The actual theme of the conference was “Net Initiatives for Tough Times: Digital Publishing, Preservation & Practices” making it sound that when tough times happen, we should go electronic. If you think about it, switching your perspective and getting back to what matters is what you should be doing when you are facing tough times. But electronic isn’t what our focus should be. What we should be focusing on are the themes that emerged from the presentations i went to and conversations i had with people-  Collaboration. Community. Connections. Libraries on the whole should always be focusing on our customers and solving problems for them but sometimes we get sidetracked into other things, like glitzy technology for instance. But taking a moment to get back to our customers and the connections we make with them, the friends we make, the word of mouth marketing, and the advocacy we develop will make all the difference.

I spoke on Monday afternoon and i’ll be honest, didn’t do much else before hand. Amy Kearns and I presented another version of our Tweet What? and shared the program time with David Lee King. We all spoke about (this one’s easy…) making connections with your customers. David specifically spoke about “user engagement nirvana:”

1. say the stuff in your head. it puts a personal face on an otherwise potentially faceless organization. be human
2. you have to give to get. the tech’s and engagements are only as good as what you make of them
3. ask and ye shall receive. harness that hive mind, crowd source!
4. listen (first). seek first to understand. then act.
5. dangle a carrot. offer something. ask leading questions (and answers!)

In the “Sneaking the Social Web into your Library” program, I agree highly with one of the things that Bobbi Newman said; “stop talking about the tools. put your focus back on your customers.” If people have stopped listening to you when you speak of “all these new and wonderful tools we should be using” they’ve probably already learned to tune you out as soon as they hear one of those buzz words.

Clay Shirkey said it best, “Technologies don’t become socially interesting until they become technologically boring”  (which not so oddly enough came up in more than one session). Your focus isn’t to do ANOTHER WIKI or “Hey look! we’re blogging!” but rather to SOLVE PROBLEMS for you and your customers. These technologies and tools are only here to sit in your toolbox until the point at which they SOLVE PROBLEMS, not be done for the sake of doing. Although, i’ll be the first to admit that sometimes i do for the sake of doing… and sometimes that’s neccesary, but not when library resources are at a premium and service expectations are higher than ever.

If you are going to use these techs, and other people besides you are going to have to keep up with them, make them as easy as possible for people to use. And if people have taken time and effort to learn these things, reward them & make them feel good. Though, Lori Reed asked “when is learning going to be a reward in itself?” Amen.

Erin Downey piggybacked on that idea saying, “if people are having a problem and you can fix it with web 2.0, people may accept the technology easier.”

On Day 2 of the conference continued the theme of communication. As much as I wanted to see Paul Holdengraber speak again (such energy, that one!) i was mostly on my own dime and was TOTALLY taking the time to sleep in a little. My first session was “Making Virtual Reference Multidimensional” and i had high hopes for it. It kind of missed my expectations but i did come away with a few new tools i can introduce to help make the lack of verbal cues and f2f interaction better:

• sharedcopy.com – for showing people specific areas of websites. similar to CiteBite but with notes!!!
• screenr - a web-based Jing
• linkbun.ch – a tiny url with a bunch of urls

Linda Bedwell of Dalhousie University mentioned their use of the qwidget, the QuestionPoint widget and said that 40% of her students prefer it over the regular QP interface. Well no kidding, why would i want to talk to someone for whom i have to jump hoops (click links and fill out a form) when i can just walk right up to them and start talking? I hope we can start using the qwidget in MD… just as soon as it’s a 24/7 interface like the rest of it.

During the talk, a thought occurred to me… Is the technology getting in the way of our customer connections? Possibly. I don’t know yet how to solve that.

Next up was “Dreaming, Designing, and Using Mobile Library Platforms” well, the second half of it. From that session i got a lot of goodies (that you can read in my notes) but what stuck most was the idea of “monitoring behaviors, not technologies.” It can be summed up in one quote by Henry Ford:

“If I asked them what they wanted, they’d have asked for a faster horse.”

Customers don’t always know what they want. Don’t ask them. Watch them.  Solve their problems. Figure out how you can do things differently.

After lunch was the Library Website Improvement Faceoff which gave me a ton of good ideas and reminders to take back with me for implementing as we move forth with our drupalization and redesign at work (for more, check out my notes.)

