If you’re reading this, you’re a tenacious e-learner. You’ve made it through 6 online learning sessions and may have some insights to share.
Who do you share your insights with? At SJPL, the Electronic Resources Team reviews online resources, tries out new databases and makes recommendations for what is offered. This team meets on the first Friday every other month and the next meeting is scheduled for August 2nd. Members of ERT include: Sandra Stewart, Margaret Yamasaki, JoAnn Wang, Lucille Boone, Sharon Fung, Mike Sarhad, Karen Laughlin, Elise Tavella, Tim Collins and Kristi Bell.
Now on to the final assignment for this week!:
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
Please leave a comment with your responses, full name, and assigned locations to earn a raffle entry, by Tuesday, July 2!
eBranch Excitement! 
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
I believe these opinions are correct. Most parents would like to learn how to download an e-book if they don’t have time to get to a library. Also, it benefits thier children and themselves by learning about different resources we have at the library. By offering different activites for adults and children they will be learning and improving their skills.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
– Go to different schools and pass out flyers for different programs that the library offers.
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
whoops….disregard this post! eric
Parents, Children, Libraries and Reading: Pew Research
1. I do agree that parents with children tend to use libraries more than other adults for all the reasons that were stated in the research: libraries are important for their children, libraries help foster the love of reading in children and we provide children with the information and resources they need for their studies. However, I am not finding here in the Children’s Room at King a big demand for e-resources by the parents. Our parents, of course, want their children to do well in school but many families don’t have the language skills/computer skills to use the great databases we show them. I think we need classes (in different languages) to show them our e-resources and them teach them how to use them.
2. E-resource:
I chose Tutor.Com Skills Center Resource Library: It offers tutor.com Homework Help; test practice in SAT, ACT, GED etc; locat job opportunities and resume and cover letter help. It’s like one stop shopping!
I do not know that the data is accurate or not, but I do agree that parents with children use library more often than other adults for the reasons that mentioned in the research. Personally, I do not think that parents have enough knowledge about online e-resources the libraries offering. The library should have more programs to help library users to learn more information about the e-resources.
Personally, I like overdrive only because I have been using it for a very long time and very familiar with it.
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
I dont think parents are using E resources more than Adults. Most of the questions, i receive about our E resouces information are from Adults who dont seem to have children with them or ask questions about adult related items. This is not to say, they arent parents but they are not looking for material for a childrens project.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
I personally like OverDrive. its user friendly.
a. big billboard sign on the entrance would be nice
b. a check out HERE kinda sign on email
c. flyers
Nicohle Boye-Doe AR/BA
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
I dont think parents are using E resources more than Adults. Most of the questions, i receive about our E resouces information are from Adults who dont seem to have children with them or ask questions about adult related items. This is not to say, they arent parents but they are not looking for material for a childrens project.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
I personally like OverDrive. its user friendly.
a. big billboard sign on the entrance would be nice
b. a check out HERE kinda sign on email
c. flyers
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library?
> “Parents express more interest than other adults in an array of tech-oriented services that are being discussed and implemented among some American libraries, including online reference services, cell phone apps to connect to library materials, tech “petting zoos” that would allow people to try out new gadgets, and library kiosks or “Redbox”-type offerings in the community to check out books and movies.”
Do you think these opinions are correct?
>My experience has been an increasing adult interest in ebooks, databases, audiobooks, wifi, dvd’s, etc… honestly, with the exception of juvenile dvd’s, I’m not certain if the greater percentage at our location are parents. Overall our users are seeking these resources.
What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
>Volunteers assisting as “computer/electronic tutors” have been in big demand. Customers appreciate the one-on-one learning time with an individual for 30 minutes or more. Perhaps devoting a day of the month where a class is given on how to download eresources to a specific device, say: a class would be devoted only to one particular device where an instructor could easily focus and pupils could learn and help each other.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service.
>Missions of California (1) Outreach to Primary school teachers assigning Mission reports (2) Invite the class for a library visit (3) Book the Tech Center for the visit (4) Introduce online resource allowing each student to find their assigned Mission (5) Arrange to have both reports and/or Mission models to be displayed in the library (6) Have marks or handouts with information regarding this eresource.
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
I took a look at the article. I was very interested in the statistics and had a great time exploring them. When I clicked on “Librarians Thoughts”, I totally agree with the following opinion of a library staff:
“I feel that with the early literacy elements and story times and crafts, we are building a foundation for our young children to become lifelong learners. Story time not only provides an educational component, it also provides socialization for the children and the parents, building a close knit community.”
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
Many library staff members considered early childhood literacy programs and story times among their most important services:
I love LearningExpress and promoted it at our local high school (Yerba Buena) and job search centers. I also showed our teensReach how to use it to practice for SAT.
Here are some marketing ideas I have thought of but haven’t got a chance to do.
**Survey table to ask if customer know about LearningExpress
**Make bookmark on how to access LearningExpress to pass out during outreach and after school hours (maybe 1 hour a day) for a week.
**Ask teensReach volunteer to promote LearningExpress to friends, for their outreach purpose they can earn community service hours.
In general, I would say there is a certain degree of truth in the Pew Research Center’s article, as we do see parents with children comprising a major part of our regular patronage. It is always heartwarming to see parents at information desk applying for their children’s first library card. In my opinion, sharing this proud moment with the parents is one of the library staff’s many privileges. I tend to agree with the statistics in the article that more moms than dads are seen with children in the library, but dads are catching up and I’m always surprised by the patience, gentleness, and playfulness of these devoted dads.
In the article, the low percentages of library users borrowing eBooks show that e-reading is still fairly new to most library patrons. To promote the library’s online resources I have made it a routine to include the introduction of our e-collection when issuing library cards and whenever patrons ask for assistance at the desk or on the floor. I let them know that what they can see now is our physical collection, but they can also view our free electronic collection if they go to SJPL.org and click on COLLECTIONS or click on LEARN. From there they can browse eBooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines, and eNewspapers, and learn languages, software, and a great deal of other useful databases. It might be helpful to inform the academic institutions of all levels about the library’s online resources so that teachers can relay this information to their students and parents. Advertising the library’s online resources through the slide show on the SJPL website’s homepage and through each branch’s marquee could also attract some patrons’ attention.
Parents are more likely than other adults to state that they would be very or somewhat likely to use new library offerings. It is interesting to see the comparison as to how many express an interest in using new services and how many have actually taken advantage of the existing services. When looking at the percentage of how many library users actually have borrowed an e-book, the percentages are very low in comparison to other traditional library activities (5% for other adults and 9% for parents of minor children have borrowed an e-book as compared to adults borrowing print materials – 68% for other adults and 81% for parents). When looking at services related to e-books there is a large percentage of parents and other users who are interested in services surrounding e-books. So while I think the opinions are correct there is a disconnect or gap between intending and actually doing. Perhaps this indicating that some form of instruction is needed. While traditional in library classes are great to get hands-on direction, for parents who are on the go might need to be directed to instructional videos online either produced by the library or provided by another reputable source. Online classes might better suit parents who might have fairly restrictive schedules.
Tumblebooks. Three ways to market:
1. Announce them at story time. Maybe do a quick demo with an iPad to show them the graphics and capabilities. Not necessarily read an entire book just a sampling.
2. When doing outreach at an event focused toward kids/famlies, having a laptop or iPad available for demonstration.
3. Have a class for parents showing them what resources are available to them. Or as a part of an early literacy class for parents a short demo can be done.
1. I agree with the article about a little over half the parents are interested in electronic resources. This might not be true in all cases with different library systems. For SJPL I do see online that the demand for eBook items have risen since a couple of years ago, with up to 20 people waiting on one title. At my current work location, the demand for electronic resources is a lot less than fifty percent. I believe one factor is the income level of the library customers in that area. Another is the education to use these electronic resources. If we can somehow get the mobile devices, that take advantage of our electronic resources, in the hands of our less fortunate customers, they would be more motivated to use these resources. The great thing right now is these devices are getting cheaper and cheaper to own as technology move forward.
2. I like Axsis 360 w/Blio. Blio’s mobile app looks great and easy to use. I think having a library program on how to use Blio and a different electronic resource every week would draw some people. Also having mobile devices at outreach events that show the resources in action and show people how easy it is to use. These library classes can also be attended by staff that in turn passes on their knowledge to customers, friends, and family members.
What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct?
When I read the report, I could understand why parents are more likely to use library services, attend programs and prefers physical materials because it’s an important learning experience for them and their children. As we move more and more towards technology base, more parents and adult are tapping into online resources to an extent. I agree that not many people are using ebooks yet either because they don’t know it exist or not comfortable enough to try them out as the statistics showed it at the bottom of usage. But as time goes, I believe more parents and other adult will soon explore this avenue and will find it convenient.
