What It All Means and How You Can Use It When You Don’t Have Time or Money #fabref Kathy Makens Head of Adult Services at South Regional Library Durham County Library
We Go to the Patron Library Goes Mobile Geosocial Outreach Visual Social Networking
We may spend less time behind the desk and more time in the stacks More library services and marketing will happen on smart phones You will see Foursquare, geocaching and other location based apps used to draw users into the library You will see more things like Pinterest and Instagram
Roving Reference QR Codes Geocaching Pinterest Instagram Should I Use It?
Roving Reference We Don’t Wait for the Patron to Come to the Desk We Find the Patron and Help Them in the Stacks
Many Patrons Will Not Approach the Reference Desk Added Security Able to Get Tasks Done in the Stacks (weeding, etc.)
How to Do It Fancy iPad Laptop Headset Mobile Circulation
How to Do It Not So Fancy 2 Way Radios Computers in Stacks
* Morgan Stanley Mobile Internet Report December 2009
*Pew Internet Cell Phone Study
*Smartphone Ownership Update September 2012 Pew Internet Research
Making more of our online and in person services cell phone friendly helps bridge the digital divide and provides greater access to the less fortunate
Guess What? You Already Offer It
TTwillio MMosio
A Quick Response Barcode holds a little bit of information Smart phones with a QR reader app can read them This one leads to this presentation online.
Free! No technology skills required Negligible staff time Cool Fewer steps between patron and content
Link Cell Phone Users Directly to Tutorials Link to online program registration or the phone number to register for a program Link to the donation page of your Friends of the Library Have a scavenger hunt
It means that you can play games, share information, etc. with other people who have smart phones or other devices that can tell where you are located and can find the location of other people and things.
Instead of sharing music, books, etc. You share places
Cheap and Fast Few Technical Skills Required Draw in New Patrons Control the Library’s Image
Claim Your Location
Reward the Mayor Advertise your services Highlight special events Add to-do lists Find out what people in your community like to do
Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. - from geocaching.com
Or It is a fancy scavenger hunt that you can play using your cell phone
Super cheap They are games that market the library’s services in an engaging way They help broaden user perceptions of what a library is and can do They bring in new patrons
Find Someone to Partner With: Have a Clear Idea of What You Want to Communicate Make sure all staff know about it You Can Only Have One Cache per Library (building, not system) active at one time
Try to have a non-technology based alternative available to your patrons
Have a paper based scavenger hunt that accompanies your geocache No device necessary Child friendly theme with many easy clues!
QR codes generally lead to virtual content that might interest the patron Geocaching scavenger hunts lead the user to physical content.
One viral picture can lead lots of people back to your other content
An app to edit photos and share them
Instagram is itself a social network
Draw in new patrons Get surprisingly professional photos of your programs and buildings Have a contest!
/FINAL+PR+PHOTO+CHALLENGE.pdf
Does this fit in with my library’s mission? Do I want it just because it is “shiny” Does this fit in with what the people in my community currently use? What is the cost in money and time?
Identify and meet with stakeholders As a group, decide on best implementation Reward early adopters Track progress