• Be human and whimsical. The library isn’t something that can speak. But you can. and you’re human. your content should sound like it’s coming from a human, not a robot. phrase things carefully and be fun. use “grab and go chunks.”
• when people are on your website, they have tasks to do, things they want to accomplish. don’t make it difficult.
• leave breadcrumbs. give people the confidence to find content on their own and explore your site.
• rephrase your Click Here’s. (ie, “You can get a library card.” versus “To get a library card, click here.”
• personalize things. (Dopplr personalizes their logo for each user)
• and my favorite reminder: HAVE A SINGLE USER EXPERIENCE ACROSS ALL PRODUCTS!

Check out:

• Steve Krug’s “Don’t Make Me Think”
• Janice Redish’s “Letting Go of the Words”
• fivesecondtest – Five second tests help you easily identify the most prominent elements of your user interfaces.
• check out usability.nypl.org

Nancy Dowd, in her Mobile Marketing session, reminded me about partnerships (there’s that good ole community again!) and reminded me where to start (what do your customers need? what do you need? start there!). Grow your relationships (via text, in this case) and then get rid of your press releases and your posters. Nancy relayed a story about how at a huge showing at a teens program. When asked why they were all there they said, “you texted us!”

Day three was probably the most important for me. I started the day with the “Selling Tech to Power” session which was being co-presented by my grant’s former supervisor who’s now in California (lucky her). It’s always good to hear (again) from people in power how you should be approaching things. Here’s the basics:

• Communicate. Every step of the way. To everyone. About everything.

• Know the answers to potential questions. Explain how your idea fits into the greater strategy or other plans. Explain how you’re going to use existing resources.

• Have performance measures… when/how will you know if you’re successful?

• Show your passion! Invite people to join you!

• There is no such thing as a “technology project.” I repeat. There is no such thing as a “technology project.” It’s a “business project” with technical components. (You’ve heard this before, haven’t you?) It’s not the technology, it’s the outcome.

• You don’t always need more $. Make sure what you’re doing still does what it’s supposed to be doing.

• Selling stuff to inside people is still MARKETING.

• Have data! for before, during, and after your project!

• Remember that people like having things done BY them, not TO them. Keep people involved along the way, don’t just spring things on them. Shared vision and all that.

• look for things in the high return, low investment areas. Low hanging fruit. low return, high interest? kiss of death. avoid like the plague.

And that, in a very large nutshell, is my IL2009 reporting. For more information about the other sessions, i am happy to report that IL and CIL are one of the most blogged and tweeted library conferences i’ve been to so there won’t be a drought of information and opinions. :-)

If you’re interested in my photos, both conference and Monterey related, you can find them on flickr.

possibly related posts:

1. Reference Renaissance Conference Or Reference is thriving
2. 23 things: week 3, thing 5 (365 photo projects)

- “Everything we hear from people we interview is that today’s consumers draw no distinctions between an organization’s Web site and their traditional bricks-and-mortar presence: both must be excellent for either to be excellent.” Lee Rainie, Pew Internet and American Life Project

More and more, the customers we encounter expect that every representation of ourselves will be equally as helpful as every other representation. If i can’t do the same things online that i can do with your organization in your building. If you aren’t excellent online, you won’t grab and keep my attention.

- if you’re in the market for a CMS, it’s not about the front end, it’s about the experience for staff. You need to make sure that your coders can code, your designers can design, and your content writers can write content. Your cms should facilitate the division of labor, support the overall development of the site, and the site’s future.

The trend is going towards “application framework” away from “content management system.”

- 40-plus new tools for gadgets and library webmasters

- strategies for digital natives

- Steven M. Cohen’s What’s Hot in RSS

Links to everything else
technorati cil2009
flickr cil2009
delicious cil2009
slideshare cil2009
twitter cil2009
CIL ustream live
friendfeed room cil2009

possibly related posts:

1. cil2009: Webdesign pitfalls
2. CIL2009: Monday Morning Keynote, Lee Rainie: or how to be a node in ppl’s networks

I’ve often thought it was the “virtual” part of “i run a virtual reference service” that is the sticking point. Well, the “reference” part too. But today i heard Michael Whitchurch of Brigham Young University say that calling something virtual makes it feel less real. Let’s see:

virtual reality: you can’t touch it.
virtual banana: you can’t eat it.
virtual tourist: you can’t drink the water
virtual reference: we’re robots

wha!?

Okay, so what is it? we’re helping people online. we’re answering questions remotely. HEY! Remote Reference! But we’re still stuck on reference. which no one but librarians understands. nor should they. Why are we expecting folks to bend to use when we should be bending to them?

Remote… Information help! Maybe. It’s a work in progress. But i’m all for not making our librarians not sound like robots. Or our service sound like a search engine.