What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
We need to provide trainings and push the information out to them more. We need to reach out and do community outreach to various institutions were parents are often going such as schools, shopping mall, parks, and community centers, family-oriented restaurants, amusement parks, etc. Provide PA announcement to grocery stores or gas stations.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
Since tutor.com is agreat online service for tutoring and tutorials, we could use this as an example of what to promote and reach out to as many as we can. As mentioned above, one marketing idea would be a PA announcement utilizing the monitors that are now available at the gas stations and Grocery stores. Another marketing tool would be the good ol’ bookmark and have them available at public facilities. Finally, community outreach and presentations are always the key to marketing.
1. I agree with the study that parents are more likely to use library resources overall, which leads to them being more likely to use electronic resources. It’s hard to tell from the questions we receive at the service points. I agree with other posters that most of the questions we get from the public are from older adults. This may well be because the younger demographic can use our electronic resources without having to come in and ask questions. Economically privlidged parents will find these resources without much support from us. For the disadvantaged, we will need to provide access to our e-resources. Lend e-readers? laptops???
2. Tumblebooks.
a. Incorporate use of tumblebooks into a storytime maybe monthly.
b. Set aside one computer in the children’s section or FLC for tumblebook use
c. We could market this resource and other e-resources on our montly calendars
What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library?
While the report states that parents express more interest in tech-related services than other adults, there were marked differences among different income, age and education levels.
Do you think these opinions are correct?
According to the Pew Internet results, some groups say they would like more tech-services and classes. However, it is often those groups who do not come to the programs when they are provided. In this sense, I would say the opinions from the study do not reflect my experiences at SJPL.
What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
Due to the diverse population and large geographic area SJPL serves, I do not think a one-size fits all approach to providing tech-services at the branches is the best practice.
Using the results of the Pew Internet study we could use census data to determine what level of tech-related services/e-resources each branch provides. In neighborhoods where parents earn less than $50,000, branches can provide classes on how to download ebooks and how to use e-readers. For branches located in neighborhoods where there are a large percentage of parents over age 40, we could provide e-reader petting zoos where they get to try out new tech devices.
The main challenge facing the library is how to get a wide range of people from different backgrounds into the library.
Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
Resource: Tumblebooks
1. Provide reading program for children using Tumblebooks
2. Outreach to schools highlighting Tumblebooks
3. Provide parenting program highlighting Tumblebooks
4. Promote Tumblebooks during storytimes
What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
Most parents (97%) are not tripping about the amount of electronic resources available in the library. It is very rare (.001% of the time) that children and their parents are interested in the e-resources even when they clearly need more resources to complete a project. Should this discourage us from suggesting and promoting these services, No. As long as we keep informing the patrons of these services we will continue to keep it real.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
I think that for a database like EBSCO so kind of online scavenger hunt would be dope.
Or a computer that was designated for e-resources would be effective becasue even though you can access the e-resources from the PAC and Tech Center/Cafe computers having a “Special” workstation spotlights those specific services.
1. Parents are saying electronic resources, and training for these resources are important in libraries. They say these things are more important than non-parents. I believe these findings are correct because I typically help parents with e-resources more often than I do with non-parents. I think parents are aware that their children will need to use these resources in the future, if they don’t already, and I think parents want to make sure that the resources will continue to be available. We could offer e-resource education for parents, or even for families. It might even be worth considering doing something like this exercise, or like summer reading where we encourage participation by offering raffle prizes to participants.
2. TumbleBooks has the potential to be useful in getting kids excited about reading that aren’t already. I think it could be especially useful for parents who aren’t fluent English speakers, or who aren’t big readers. I think more customers would use TumbleBooks if they knew about it. It is hard to do it justice with written words and hyperlinks, so I think it would be useful to put a short TumbleBooks animation on the rotating banner on our homepage to promote the service. It could be a 5-10 second animation that says something like, “This is TumbleBooks, it is free, it is awesome, see what it can do and check it out!” followed by a brief animation. The last time it was mentioned or promoted on our site was in a blog back in January of 2011.
1. The research is correct about parents using electronic resources more than anyother adults and do take advantage of the different resources we harve at the libraries.
2. Pass out flyers, if we can go to schools and talk about it, and also putting it out on social networks.
Parents, are more likely to utilize the technology in the library system. They want their kids to read and enjoy the resources that are around them. If we reach out to expand these technologies then we will be helping them, maybe even exposing them to new knowledge. To support them we can become familiar with the devices and their use, so we can properly assist when needed. (show them the benefits, even if it may not be personally for you)
eBooks!
– Say the book is not in our catalog or anywhere requestable… turn to eBooks – it may be a possible option.
