Using sophisticated gadgetry, researchers have determined that most people look at web pages in predictable ways.  This has important implications for the design of our library web pages.

The Eyetracker III project measured the visual patterns of people reading news wesites, both real ones and some experimental designs.  You can read about their methods and results at http://poynterextra.org/eyetrack2004/main.htm

Jakob Nielsen, who writes widely on website usability, describes the "F-shaped pattern of reading" at http://www.useit.com/alertbox/reading_pattern.html

Both of these sites give examples of "heatmaps", which are graphic depictions of the duration and intensity of gaze.  (They look a little like an infrared photo superimposed on the website.)  You can see free heatmaps of your library's web pages at http://www.feng-gui.com  These are created by an artificial intelligence algorithm. 

For an example of how one organization applied eyetracking research in redesigning their website, see this article:

CU Uses Eye Tracking Studies To Create More User-Friendly Website. Kevin Jepson. Credit Union Journal 10.47 (Nov 27, 2006): 

Feeling a little tired of shouting from the rooftops? Need some inspiration or a few pithy thoughts to share? Read this interview with Gary Strong, the University Librarian at UCLA. He is experienced, energetic, and articulate, and has a good sense of humor.

http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/newsletters/oclc/2004/266/garystro...

WebJunction is wonderful online space, hosted by OCLC, where librarains can share experiences and insights about today's library world.  I'm just beginning to explore it myself.  Today I discovered a series of three articles by Walt Crawford illustrating his idea of the "storied library": every library has stories to share with its public, and the public is full of personal stories of the difference that the library has made. 

Walt Crawford. 
"The Storied Library."  March 5, 2007
http://www.webjunction.org/do/DisplayContent?id=15096

"The Storied Library: Filling in the Story."  March 15, 2007
http://www.webjunction.org/do/DisplayContent?id=15197

"The Storied Library: Developing Your Story."  May 16, 2007
http://www.webjunction.org/do/DisplayContent?id=16176

What do your patrons and the rest of the public think of when they think of the library?  What does the "library brand" mean to them?  According to OCLC's 2005 report, "Perceptions of Libraries and Information Resources", the most common library image is the printed book.  If the public is going to pay any attention to us in the near future, we have to persuade them to think of us differently, to re-brand ourselves.  Take a look at these articles, available in the InfoTrac OneFile database:

• Does your perception of your service match your clients' opinions? You know you're doing a great job, but your clients may not agree. The magic is in the service, the personality, and the behaviors of you and your staff. Debbie Schachter.  Information Outlook 11.4 (April 2007)

• Rebranding the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore.  Daily Record (Baltimore, MD) (Jan 31, 2007)

• Rebuilding? It's Time For Rebranding.(Museums). Carol Vogel. The New York Times (March 30, 2005)

• Space: the final frontier: a leading tech advocate imagines a media center fit for 21st century learning.(LIBRARY OF THE FUTURE). Alan November.  School Library Journal 53.5 (May 2007)

The Professional Development Service collection at the Idaho Commission for Libraries has several recent books on branding that you can check out:


• A clear eye for branding : straight talk on today’s most powerful business concept / Tom Asacker. Ithaca, N.Y. : Paramount Market Pub., c2005. 143 p.
• Emotional branding : the new paradigm for connecting brands to people / by Marc Gobé.  New York : Allworth Press, c2001. 319 p.
• The inspired retail space : attract customers, build branding, increase volume / Corinna Dean.   Edition: 1st pbk ed. Gloucester, Mass. : Rockport Pub., c2003.    165 p.
• Strategic marketing in library and information science / Irene Owens, editor.   Binghamton, NY : Haworth Information Press, c2002. 254 p.

Getting the word out about your library in new ways takes imagination and effort. This article from WebJunction suggests ways in which we can make use of current marketing trends:

• "What's Marketing Got to Do with It? Marketing Trends Present Librarians with Promising Opportunities." Jill Stover. 2006. (http://webjunction.org/do/DisplayContent?id=14411)

Here are some more articles that may give you some fresh ideas. All of them are available through LiLI in the Academic OneFile and InfoTrac OneFile databases.