So we’re not robots. interesting thing about that. I always say the way to not sound like a robot is to have a conversation. Don’t just push information at them. But conveying emotion and interest is hard when all you have is words. But wait, books are full of more emotion than movies are… oh, that’s because you’re filling in the blanks with your imagination… and because a good book tells you what’s going on. Like a librarian should tell their customer what’s going on. instead of “here’s a link to Queen Victoria…” try “Oh that’s great! I think we can find what you’re looking for in xx, i’m going to search that to see what i can find… give me 2 mins, brb.” wow, what a difference. conversation. transparency. and no robots in sight.

possibly related posts:

1. bios never seem to mention virtual reference
2. Reference Extract: in the right direction (updated)

Sarah Houghton-Jan (Librarian in Black) already did a great rundown for Aaron’s preso, so i’m not going to repeat it. I will, however, highlight the ones that i already love and the ones i’m so stoked to try out:

Show me the love
Jing- I don’t think i’ll ever be able to say enough about Jing. screen captures. stills AND video. sends to flickr, saves to desktop, or whatever else you want it to do. Highly recommend. I use it all the time.

Colourlovers- great ideas for colors. i’ve used to help jump start the inspiration on web design, room decor, outfits, and art. sky’s the limit.

Doodle- does the hard part for you when trying to schedule a mtg/gathering, or make a choice.

TED Talks- smart people saying awesome things.

search.twitter.com- search the hive mind.

hulu.com- because mushy brains are delicious.

Can’t wait to try Qapture, vyew, the thematic wordpress theme, Prezi, Lovely charts, typetester, and dropbox.

possibly related posts:

1. it’s not virtual reference or how not to be a robot
2. my ala schedule or how to jam pack your conferences

themwordblog.blogspot.com/
she also walks on water. :-)

• Partnerships don’t have to be about money. favors in kind!
• join your local chamber of commerce.
• join volunteer orgs!
• people who like you are less likely to slash your budget
• partner with grocery stores.. story times and book drops… small branches / kiosks… eventually ppl need food. be there when they do
• shopping malls.. going where the ppl are already going.. and not just online… book sales…
• find groups with similar missions to yours. think outside the box here. don’t continually compete in some manner
• are you targeting the support staff… assistant to the dean and not just the dean, etc.
• trade deals with small businesses.. in kind partnerships. local flower shop… will they give you flowers every week for publicity for them? you’re building personal relationship with someone else and another business. word gets out you’re not just a building full of books and computers.
• trade services! computing services? getting them subscriptions at lower costs?
• ***************college professors (even if you’re not an ac library)… a lot of professors have been able to assign projects to students that is work for the library… branding campaign… a new logo… etc. saves you money; helps the professors mix up their new projects and courses so they don’t go stale. helps students get out in the world and do real work projects. good for the resume.
• scout troops are always looking for work to do for badges. plant gardens, etc. (plus free child labor.. jk!) helps scout leaders come up with new projects
• form alliances with video game stores, skate shops, etc. see what you can trade. are they willing to give kids credit or coupons for x # of books read or whatnot? summer reading prizes? can you get a discount on software or games? gives you more street cred with the kids if you’re a part of an ORGANIZATION THAT MATTERS TO THEM
• gaming clubs in schools… GET THE HELL OUT OF YOUR LIBRARY! join a club that’s already formed… do they have space? do you need space? vise versa?
• trade training with anyone who has skills that you need. training is expense.
• govt officials… do you know what their information needs are? get to know the staffers and aids. officials will ask their aids, and their aids will know about you.
• people don’t think of you first. they think of their doctor and lawyers, etc… if you get in with the folks that ppl listen to, ppl will start to listen to you. WOMM at it’s best.
• a good WOM campaign = you decide on your message and choose a few different influential ppl in that group and ask them to flow your message actively. with the RIGHT information (not whisper down the lane)
• do you ask your senior citizens for special things in return? seniors are usuallly serious library users. bring them in as volunteers, do story times, tell their own stories. they want to feel like their still an active part of the community
• get involved with local politics and politicians and their staff members. As regular citizens, join political action groups.
• offer research services to govt officials
• make allies with everyone in your community. ppl are looking for ways to join the community… OFFER OPPORTUNITIES. tell people specifically what people can do for your library. “got $10? you can…” “got 10 mins? you can…?”
• donate a book to the library for $, get the kids’ name on a bookplate, keep the book in circ… have it read in storytime for the kids bday… [great idea but idk how i can translate it to a vr service...]
• give media happy stories. do the research for them. SEND THEM PRESS RELEASES! HAVE PRESS RELEASES!
• does anyone have advisory boards with ADULTS or ppl from a specific target market that you’re trying to teach? yeah, we focused so much on teens, we forgot about EVERYONE ELSE
• DONT GUESS WHAT PPL WANT. ASK! hours? services? activities! want to get involved? Stuff!
• do stuff with social networking. (well duh). David Lee King says “libraries: stop friending me!”
• if you dont tell ppl what you’re doing, they wont know.
• get to a point where ppl who run your community to see the library as an extension of the schools [or other org]
• form relationships with consultants. “i’d like to propose a mutually beneficial….”

possibly related posts:

1. cil2009: Webdesign pitfalls
2. CIL2009: Monday Morning Keynote, Lee Rainie: or how to be a node in ppl’s networks

Major redesign pitfall: redesigning when you don’t really need to redesign

Bad reasons to redesign
* it’s been x years/months since we redesigned
* the boss says i have to
* I’m boooored with the site

Good reasons to redesign
* when your navigation is dysfunctional (<< yep for us)
* when your site doesn’t scale (<< yep for us)
* when your site is difficult to update (<< yep for us)
* when your code is hopelessly *cough cough* sick (<< yep for us *cough* frontpage *cough*)
* when your site has poor usability (<< yep for us)
* when it is not performing based on your site’s goals/objectives (you do have those, right?) (<< yep for us)

redevelop v. redesign
redevelop website = triple bypass, higher cost to u and ur user
redesign = cosmetic surgery, low cost for u and ur users. if it aint broke, dont fix it.

does the site need to look completely different? can you fix the usability issues without losing the current look and feel? a completely new look and feel can be distruptive to users.

“The quiet death of the major relaunch” by Jare M. Spool (may 28, 2003)

users dislike redesigns… a lot
* facebook anti-redesign group has 1.7 million members
* last.fm redesign drew over 2k comments often strongly negative

* beware the vocal majority
* be evidence based… your new sites tests better, right?

Redesign and the 5 stages of user grief
* denial, anger, barganing, depression, acceptance.
the site was perfect… you have rendered the site useless and you suck!… if you could just revert back to the old… i have no idea what i’m going to do now… while i dislike the design i was able to find the catalog link quite easily.

website maintenance = boring. redesign= exciting.
“we’re aware of that issue, but we’re waiting for the redesign…”

[insert time/launch x you/users photo here]

DISCOVERY STAGE
Pitfall: failing to account for assessment time and effort
- “spend your money where the water damage is” Do you know where your water is? where is going to give you the greatest ROI? ID what is the most important content on your website; redesign to accomodate it

Pitfall: not knowing enough about your current site before you begin
- look at where ppl are going, where are they NOT going, what pages they enter into and what pages they leave from (google analytics, clicky)
- review past usability studies. if it’s been a while, do one NOW
- tip: find and document your current google page rank. you don’t want to lose your page rank after your redesign

PITFALL: proceeding without consensus of goals (aka BUY IN)
- investing time reaching consensus on the need for a change, what needs to be changed, what the desired outcomes are.

Generating buy-in
- show your director what cool things OTHER libraries are doing
- show him or her data indicating that your site isn’t functioning

PITFALL: trying to reach too much consensus
design my committee = death
data + evidence-based practice = harmony and world peace

PITFALLS: being an expert
define constituencies and include them in the process

Is a traditional page based model the best?
check out CMS, Blogs, wikis

PITFALLS: spending too much time “designing”
Seth Godin: “I’m going to go out on a limb and beg you not to create a new design. There are a billion pages on the web. surely there is one you can start with.” Spend your time on great CONTENT! and SERVICES!

freecsstemplates.org
csszengarden.com
dynamicdrive.com

PITFALLS: looking at other library sites. DO look at non-library sites; where ppl are spending their time

Have SMART goals
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Timely

COMMUNICATE ENOUGH. be transparent and open. consider a redesign blog/wiki to help people up to date with the process and ask for FEEDBACK. also helps you manage users expectations. Good for PR.

EXECUTION
[electric chair picture? haha]

Pitfall: communicating TOO MUCH. redesign by committee still death. look to evidence to short circut tedious discussions. usability.gov, useit.com, surl.org, uie.com

Pitfall: not providing users a clear path. define your primary functions and make sure these paths are clear.
(julie’s note: using AUN, meetings, talking to each other, scheduling?)