– For tech savy or even if they just have home computer and internet access, bring up how eBooks work!
– Someone going out of town? Mention how they can bring a novel with them all those miles…without phyiscally having to bring the book itself!
i. Pew research article feedback: I thought that the perspective of low-income people on the library was accurate. Thoe whose lives are stable enough to take full advantage of the library find it to be very important, because it offers educational and recreational resources for free, including the electronic resources. I think we should offer e-readers, because many people are not able to afford them. And we should have more classes – but for that we really need more staff!
2. I think that at least for my libraries the best marketing ideas are classes. I used to do a class on utilizing online resources for research, both SJPL and non-SJPL, both English and Spanish, and it usually had a decent turnout. If I do it again I would feature health (Medline Plus, Consumer Health Complete), careers (Learning Express), readers advisory (Novelist), law (the state and county resources, which are bilingual) and Mango.
Celina Gomez BLA/EB
I agree that parents do seem to use electronic resources more than other adults. However, I know many parents come here with their kids and arent sure how to use certain things so they are unable to help their kids. I think maybe classes to show parents how to use these services would be a good idea. Also I think it’s be good to promote these services in places like coffee shops where alot of people read.
Some parents arent sure how to use these resources so they are unable to help their kids. I think maybe classes to show parents how to use these services would be a good idea.
TumbleBooks and OverDrive. both easy and friendly to use
1. Electronic resources come in very handy for parents because they are available 24/7. I agree with the opinions provided by the Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading. In order to promote the e-resources available, parents should be made aware of all the resources available to them online. The neighborhood schools could help by passing out fliers about the library e-resources availabe to kids for their projects etc., at the library programs (story-time, reading etc.) announcements could be made about all the e-resources available, explicit links could be provided on the library’s website and when they reserve a computer etc.
2. I personally use the Safari Books Online the most and here are a few ways to market it:
(i). In the Teen, Adult and Market place (Computer) areas, we can have displays that would direct them to use the Safari 24×7.
(ii). In the search result for a technical book, a link to related books on Safari could be provided on the page for the patron to check.
(iii). A survey could be conducted on how patrons use Safari 24×7 and thus could be promoted.
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
The families seem to be saying they want more online services, but that they also desire the traditional library format. So really they want more “everything”. I think more saturated publicity of these resources is needed. More outreach would be great as well. Having librarians visit schools and demo these resources for students and teachers would be nice. Especially if a librarian brought along a tablet or ipad, something kids these days identify with.
I think these opinions are correct, in that more and more we as a society are used to tech accompaniments to services.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
1) What strikes me as I scroll through the available databases is that while the information is presented in a very organized and categorized manner, it doesn’t look very user friendly in terms of appeal. There are no graphics that give someone glancing over the contents of the page, an idea of what exactly is being offered. I picture a large Chilton’s manual banner to catch a browser’s eye (instead of the tiny blue link). If you think of the databases like apps, then for sure you want each one to have a visual punch that will entice the user to follow through to the next page. I like the slideshow on the main page that features Mango, for example.
2) We don’t have many handouts that advertise these services. I think I mentioned this in a prior post, but I was really impressed with the “FREE downloads” card that was made to advertise the e-collections. I think it would be nice to have more materials like this, for some of the more popular resources, along with maybe a step by step “how to access” on the back of the flyers. Something visually engaging and PORTABLE like this would be very good to have available at the circulation desks. People love small stuff like that. People love their iphones!
3) Going back to the Chilton’s manuals, or Mango languages, it might be nice to have pop-ups or advertisements on the side of the page in the catalog. For example, when someone searches for car manuals and selects a title, it might be nice to have a advertisement on the side: “Have you tried…?” or “I see you’re looking for this… Have you tried this?”. Since patrons often don’t go looking for these online resources, it’d be great to bring them to their attention in a more active and less passive way.
1. What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
Parents are more likely to use the computer at the library (40%), than download ebooks (9%). At first glance, it seems like it might be an accurate statistic; at the same time, it is difficult to believe that it is that low, when so many parents are asking how to download ebooks. Perhaps they want to know how, but they don’t actually go home and check them out. However, we could improve the usability of downloading ebooks by offering computer and ebook training, and have workshops for downloading eBooks.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
Ebooks would be a good resource to continue to promote.
Marketing could include:
1. Offer eBook customer training / computer tutors to assist customers at more branches.
2. Posting flyers at branches for weekly eBook customer training and or workshops.
3. Encore signs and library branch events posted for eBook training.
1.a. What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library?