• "The Bay Area's best value: a tight collaboration leverages company support and ad dollars to get the word out about libraries." Ronnie Davis. Library Journal 129.15 (Sept 15, 2004).

• "Library 2.0 in the corporate world: marketing becomes collaboration; New technologies can expand your library's reach and usefulness--and get your clients involved." Jill Konieczko. Information Outlook 11.3 (March 2007).

• "Marketing without much money: you don't need big bucks to get the word out. Here are (more than) a few ideas." Judith Siess. Information Outlook 8.10 (Oct 2004).

And don't forget to check the Professional Development Service collection at the Idaho Commission for Libraries. (http://libraries.idaho.gov/pds)
Here are just two of the books that you can check out from the PDS:

• Wadham, Tim. Libros Esenciales: Building, Marketing, and Programming a Core Collection of Spanish Language Children's Materials. New York : Neal-Schuman Publishers, c2007.

• Walters, Suzanne. Library Marketing that Works. New York : Neal-Schuman Publishers, c2004.

This lively article highlights public and school libraries around the US that have successfully attracted and involved teens in a variety of activities. Among the resources that they point out is a study from 1999 called "The Coolness Factor", published by the Urban Libraries Council, that doesn't sound as dated as you might think.

• Standing room only: want to get teens excited about the library? Just surrender some control. Diane Tuccillo. School Library Journal 53.3 (March 2007): p46(3).

• The Coolness Factor - Ten Libraries Listen to Youth. E. Meyers.  Urban Libraries Council, 1999. http://www.urbanlibraries.org/showcase/cool.html

The Association for Library Trustees and Advocates (ALTA) is a division of the American Library Association. One of their pages is devoted to library advocacy resources. They provide links to lists of hot issues and downloadable training materials that you can use to put on your own advocacy workshop.

• http://www.ala.org/ala/alta/altaadvocacy/advocacy.htm

"What does it matter?" "So what?" Keep these questions in mind anytime you are writing a news release, talking to one of your patrons, or working with your board. People want to hear how your library's resources, services, and spaces affect them personally. Think of some talking points that you can share at the opportune moment. "LiLI databases matter because: 1, 2, 3". "A grant for publicizing health information will make these differences in our community: 1, 2, 3".

Library staff need to know "why it matters", too. Involve them in revising your library's mission statement, so that they feel a personal stake in it. Post it all around library (on your website, too) so that everyone gets a daily reminder of the difference they make.

Last week I had the opportunity to participate in PNLA Leads, a week-long leadership institute for library staff persons (professional and paraprofessional). First organized in 2004, PNLA Leads is based on the premise that anyone can lead from any position. You don't have to be the boss, you just have to cultivate the ability to exert influence. Isn't that what library advocates are working towards? Thus, all of us who advocate for libraries are leaders. This was a new concept for many of us at the institute. The institute facilitators recommended one book very highly: The Courageous Follower: Standing Up To and For Our Leaders by Ira Chaleff. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler, 1995. 2nd ed 2002. The author believes that managers and support staff serve their organizations better by being intelligent followers who contribute constructive ideas and do not just follow blindly.

According to Robert D. Putnam, the author of Bowling Alone, social capital is “…the social networks that contribute to the welfare of both individuals and communities.” Across the country, many communities are suffering from the decline of participation in social networks. According to Jeanetta Drueke, a librarian at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, libraries can help to build up social capital by filling their traditional role as aggregators of information, in this case, compiling and publicizing lists of local organizations. See this article for details:

• "Researching Local Organizations: Simple Strategies for Building Social Capital." Drueke, Jeanetta. Reference & User Services Quarterly, Summer2006, Vol. 45 Issue 4, p327-333

(availiable through LiLI in Academic OneFile)