Dont reinvent the wheel. from javascripts to css… it’s probably been done already

Where should you spend time $ and effort?
- Remarkable content- you have a staff full of experts! content is well written. Invest time in REWRITING content! don’t cut and paste!
- Remarkable tools – engagement tools, searching, etc

design for search engine optimization (SEO)
- simple URLs
- page titles = descriptive
- proper and consistent user of structural HTML
- descriptive alt tags (also good for accessibility)
- submit a new site map to google (sitemap generators)
- ask google to remove outdate/removed/old content from it’s index (cache)

design with social media optimization (SMO) in mind
- social bookmark links

PITFALL : moving or eliminating good content

Don’t forget to update your robots.txt file
update your analytics definitions, paths, groups, etc

PLAN BEYOND THE REDESIGN
* content strategy- maintencance strategy… hmm that’s fresh
* move from macro redesign to micro changes

possibly related posts:

1. cil2009: 25 ideas for collaborating in 40 mins
2. CiL Quote Highlights

Computers in Libraries conference
http://cil2009.pbwiki.com/
http://www.infotodayblog.com/
all cil2009 streaming
* tomorrow’s keynote morning will be streamed live from the infotoday blog.

“Information’s pretty thin stuff unless mixed with experience.” Clarence Day

—–
Lee Rainie- Director of the PEW internet project
FRIENDING LIBRARIES: The newest nodes in people’s social networks
Link to slides on slideshare

[insert shameless self promotion and fandom love for Lee Rainie here]

when you have broadband @home, you use the internet differently, it becomes a deep, embedded thing in your life.

10 changes in the information ecosystem

• the volume of information has grown
• the variety of information increases- people have a lot more choices- in the millions. changes the way ppl think and filter information. ppl can go to the things they MOST care about and filter out the stuff they don’t care about.
• the velocity of information speeds up- information that you care about
• the times and places to experience media enlarge- it’s on our time. time and place shifting. we can watch movies now, on the bus. we can read newspapers on the computer.
• people’s vigilance for information expands AND contracts. people can dig a lot deeper about the things they care about. like health searches- we can go from 0 to 1000 mph in expertise on that subject in a very sophisticated way very quickly. people are more and more today are living lives in “continuous partial attention.” (< < make note here about book: Distracted)
• the immersive qualities of media are more compelling
• the relevance of information improves. you can set up alerts and filters and get what you want: the DAILY ME. big change in the institutional relationship ppl have
• the number of information “voices’ explodes and becomes more findable. more than half of adults are content creators. HUGE change in the power relationships people have with information and each other
• voting and ventilating are enabled. people are creating their own taxonomies of meaning and explaining what they see is happening in the world. a lot more opportunity now to talk to the insitutions that used to hold all the cards
• social networks are move vivid.

in a world where everything is bombarding them, people are falling back on their REAL friends- pinging their networks to help them understand the world as it’s happening.

Insitutions can now be a part of people’s networks than ever before. We can position ourselves as the real information sorter/finder/keepers, etc.

Homo Connectus
a different species with a different sense of:
* expectation about access to information
* place and distance
* presence with others
* opportunities to play
* time allocation and use
* personal efficacy
* the possibilities for social networking… and here’s where you can connect and make a difference

The Mobile difference report

35% of people are motivated by mobility (<< this would be me. if my tech doesn’t move with me, it’s useless to me.)
61% are tied to stationary media, have tech but it’s peripheral in their lives

59% of ppl access things thru their cell phone devices. Reconfiguring digital divides, etc.
39% of Americans are “really into this mobile lifestyle” and think well of it.
when ppl get more mobile devices tend to do more content creation than they did before they had a mobile device.

Each group wants something different from you as a person and organization. You have ppl who love they way you’ve always been. but now you have a more complicated world to look at.

Motivated by mobility
1. Digital collaborators 8% of population- the geek squads
iphones, twittering, blogging, cutting edge of technology adoption. they do everything more than everything else. more assets, do more with assets, feel better with those assets.
NOT THE YOUNGEST USERS- internet veterans
** these are the folks who will give you feedback on your tech. give these folks a place to share and plug in. THESE ARE THE INFLUENCERS

2. ambivalent networkers
express strong interest to take a break from technology but don’t feel like they can. feel like to exist in the world, they have to be “on” all the time. mostly students. not email users.
** serve them by giving them permission to be “off the grid.” help them navigate information overload.

3. media movers- the sharers.
these are the people who send you links to youtube and their family’s photos
** serve them b y giving them outlets for sharing… AND STORING what they’re sharing.