They are saying that they know about most (if not all) of the services the library has to offer (presumably, this would include online, electronic services and resources). Many of them want “a broader selection of e-books,” and a little over half want “more interactive learning experiences.” In general, parents are interested in tech-oriented services and say they would use tech services.
1.b. Do you think these opinions are correct?
When parents say they know about most or all library services, I suspect they probably don’t know as much as they think they know, especially when it comes to e-resources. When I show parents some of the resources for kids available through the SJPL website, they are almost always surprised by the information.
When parents say what they want from the library (for example, more ebooks), it doesn’t make much sense to evaluate that statement as “correct” or “incorrect.” Regarding the issue “what do parents want from the library?,” I assume the question is: “Do you think the data on parent opinions collected in the report accurately represents what parents *really* think?” It probably does, though I wonder if the data is less accurate when it comes to parents in the Seven Trees area. I suspect that many of them are less enthusiastic about e-resources compared to the parents surveyed for this report.
1.c. What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
It might help families if we created simple handouts in multiple languages with information on our e-resources. These flyers could be distributed (or at least made available) at storytimes, class visits, and school outreach events.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
LearningExpressLibrary could be marketed in a variety of ways and to different groups of customers. TeensReach coordinators could explain some of the test prep resources available on LearningExpress at TeensReach meetings. Librarians doing outreach to parent and teacher meetings at schools could introduce attendees to LearningExpress resources appropriate for their particular students. Finally, volunteers who run citizenship classes could show their students the U.S. citizenship resources available through LearningExpress.
Kamaldeep Kaur
Library Page (RG/WG)
1. According to the Pew Research, parents are more likely to use library services and e-sources than other adults. Parents demand to expand electronic sources and other services at the library. It could be true based on the selection of research area but not many parents ask about e-sources we have at the library. Most of the parents ask for printed sources whereas a few adults ask about electronic sources. As we look at the research, it involves a really small group of Americans as compared to whole population. We could offer training database programs and provide directions and guidance on list of sources and how to download them.
2. For the Mango Languages: 1. Have a flyer in the language section of library, 2. Offer it to patrons when they are looking for “Learn a Language” books, 3. Training programs.
What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
Parents would like to see a broader selection of e-books and more interactive learning experiences in the Library. I think any new offerings would be benefited and used by parents and the other adults. Their opinion is very important to us, and we continue to offer more and innovative curriculum to our public users..The other adults are just as supportive as the parents,when it involves adding and teaching new resources in the Library.Everyone has an interest in the array of tech-oriented services that are being discussed and implemented such as: online reference services and cell phone apps to connect library materials.,
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
I learned how to use the overdrive with my kindle. Bookmarks, with information on how to use it would be valuable. Classes for all age-groups to learn how to download e-books and how to use other e-resources would be very helpful. Also, we have found one-on-one training useful at our branch.
Pew research has very reliable stats that reflect what we actually see in the library. Parents worry about the future of their children and most likely to be learning all new and current in order to help their kids to succeed.
I would promote databases for students such as Academic Search Complete or Student Research Center by having Research computers at all the branches with direct links to databases.
This was a very interesting article that discussed the findings of a comprehensive research study that was done by the Pew Research Center. The study explored the public library and the types of people that are more inclined to use its various services.
While the majority of the study seemed to focus on the more traditional services offered by the library, there was some interesting insight offered about the use of electronic resources. The study found that parents were more inclined than other adults to think that “libraries should definitely offer a broader selection of e-books and interactive learning experiences.”
In addition, the study also found that lower income parents were more likely than higher income parents to use resources such as classes on how to download library e-books, use e-readers, digital media labs, and the like.
I found the study and its conclusions to be very credible. Although my children are past school age, it certainly makes sense to me as a parent that one would want to give their children every learning advantage possible, which would include using some of the amazing resources the library has to offer.
I think one of the most important ways that we could support the use of our e-resources is to get the word out. We really need to let families know about all of the wonderful e-resources that we offer.
Initially I was a fan favorite of OneClickDigital, but after continual use of OverDrive, I have had a change of heart.
Here are a few ideas for promoting the use of some of these amazing services!
• Ask Me Buttons: Staff could wear buttons that encourage patrons to ask a staff member about particular e-resources.
• Library “PA” Announcements: At designated times throughout the day, announcements could be made, informing patrons about the library services.
• Hang a Banner: Put up a banner in the high traffic areas of the library promoting e-resources.
• Public Relations Promotion: Visit schools, local parks, recreation departments, and after school programs promoting the wide variety of the services that we offer.
