From Bricks to Clicks: Continuing to Shift Focus to Online Library Services Matt Anderson, 11 December 2012 #bricks2clicks

In the last 5 years… Library websites 5 years ago… #bricks2clicks

In the last 5 years… Online focus had turned to: –One-box resource search –Faceted search –Traditional OPAC -> Summon/ Primo discovery tools –Online reference chat –Social media #bricks2clicks

Now… Academic library websites today & the focus of each site… #bricks2clicks

In the Next 5 Years… For some academic library users, the only library experience they have will be via the librarys online interface #bricks2clicks

In the Next 5 Years… Library websites will need to figure out mobile-friendly ways to link to: –Research help –ILL –Faculty info –Catalog –Subject guides –New mobile device services But theyll do it in the context of a 2015 design, not a 2005 design #bricks2clicks

In the Next 5 Years… Academic libraries will work on the following: –Generous interfaces –Mobile optimization –Content marketing –Becoming more cost-effective #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Current work of Mitchell Whitelaw, University of Canberra #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Give users visual things to engage with; not a list of links Show users something first, before they search or click on something #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Examples of non-generous (stingy) interfaces… #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Examples: –Pages that show you photos like Google Images or Facebook would, like Mildenhalls Canberra #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Examples: – #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Examples: – #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Examples: – #bricks2clicks

Generous Interfaces Academic libraries will gradually shift to generous interfaces over the next five years, with large icons appearing where links once did #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization First, a couple graphs on mobile usage from Mary Meeker… Source: Meeker, M. (2012, December 3). Internet -- Bases. In SlideShare. Retrieved December 9, 2012, from update#btnNext update#btnNext #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks What is the mobile experience for your patrons?

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks What is the mobile experience for your patrons? Can they find ebooks?

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks What is the mobile experience for your patrons? Can they find ebooks? Can they find your contact info/hours?

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks What is the mobile experience for your patrons? Can they find ebooks? Can they find your contact info/hours? Can they manage holds?

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks What is the mobile experience for your patrons? Can they find ebooks? Can they find your contact info/hours? Can they manage holds? Can they do these things without hitting the wrong link?

Mobile Optimization Smart phones and tablets will soon become our primary personal computers Mobility strategy will be necessary for: –Catalog discovery –Library marketing –Student account management –Siri-like tools for finding things on campus #bricks2clicks What is the mobile experience for your patrons? Can they find ebooks? Can they find your contact info/hours? Can they manage holds? Can they do these things without hitting the wrong link? Can they use the site without having to type?

Mobile Optimization When links are close together, users hit the wrong links and become frustrated –A reason to avoid lists of links #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Dont –Have items that patrons click right next to each other –Repurpose a mobile site design from a larger screen layout #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Do –Design from scratch for the small screen sizes you wish to support –Use Responsive Web Design for library sites to minimize: Resizing Panning Scrolling #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Creating a mobile site design or a native mobile app will create a different user experience Here are some examples… #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Developing an Android native app: –It isnt difficult to make an Android app –Android devices are not very standardized –Android apps tend to have a lot more bugs than equivalent iOS apps Developing an iOS app: –Much easier to develop –Smaller share of the market

Mobile Optimization Other mobile technologies that academic libraries are beginning to use: –ILS-sent text messages about due dates/times, library events, etc. #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Other mobile technologies that academic libraries are beginning to use: –ILS-sent text messages about due dates/times, library events, etc. –Texting a call number/URL to a mobile device #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Other mobile technologies that academic libraries are beginning to use: –ILS-sent text messages about due dates/times, library events, etc. –Texting a call number/URL to a mobile device –Texting a librarian for reference questions #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization Other mobile technologies that academic libraries are beginning to use: –ILS-sent text messages about due dates/times, library events, etc. –Texting a call number/URL to a mobile device –Texting a librarian for reference questions –QR codes that send people to parts of the library website #bricks2clicks

Mobile Optimization #bricks2clicks

Content Marketing #bricks2clicks

Content Marketing Content can help get more visits to the library website It can be shared on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. What kind of content do university homepages use? #bricks2clicks

Content Marketing Easy content marketing ideas: –5 ways that the library can help you with finals –10 ways to research for your philosophy paper #bricks2clicks

Content Marketing Demonstrating whether content marketing works: –Page visits –Social media shares –Event attendance #bricks2clicks

Becoming More Cost-Effective

Patron-driven acquisition –Being used by University of Utah & Texas A&M Patron discovers a title they want via online services, clicks on the title, & the library purchases the e-copy at that time…but not until that transaction Perhaps eventually allowing for one-click donations of books/e-books #bricks2clicks

Becoming More Cost-Effective Offering patrons book/e-book personal purchase options Online library stores: Offering patrons the ability to pay for high- quality versions of some resources Would a reputable academic library consider these options? #bricks2clicks

Becoming More Cost-Effective The days of academic libraries having to buy/lease/maintain servers are coming to an end Library software companies offer SaaS solutions Cloud companies like AWS can cheaply offer huge amounts of virtualized space Initial development investments can be $$$, instead of $$$$ #bricks2clicks

Questions? #bricks2clicks Questions?