4. roving nodes
highly educated, mostly female. technology gives them more control of their lives
** serve them by helping them manage their lists and info flow, avoid information overload. they’d appreciate learning about cloud computing.

5. mobile newbies
just got a cell phone in the last year or two and it’s been a life changing event for them. but mostly used as a cell phone. not really internet users and don’t really care about it too much
** serve them by coach & ment

possibly related posts:

1. CIL2009: additional highlights, thoughts & links
2. cil2009: 25 ideas for collaborating in 40 mins

I had the great pleasure of being Publicity Chair, a presenter, and the chair/moderator of a panel presentation. Overall, i’m highly impressed with how well everything went for it’s inaugural event. We had 508 attendees and with 6 tracks and 6 sessions, there was a lot of great stuff to choose from.

After 8/20 all the presentation slides/handouts will be available on the detailed schedule page of the conference website.

Here are the highlights from the sessions I attended:

Monday, Aug 4th

Keynote Address: Reference in the Age of Wikipedia, Or Not…
David W. Lewis, Dean of the University Library, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis

• Google = the next bubonic plague?
• libraries organize and protect the cultural imprint. It’s all always been “user created” but now there’s so much more!
• The value proposition for disruptive (versus Sustaining) innovations is entirely different. An organization can’t disrupt itself, you need to remove the innovation from the organization in order to let it happen; it can’t be “crammed” into the existing values and processes of the organization, it’ll be stunted. You need to have a separate organization to do the innovation.
• don’t invest all your resources on the first try.
• 7 years ago, though the library was inconvenient and hard to use, students dealt with it until something more convenient came along (the internet)
• Don’t ask customers what they want. Watch what they do.

Session 1
Getting Better All the Time! Improving Communication and Accuracy in Virtual Reference
Presenters: Marie L. Radford, Ph.D. Rutgers University and Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, OCLC, Inc., OH

• Don’t be a machine. Create that connection. Listen. Answer the actual question asked and be aware of the sub-questions that might be there. You’re not just passing off information, you’re creating relationships.
• there is an assumption that people use chat because they’re in a rush. Usually not. And they’re willing to wait if you set up the expectation of how long it’s going to be. Knowing it will be 1 minute, that minute goes fast. Not knowing when someone will help you, 1 minute can seem like an eternity.

Expanding Service and Enhancing Learning: Preliminary Report on a Novel Virtual Reference Collaboration
Presenters: Andrea Wright, Thomas Cooper Library, University of South Carolina and Feili Tu, Ph.D., SLIS, University of South Carolina, SC

Come Together: Melding IM with an Existing Virtual Reference Service
Presenter: Samuel R. Stormont, Abington Library, Penn State University, PA

Session 2
Everyone is One: Customer Service or Retail Reference?
Presenter: Diana D. Shonrock, Iowa State University

• Everyone has their story, the one you remember when you’re having a bad day.
• You don’t need to have all the answers, just be willing to help them on their journey to finding the answers
• MySpace, Meebo, Facebook, Twitter. You don’t have to live in all these places as a librarian or as part of the library, but you DO have to be able to explain them and help people get started on them.
• Experience Economy > the 4 E’s
  • Education
  • Aesthetics (sic)
  • Entertainment
  • Escapism (allowing the customer to take a role)
• The 4 E’s of Leadership
  • Envision
  • Enable (the tools to make the vision a reality)
  • Empower (towards a common goal)
  • Energize
• Ideas:
  • have art from local artists for borrowing on a rotating basis (ie, “check out” a painting for 3 mos)
  • sponsor a car show
  • give out / sell passes for local venues/events
  • Victorian Day in the Park
  • Douglas County Libraries.org won an Emmy for their PSA

Session 3
Ready, Set, Go! 90 Minutes to a Collaborative Virtual Reference Service
Presenters: Beth Cackowski, Project Coordinator, QandANJ, NJ; Laura Osterhout, Western New York Library Resources Council, NY; Vince Mariner, Statewide Coordinator, Ask Here PA, PA; Julie Strange, Operations Supervisor, Maryland AskUsNow! MD

• see the slides, notes, and other related links at askusnow.info/denver08

Tues, Aug 5th

Session 4: Sculpting Services: Models for Creative Change
Neo-Reference — Looking for Real Change
Presenters: Susan Beatty, Head, Information Commons, University Library, University of Calgary, Canada and Helen Clarke, Head, Collection Services and Electronic Resources Librarian, University Library, University of Calgary, Canada

• customers put a value on their independence. where do we fit in this model? How do we help?
• how to you keep the discovery / serendipitous finding?
• library as creative studio.
• go beyond knowledge transfer to a new learner outcome (creation)
• We’re not here to make it hard. So make it easy.