• Contests: Have a contest that promotes and encourages the use of our e-resources. We could possibly mirror the Summer Reading Program contest.
1. “They (parents) are also more likely to think libraries should definitely offer a broader selection of e-books (62% vs. 49%) and offer more interactive learning experiences (54% vs. 43%). Interestingly, other adults are just as supportive as parents of library services for school children and these activities are supported by eight in ten or more of both groups.”
This is my favorite tidbit from this massive research study. I think it is correct that all adults support the idea of providing more services for children. Making our customers aware of the existence of our e-resources is the first step in supporting the use of them. Doing a little research of our own is going to be pretty important too – how are our customers using the e-resources, how do they learn about them, how are they learning as adults (classes, friends, youtube…)?
2. Axis360 is the online resource that needs the most attention right now in my opinion.
1. Support the vendor in efforts to link checkouts to the catalog without having to go to a separate vendor website.
2.Offer printed materials with clear steps on how to access a book in Axis360 (book marks, flyer, etc.).
3.Create video learning modules, specific to SJPL, that are short and accessible to all learning levels so that customers can be instructed on how to access materials in Axis360 by staff without having to come into the library.
1. I do agree with most of the opinions stated in the article, esp. the opinion stating that “compared with other adults who do not have minor children, parents are more likely to have visited a library in the past 12 months, have a library card,…, and use a mobile device to connect to a library website.” It would be great to have these databases translated to a couple of major popular languages in the Bay Area, e.g. Vietnamese, Chinese, Hindi, and Spanish. Having that done, then it would be much easier for a librarian to advertise our database services to parents and teachers, since teachers-ESL teachers in particular- play a major role in influencing their students’ trend of using our database services.
2. a) Librarians can bring bookmarks, flyers out to school, and/or bring out a Poerpoint presentation to schools during a Back-to-School Night outreach, or a Parent Workshop, or a Teacher Workshop outreach. There is a plethora of articles to help our students in the databases NoveList K-8 Plus, World Book Biography Center (grades 4-12), and World Book Student (grades 4-12). For grades 1-3, we have “World Book Kids” which has activities, pictures, even educational games, and lots of teacher/librarian resources!
b) Post flyers up introducing a database and/or downloading service, and also step-by-step instructions in appropriate areas of the library, e.g. posting up a flyer about how to access/what is the content of Mango Languages in the “Lear-a-Language” area, and the ESL collection area. In the ESL area, make sure to post those instructions in the major languages such as Vietnamese, Spanish, and Chinese.
c) Have cash prizes for teens and hold a contest for maybe the first 500 students who finish the contest first, e.g. downloading and finish reading a particular topic-a topic that is of interest to them- for ex. drop out rate in an area stricken by poverty and drugs, or human trafficking in the U.S, caused by poverty, drugs, runaways, and lack of parental attention and love in a family. Post a deadline and instructions for the contest online.
Rob Zeroun EN/SA
1. According to the article, most parents state that they are aware of our online programs. Also, parents are more likely to want access to and use new electronic resources at the library as well as want a greater selection of e-books.
I think that the statistic for parents who say they are aware of our programs is inflated a bit. Since we are always growing and changing our online resources it is more probable that they only know about a limited number of them. As for the other points I think they are very accurate. Parents will probably be most interested in new electronic resources and everyone wants a more diverse selection of e-books.
As for marketing these services I think flyers are a great way to introduce new services. We can also have slides in our e-slideshow that introduce our electronic services. Staff knowledge of these services will also work wonders on one-on-one bases.
2. I chose overdrive. A great way to promote overdrive is to have e-book tables at the library where you can introduce patrons to the technologies involved and show them how to use overdrive. This found much success at Almaden. Flyers and word of mouth work as well.
1) The article is saying that parents are more likely to use online programs than other library customers and I think that is correct. We need to promote the online programs more.
2)We could promote our online resources by putting up fliers in the library, going to schools to promote our test prep programs and have staff recommend it to customers who can’t find what they need in the branch.
Parents do not seem to use ebooks more than other adults in my experience. I am a parent and I don’t use it much with my child. I just don’t seem have the time to learn how to download on to my devices with the variety of vendors. I rarely have questions at the desk from parents about downloading children’s materials. Everybody seems to want print. The children and the parents all ask for print, because they say their assignment for school requires print.
