What is at the Heart of Libraries?

Stephen Abram, MLS, FSLADetroit Public Library

May 21, 2010

These slides availableat Stephen’s Lighthouse blog

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What Are Libraries Really For?

• Economic Impact – ($6.50 per $1, workforce preparedness, industrial attraction, quality of life, etc.)

• Equity (digital divide, integrating population growth, generations, etc.)

• Student Performance (up to 25 point increase)• Competitive Advantage (Canada, EC, India, China, etc.)• Social Glue• Community• Learning• Interaction

Social Glue and Libraries

ASK YOURSELF

• What is more important for value based funding?

• 6% annual increases in circulation?• 100% increases in ILL?• 500% increases in website hits?• 1000% increases in database results?• 50% increases in customer satisfaction?

Bricks, Clicks and Tricks

5 Tricks You Can Do Right Away

• Number One:

• What are your top reference questions?

5 Tricks You Can Do Right Away

• Number Two:

• Do a Signage Audit

5 Tricks You Can Do Right Away

• Number Three:

• Get Some Widgets (Hint: API)

5 Tricks You Can Do Right Away

• Number Four:

• Get Jiggy with GIS.

5 Tricks You Can Do Right Away

• Number Five:

• Go Beyond Statistics• Google Analytics• Foresee

What We Never Knew Before

27% of our users are under 18. 59% are female. 29% are college students. 5% are professors and 6% are teachers. On any given day, 35% of our users are there for the

first time. 29% found our products via the library website. 59% found what they were looking for on their first

search. 72% trusted the content more than what they found

on Google. But, 81% still use Google.

Driving User to the Library

• Encyclopedia.com• HighBeam• WorldCat• iPhone App• Questia• Etc.• Watch for more . . .?

5 Tricks You Can Do Right Away

• Tiny Gale Cengage Ad:• Double Your Usage EVERY 18 months!• Ask Us. We know how.• We have a huge and growing widget library

(hundreds and all Facebook enabled)• We’ll build websites and landing pages for free

(over 1,000 so far)• We’ll install Google Analytics and Foresee for free• AccessMyLibrary iPhone app free (Hope Droid…)• Ask me about strategic partnerships (examples)• Gale OCLC WorldCat partnership

Gale Widgets

I my customers

Google Books Settlement

Google Books Settlement

Google Editions:

Books Store

Transmogrifying

C0ntainers

Is the traditional booknow a hollow experience?

SEO: Search Engine

Optimization

SMO: Social Media

Optimization

Geo-IP

A Third Path

Broadband

The Article Economy

Format Agnosticism

Devices like iPads

Kindles, eDGe,

and Mobile

The Experience

Are we going to a totally build it yourself world?

Imagine IKEA merging with GM...

Newspapers: Assemble them yourself.Re-imagine the textbook, coursepack, etc.

Yes, this is ancient marketing/sales wisdom: they aren't buying your hammer, they are buying the

deck of their dreams. Help them build it.

Will Reading Matter?Are your staff confusing books and reading?

Audiobooks, Cengage and eBooks . . . And Google

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/blu_blue/262096844/in/pool-booksandportraits

What does your best borrowed report look like?

Is your Community different?

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What does your book and article or website recommendation blog/RSS feed look like?

Who is your star recommender?

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How do your community contentreviews do?

Who is your best teen reviewer?

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How are your web based communities doing?

How many dozen are there?

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Do your users like your video author interviews?

Your YouTube DVD trailers?

Do you offer podcasts?

Do you record every story time?Every lecture?

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Are you making sense of your collections in a community context?

• BiblioCommons• ChiliFresh• LibraryThing for

Libraries• SOPAC, VuFind,

Endeca, etc.• Delicious• Digg• YouTube

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Can you circulate books from anywhere?

Like the parking lot, lecture hall, classroom, sidewalk sale, or nursing home?

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The thing about success, is that it’s not

about things.

Or 2.0 Technology

What do libraries want?

RelevanceMaking a Difference

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Observe Your Users

NO

OK – Now let’s ask ourselves what our users really, REALLY want.

Self-Service Web Portal

NO

Context is King, not Content.

Do we truly understand their goals?

Can we at least agree that they don’t want whiz bang widgets, gadgets, shiny new tools or any other raw technology?

Let’s address the human condition.

Eye Movement Changes

Learning Styles• Visual/Spatial (Picture Smart)• Verbal/Linguistic (Word Smart)• Musical/Rhythmic (Music Smart)• Logical/Mathematical (Number Smart)• Bodily/Kinesthetic (Body Smart)• Interpersonal (People Smart)• Intrapersonal (Self Smart)

– Piaget, Bloom, Gardner, etc.

Diabetes Online

Yes, Stephen did just say Lizard Spit

Luck / Opportunity

Community

Conversations

Relationships

Community Networks

Life

Alerts

Connection

Personalization

Personalization

I am unique.Understand me.

It’s personal.

Don’t limit me!Who are you to limit me?Lift me up!

Experience based strategic productse.g. Career Transitions Community Health Homework Help etc.

Comfort

Simplicity

Learning

Literacy

• Reading literacy• Numeracy• Critical literacy• Social literacy• Computer literacy• Web literacy• Content literacy• Written literacy

• News literacy• Technology literacy• Information literacy• Media literacy• Adaptive literacy• Research literacy• Academic literacy• Etc.

Play

Growing up from books,Extending the experience

Where and When They Want It

http://www.all-media.info/external-page.php?url=http://proposals.nextnature.net

Who Are Your Staff Stars?

Do Your Users Know Their Names?

Culture

Conservation and Protection

The BIG Assumption

“The Internet has now progressed to its

infancy”Search, Social Networks, Learning, Commerce

Progress

These are exciting times.

Choose between achieving a dynamic and exciting future vision or longing

for a nostalgic past.

No Quick Fixes

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LibrariesCreating the Third Path…

Re-Energizing Libraries

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What is at the heartof libraries?

LearningInteractionCommunityInnovationPassionProgress

What is at the heartof libraries?

Is it you?

Stephen Abram, MLS, FSLAVP strategic partnerships and markets

Gale Cengage LearningCel: 416-669-4855

stephen.abram@cengage.com

Stephen’s Lighthouse Bloghttp://stephenslighthouse.com