Meeting User’s Needs Through New Service Models
Presenter: Kay Cassell, Ph.D., Rutgers University, SCILS, NJ

• people make assumptions about the kinds of questions they can ask at desks.
• Address the customer before addressing the screen (how do you apply this to VR??)

The Medium is Not the Message: A Model of Networked Reference for the 21st Century
Presenter: Bruce Brigell, Skokie Public Library, Skokie, IL

• Check out the book “Understanding Media: The extensions of Man” by Marshall McLuhen
• Jill Lepore. Our own devices: Does technology drive history? New Yorker, 5/12/08, pg 122
• Jeff Pomerantz. RUSQ 46 #1, 2006, Collaboration as the Norm in Reference work
• it’s about the service, NOT the intake medium! Do not succumb to the limitations of the medium!
• Local expertise network> wiki. utilize the expertise of the local.
• why disclaim wikipedia? learning versus unauthoritative knowledge transfer.

Session 5
Libraryh3lp: Building a Next-Generation VR System
Panelists: Josh Boyer, North Carolina State University, NC; Jean Ferguson, Duke University, NC; Eric Sessoms, Nub Games, Inc.; Pam Sessoms, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC; Amy VanScoy, Ph.D. Student, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Librarian North Carolina State University, NC

• meebo is invisible to screen readers. LibraryH3lp isn’t and can also be used on the Wii and the iphone.
• files can be sent both ways
• customers have an idea of “library” as a big box without sub sections. While it’s not true, we shouldn’t just say it’s not true while trying to mold them to our thinking. don’t make customers conform their perceptions of reality; make them reality.
• can have people monitoring “zero queues” for the purposes of being available for transfer only.

Plenary Session Panel
Theory Meets Practice: Educators and Directors Talk
Presenters: R. David Lankes, Ph.D., Syracuse University; Jamie LaRue, Douglas County Libraries; Marie L. Radford, Ph.D., Rutgers University School of Communication, Information, and Library Studies; Carla J. Stoffle, Dean of Libraries and Center for Photography, University of Arizona

• “Reference is an island of order in a sea of chaos” (david lankes)
• don’t point. help make sense of the stuff you point to.
• be subversive change agents!

• its not about the technology, it’s about the service and the customers’ needs
• stimulate learning, don’t wait for someone to realize they need to learn
• are your customers on your committees?

• be aware of what is behind the question.
• “we’re not ready to sunset anything,” Bill Pardue
• it’s OUR job to figure out our professional roles.

• communication is the most important skill
• find some way to touch the customer. in a “study” those customers who got books weren’t blown away. those customers who got books and the librarian had lightly touched them on the arm, we’re BLOWN away by the service. It’s the acknowledgment of another human being that makes the interaction so much more pleasing. (How do you “touch” someone in VR?)
• go find the questions no one is remembering to bring you

• calling customers “members” makes them a part of “you” not “you” vs “them”
• start where they are. don’t make them start where you are.
• put upwards pressure on people to get deeper and deeper into the community.
• trust. risk. honest discussion at all levels.
• if you have something to contribute, speak up.

Session 6: Reworking, Reinventing, & Road Tripping
Milner Library on the Go: Taking Reference on the Road
Presenter: Sean Walton, Illinois State University, IL

• students/tutors are assigned a librarian.

Reworking Reference: A California Project
Presenters: Rosario Garza, Metropolitan Cooperative Library System, CA and Stacey Aldrich, California State Library, CA

• as the number of questions are going down, the cost per question is rising.
• interview question: what about the future of libraries keeps you up at night?
• think about data + consider trends = transformational scenarios
• it’s about quality, not quality. People can find the easy things on their own now (thank you, Google), so we’re open for the harder, meatier questions you need a human liaison for.

Scheduling Software: check out whentowork.com… can schedule people and has opps for ppl to interact.

Check out Yale Text messaging… library.yale.edu/science/textmsg.html

possibly related posts:

1. it’s not virtual reference or how not to be a robot
2. using humor with customers

Become a Customer Activist- An advocate for customers

• Passionate, fanatically, committed, progressive, protective about their cause
• Closes gap between expectations and reality
• you need a hat
• you need a creed

• Nordstrom customer service: The Tire (and possibly the best customer service story of all time.

Remove the barriers

• don’t make excuses
• don’t blame
• just find solutions.

