1. A Question of Branding

6. Reference Activity2004200520062007200820092010 2010 increase Reference Desks176,306176,893169,959142,410114,15859,19664,7259.34% Office Consultations ①9,2799,3104,9397,4956,0086,5007,85920.91% Total Reference ②185,585186,203174,898149,905120,16665,69672,58410.48% Troubleshooting & Circulation ③ 9,60724,43249,231101.50% Directional ④102,215102,79889,18480,24051,45315,48620,66633.45% ① Office consultations for 2007-2008 were estimated based on historical tendencies ② Total reference transactions for 2008 were a mix of samples transactions (winter, spring and summer) and 100% recorded transactions (fall) and reflected all types recorded (in person,phone, email or chat). Beginning in 2009 ALL transactions recorded 100% ③ This was tracked beginning 2008 ④ No reliable estimate for directional statistics available prior to 2004

8. “Librarians also need to do a better job of promoting the current services offered to users. If our users do not know what sort of assistance librarians can give them in their information searches, then they will be unlikely to seek out any assistance from librarians. Librarians and libraries may become increasingly irrelevant to users’ information needs.” – O'Gorman, Jack, and Barry Trott. "What Will Become of Reference in Academic and Public Libraries?" Journal of Library Administration 49.4 (2009): 327-39.

9. We examined the websites of the 125 members of the Association of Research Libraries to see what they call reference: 92Reference 33Information 25Service 16Research 10Help 7Commons

10. We examined the websites of 103 other RU/H institutions to see what they call reference: 79Reference 15Information 11Service 11Research 3Help

11. We surveyed 3,000 faculty and students 46% undergraduate students 22% graduate students 32% faculty 23% responded

14. Help238 Information126 Assistance121 Research104 Service104 Reference47 Answer16 Ask15 Commons1

15. Company as brand “Consumers tend to perceive all services offered by a company as components of a single brand..... Services do not lend themselves to individual branding, as tangible goods do.” de Chernatony, Leslie, and Francesca Dall’Olmo Riley. “Experts’ Views about Defining Service Brands and the Principles of Services Branding.” Journal of Business Research 46 (1999): 181-192. Delta or Wells Fargo vs. Proctor & Gamble

16. Front-line employee as brand Services are intangible, complex, heterogeneous, and process- not product-based. The front-line employee is the manifestation of the “company as brand,” so internal branding is key. Employees must believe in the company’s brand characteristics, so that they will portray those traits to the users as they provide services. Reference should not be branded

17. But you still have to call it something! “Whatever you name it, the variety of resources this desk provides should be advertised.” – Senior

18. Contact: Andy Spackman Business and Economics Librarian Brigham Young University andy_spackman@byu.edu Kathy Johansen Access Services Department Chair Brigham Young University kathy_johansen@byu.edu Russ Taylor Ryan Combs Greg Nelson Steve Nordstrom David Layton Cyndee Frazier Amy Bernards Valerie Buck Committee Members: