a day to study/learn.
Schedule 1 off-desk hour for self-study.
Share what you find with each other.
Beta testing for everything!1. Launch the new service for a small
group of staff first to find big bugs.
2. Launch for entire staff and ask for feedback, problems, suggestions.
3. Launch for users without “hard” promotion and ask for feedback.
4. Do a hard launch and promote.
Soft Launches
Why Advertise New 2.0 Services?Library System #1 (150,000 residents)
Library System #2 (350,000 residents)
Website visits 5.6 6.3
Database usage 0.7 0.4
eBooks usage 0.2 0.3
Virtual Reference usage
0.01 0.01
Annual per capita usage of eServicesat two California public library systems
Creative Marketing
Advertising ≠ Bookmarks
Raising Awareness and UsageWhat do we think they would want to
use more – if only they knew about it?PR in our web presence
On our website (targeted promotions everywhere)
On Facebook, blogs, MySpace, Yelp, Google Maps...
PR in the physical world In print (in libraries and community
facilities) F2F (staff talking with people, word of
mouth) Outreach (partnerships, community
presence)
Keep Everything Current
www.flickr.com/photos/ogman/252251866/
Survey users and staff 6 months after launch Would you recommend this service to a
friend? Why or why not? Evaluate statistics
How much staff time is being used? How much is the service being accessed?
Evaluate the library's follow-through Has adequate marketing been done yet? Has adequate training been done yet?
Evaluating New Services
Continue serviceDiscontinue serviceExtend pilotChange aspects of the serviceDo more promotion or training
Results of EvaluationDiscontinuing a service is not failing.
Persisting in a failed effort is failing.
Don't Forget to Celebrate SuccessEntire library should celebrate the
success of the new service Share statistics and user comments Share anecdotal stories from staff
Have contests between units/locations for usage, or F2F promotion to users
Do something out of the ordinary!
Photo by Jenny Levine: http://flickr.com/photos/shifted/2113776727/
Have a gaming party!
Staff trading cards!
Photos by Homer Township Library: http://flickr.com/photos/homerlibrary/433104519/ and http://flickr.com/photos/homerlibrary/433102240/in/photostream/
Have cake!
Keep Going!!!
Try new things Push administrators
They like 24/7 web services, minimal staffing and cheap costs, numbers that show the highest ROI of all of the library's services)
Share anecdotal stories from staff
Rejoice in failures – it means you're pushing boundaries.