You must become an Environmentalist

• What kind of environment do we want to have?
• Think about your favorite places. What do they look like/feel/sound/smell like?
• How do you create the same type of environment?

Exceed expectations

• need to know what people expect before you can exceed it.
• how do you find out what they expect? You have to ASK them.

All co-workers are partners. Not rivals

• Libraries are extremely hierarchical

Shift your focus

• Shift from being library focused to being customer focused

• what is good for librarians versus what is good for customers- we *always* need to be thinking about what *they* think is good for them. NOT making them conform to us.

Stoplight Rules

• Red rules- things NOBODY can override
• Green rules- rules that can be bent (this is where staff can get confused as to what they can do)
• Yellow rules- when staff is not sure what to do

• It’s important to know the INTENT of the rules and for staff to be empowered to follow them as they see fit. (empowerment story: @Rtiz Carlton, any employee can comp a customer up to $2k without talking to management first.)
• Some rules seem reasonable but when they come into practice, they are ridiculous

Empowerment

• See it
• Own it
• Solve it
• Do it

Words that say “no” set a tone

• Say things in a welcoming way

• instead of “no cell phones” try “courteous cell phone use, please” or “you are welcome to use your cell phone in our lobby.” & don’t forget the signs as you’re leaving the building that say, “don’t forget to turn your cell phone back on!”

Thinks about the terms we use

• Calling them patrons allows us to patronize them (Stephen Abrams)
• Circulation/OCLC/ILL/Periodicals/Call Number/Reference/Page. No one should have to understand these terms. Use better things. Not “reference” but “questions.”
• Purpose of signage is to help people move through something easily and quickly.

Be Emotional Intelligence Activists

• Empathy (not feeling sorry for, but being in their shoes)
  • No more Golden Rule. Try the Platinum Rule-Treat them like they want to be treated
  • The only way we know what people want is to ask them. otherwise we’re treating them on OUR OWN assumptions
• Attitude
  • When you say I can’t, you here “i won’t”
  • Be open-minded. All the time.
  • TTWWADI (“That’s the Way We’ve always done it”) must die
  • Need to be genuine

Environmentalist plus CIA = Customer Activist

possibly related posts:

1. last one out, get the lights /or closing time customer service
2. IM versus Chat: What’s better for customer service?

Thursday
8am- Flight to LAX

Friday
8am-5pm, Emerging Leaders + Poster Session (come see! Ours rocks)
5:30pm, wine w/ James & Joseph
7:30pm, ALA Editions dinner w/ Pete and Janie

Saturday
7:30am, Welcome Breakfast and Conference Kickoff
8am RUSA Open House
10:30am, How Branding can increase the relevance of your library (PLA)
1:30pm, QP Best Practices Panel Presentation on Successful Cooperative Virtual Reference Services (I’M PRESENTING!)
4pm RUSA Mars Virtual Ref Disc Grp (VR techs)
4pm Would you like an umbrella with that beach blanket? xtreme customer service
6pm Twit-together w/ twitter folks
7pm ProQuest Scholarship Bash – Disneyland Park
9:30pm Reception for ELs (may not attend)
midnight- Rocky Horror!!

Sunday
8am Mixed messages re gender, race, and ethnicity in disneys magic kingdom
(there may be a committee mtg here i’m forgetting
10:30am Business Reference Services Discussion Group
10:30am The Healthy Librarian: Cultivating Wellness in the Workplace – the Workplace
10:30am Is f2f reference dying? (RUSA MARS)
1:30pm New Reference Research Forum
1:30pm SORT Dealing with Challenging Patrons
1:30pm Practical Tips for Dealing with challenging Patrons
1:30pm QP Users Group
1:30pm Let me ask you this: constructing and using effective surveys
3:30pm QP Advisory Board Social Hour
4pm LITA President’s Program: Isn’t it great to be in the library… wherever that is
5:30pm OCLC Blog Salon
7:30pm Buff’s Party
8pm Feminists Night at the Movies – the Movies

Monday
8am YALSA Reference to Teens
10:30am Please Talk to Strangers: Spreading Trust in Virtual Reference Services
1:30pm RUSA President’s Program: Quality Service in an Impersonal World
4:30pm The Healthy Librarian: Cultivating Wellness in the Workplace

Somewhere in here i have to fit some luunches, some sleeps, and some uh, something else, i’m sure. :-)
This is all of course, tentative as I figure out what’s really of interest.

Then, vaca until July 6th. OOOh yeah!

possibly related posts:

1. ALA Emerging Leaders (or how I changed the world)
2. Computers in Libraries, 2007