One way to market children ebooks is to educate teachers. To reach teachers we need a promotional budget to incentivize learning new readers and new formats. Having money to buy readers to promote at all the branches at set times and hours would help. Staff time to man stations may be necessary also. At Almaden we have volunteers helping customers, but I don’t think all branches will have volunteers to do this. Maybe we can reach out to teensReach groups to help educate the public about devices and resources.
Jo-Ann Wang @AB/CB
1. Parents are more likely to borrow e-books than other adults. However, this still represents the library activity with the smallest percentage. Parents, more so than other adults, believe libraries should definitely offer a wider selection of e-books. Additionally, “[Parents] feel it is very important for their children to read printed books in addition to digital content.” As far as their opinions being correct, I agree that libraries should offer a wider selection of e-books and that we have been successfully working towards doing that. As far as the importance of children reading printed books, I would agree with that, but that is also my opinion so I don’t know if it can be labeled “correct” or “incorrect”. I don’t personally think a baby or toddler needs to be handling an e-reader for any extended amount of time, but I do think it could be a good experience for a parent to occasionally read a book on an e-reader to a child. Also, slightly older children are already being exposed to computers and could benefit from reading e-books on those screens. I think children should have exposure to and experience with both printed and e-books, at appropriate times. To support family’s use of our e-resources, I think we need to make even more juvenile e-materials available and make sure that we market those resources.
2. I think that e-books (all platforms) could be more widely used, and I hope that they will be in the future. Part of the problem is that many people still do not know that libraries offer e-books (some do not even know that we lend DVDs but that is for another day). I think it is a huge step forward to show e-books in the catalog, and immensely helpful to both patrons who may not be aware of the alternate form, and to staff in promoting the service. I wish we could offer more copies of individual (especially popular) e-books, as having to go on a waitlist somewhat undermines the “get it now” appeal of the e-book, but at least we could improve awareness while we wait for that to be possible. Here are three marketing ideas that I found to further increase awareness and usage:
1. Put a sticker that says “Available as an e-book!” on every print version of e-books we offer.
2. Offer a contest for e-book users: each time a customer downloads an e-book, they get entered into a drawing for a prize. The more downloads, the more entries they get.
3. Offer e-readers for lending, not just e-books. Also, offer more e-reader trainings and “petting zoos”.
I’m not sure that this study reaches across a broad spectrum of patrons. Even at the bottom, it states that the research sample group was small. Perhaps I am biased as a rare collector and bibliophile myself, but I don’t see the demand as great… yet. However, it’s great to see parents and patrons want more and start to explore new sources. My brother currently has two daughters and they both love reading & listening to digital media. But there are many that still prefer printed material. Nothing beats the smell of a century old leather bound book.
An idea for marketing techniques for any of our services:
Youtube videos (or commercials) using our local talent to promote, not how-to, an online service.
Week 7:
1. Parents place great value on the services that libraries provide. This is true despite the fact that this group tends to already own technology (home computers, smart phones, tablets) that provide alternatives to libraries. The key factor seems to be that parents want their children to be literate and to value education (reading.) They want their children to realize that reading is very important, which will lead to lifelong learning. San Jose Public Library’s mission is to provide lifelong learning to it’s residents. I believe reading is the basis for every subject. This is why reading, above any other subject, is encouraged during the summer months. Studies show that children who read during the summer will not lose as much of what they learned the previous year. Marketing is key to promoting our e-resources to parents and their children.
2. At Edenvale and Santa Teresa we are already promoting Novelist K-8 in new ways:
First, librarians have created signage with QR codes for smart phone/tablet users to immediately take them to the Novelist K-8 db. The QR codes are being included in signage for the special collection area in childrens’ for states and countries, missions, and biographies. We also have QR codes for the animal, California, U.S., Native American, and Ancient Civilization sections in non-fiction. Kudos goes out to Patti Tjomsland for the QR idea and to Campbell Library, which has been utilizing the QR codes!
Second, upper elementary children’s series are not in the series area. Because the collection is floating, library customers may not find all of the titles in a series in JFiction and JPB Fiction. We didn’t want customers to guess what was in a series. That’s why we have the Novelist K-8 db! So, in our signage, we show library customers that they can find the titles in series through Novelist K-8!
Third, we provide the direct web address on the signage, so that non-smart phone users can find the Novelist K-8 db as well.
Thanks for providing these practice sets. Some of these are really gems that I had yet to discover!
1. The Pew Research Center’s Internet and the American Life Project regularly posts research studies about online trends. Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
According to this survey, 62% of parents say that we should offer a broader selection of eBooks. But there are some parents that think it is important for children to read hard-page books along with eBooks. I think children should just read books and it doesn’t matter whether it’s eBooks or hard-page books. I think we should have more programs teaching patrons on how to use our electronic resources along with decreasing the amount of online services we have and offer the same things in a small amount of resources.
2. Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
I think we should promote all of the EBSCO programs we learned about in week 6 of this program. One way to do it is to put signs around the library explaining what we offer. Further, we should the attendants of our programs such as the Citizenship group about how they can take practice citizenship tests online. Lastly, we can make tell patrons about a program a week by telling the people on the desk to give a small pitch about the program to every new patron.
Oscar Delgado BLA/EB – Final Week #7
I agree, and have noticed that parents tend to utilize our electronic resource collection more often than most, and it seems that most people that don’t use our electronic resource collection probably can’t afford a compatible device / don’t know how to access content / or they simply aren’t aware of these free services we offer. We should definitely offer e-reader checkout s at all branches, and maybe have an optional “Virtual Guided Tour/Training” on the device itself, so that the patron can follow along and learn the functions of the device while also learning about our electronic resource collections.
Read the article on Children, Parents, Libraries and Reading What are parents saying about electronic resources in the library? Do you think these opinions are correct? What could we be doing for families to support their use of our e-resources?
About 65% of parents expressed interest in electronic resources, which is about 10 per cent higher than the childless adults. But only 9% had actually borrowed an ebook; so there’s a big gap between interest and usage. I think in San Jose more parents and adults have used ebooks, maybe the number is 20%. Not as many looking for children’s ebooks; or they have figured it out. When the Back to School Nights come around in September we should have plenty of handouts with clear directions for the parents of children to use the ebooks. Also, a laptop with wifi capabilities, using the schools, would help, too. (To be continued in Reply on Tuesday, July 2)
Ned Wappler RG / WG
Take a look at one of our online resources — your choice entirely — and come up with three marketing ideas that we could try to get more customers to use the service. Post your ideas below.
“Music from Overdrive” – Have random snippets play when users are in that part of Overdrive, preferrably toward the melodic parts.
Advertise it as the successor to Freegal
Increase the limit of checkouts to 10 books and up to 10 Music CDs.
1. I agree with the research trend stating the majority of the time its the mother than bring their kids in the library and read to their kids. Also the we read to our kids when they are a younger age but as they grow older the percentage decline due to by that time they read to themselves. I also agree that most parents at the library are lower income families who knows.
2.I myself like the OverDrive best out of all the resources that are available. It is over all easy to use and easy enough for everybody to learn to use it.
1. Parents, Children, Libraries and Reading: Pew Research
I do agree that ALOT of Parents and or Nanny’s with children come into the libraries.
2. E-resource:
I chose Tutor.Com Skills Center Resource Library: It offers tutor.com Homework Help; test practice in GED,SAT, ACT, etc; locat job opportunities and resume and cover letter help. It’s like one stop shopping!
1. 81% of parents surveyed felt it very important that libraries offer free access to computer and internet for their children. 71% felt it very important that libraries offer free electronic resources for research. According to the survey, parents who made $50,000 or less felt these were very important versus those whose income was over $50,000.
These services alone can’t take the place of parental involvement in a child’s education. Parents can be more effective as mentors and educators if they are well acquainted with the use of such e-resources. The library could offer training workshops to parents and guardians on their use and application,
2. Personal recommendation: I have told 3 or 4 of my friends about Mango languages. They enthusiastically received the news that SJPL has such a database service. Several of us are interested in learning a new language, including Spanish, French, Vietnamese, and Farsi.
Mango languages can be recommended to customers seeking ESL classes (currently Seven Trees has none). Mango can also be useful to those looking for ESL materials.
A creative vignette in several languages on the home page could bring attention to Mango.
1. My experiences with library usage are quite different from what the survey portrays in a couple of areas. first, they say that 55-63% of people were interested in taking classes on downloading ebooks, but when I held a class I only got two people to come. One additional person dropped in when she saw what we were doing (in the public area). All of the attendees were seniors. Secondly, the survey says that 71-79% would use “Ask a Librarian” online, but my experience with RefChatter is that I get an average of one question each hour. Of course I do RefChat the same hour each week, so I have no variety to compare it to, but I believe most librarians have a similar experience.
2. I would like to send out flyers to the high schools advertizing Schmoop so the kids can see they can get free help preparing for AP exams. It would also be good to highlight a database in each library newsletter (whatever happened to that?) or even a short quip about a database or other online service (Link+, RefChatter, etc.) in each library email (holds notifications or books coming due).