lfa

Silent movie created by LIS students at UDenver. Tries to overturn negative perceptions of Archives (dark, unfriendly and roach-ridden), but includes an unfortunate portrayal of unhelpful librarian

An interesting analogy between banks and libraries - Who Drives Change? - blog posting about analogy heard at a library meeting.

New report from the American Council on Education: Framing New Terrain: Older Adults and Higher Education (PDF)

Nothing specifically about library services to older students, but a first report of an ongoing research project on the educational needs of older adults. One interesting statistic:

Nearly 70 percent of adults aged 50 to 64 use the Internet, as well as more than half of adults aged 65 to 74, and nearly one-quarter of adults 75-plus.

Go read this effusive praise of the website for the Lakewood Public Library by Marylaine Block. She describes the great job they have done of targeting various constituent audiences with content, services and engaging marketing. One of my favorites (under the Library column) is letting you send a friend an e-mail postcard about a good book you’ve read lately…of course it’s branded with the library name and sometimes an image of the library (depending on the design you choose. I wonder if there are any ideas here we could incorporate?

Well probably not an ode, but certainly an interesting discussion of the merits of print journals, particularly for some fields. Written by Karen Schneider (diva of Librarians’ Index to the Internet) she suggests faculty create their own mini-libraries if their librarians won’t keep the journals… also some interesting comments about journals as a mechanism of community.
Her commentary is on the National Book Critics Circle board blog.

The most recent issue of Feliciter, the Canadian Libraries Association publication has several interesting pieces on marketing and libraries

Is a Window Shutting? Quick! Build a Door!. Richardson, Juanita. Feliciter; 2007, Vol. 53 Issue 3, p120-122, 3p
The author reflects on Roy Tennant’s assertions on libraries, writer of “Library Journal.” According to Tennant, a library is just a window of opportunity to leap into a future where we add that value to our institutions in ways we have never imagined before or are only beginning to envision, but that window may already be in the process of slamming shut. He discusses the definition of the term marketing which he refers to the promotion of products or services, particularly branding or advertising.

Marketing Mindset: Focusing on the Customer, from Technical Services to Circulation.. Wallace, Karen. Feliciter; 2007, Vol. 53 Issue 3, p126-129, 4p
The article discusses the significance of marketing towards customer satisfaction on library services. It was noted that library employee should understand the basic marketing concepts since it will play a key role in developing library collections and services that can meet user needs and even exceed their expectations. Moreover, service inter-action and observation can be valuable ways to get to know clients particularly when deliberately and systemically incorporated into library operations.

My Pleasure to Serve You: Client Service Marketing.. de Stricker, Ulla. Feliciter; 2007, Vol. 53 Issue 3, p130-133, 4p
The article discusses the implications of marketing towards good customer service at library operations. It was revealed that every library manager aims on giving unfailing excellent service and builds tracking mechanisms on detecting the quiet defections. The key elements in good client service marketing were also presented which includes on managing a positive client experience, engaging the client with a “what else?” and “who else?” approach, and learning on opportunities.

Presentation on redefining libraries from last week’s British Columbia Library Association Conference.

Crowley, Bill. (2007)”Don’t let Google and the Pennypinchers Get You Down: Defending (or Redefining) Libraries and Librarianship in the Age of Technology.” In Proceedings Beyond 20/20 Envisioning the Future: 2007 British Columbia Library Conference, Burnaby (Canada).

Abstract: What are libraries really about? If libraries and librarians cannot compete with information technology giants like Google, how can they remain relevant to their communities of users? Crowley explores ways to understand how the general public and students view libraries. Bluntly stated, there is no longer any way that librarians and trustees can convince residents of local communities and members of college and university campuses that libraries are their primary information source. Given this reality, Crowley introduces the concept of lifecycle librarianship, offering a useful way of considering library roles and securing the necessary human and financial resources to carry them through. This presentation will encourage realistic and original thinking about the future of libraries and professional librarianship by redefining their primary roles from information suppliers to education providers and self-learning facilitators.

Here’s his definition of “library science or librarianship:

As a field, library science or librarianship is concerned with understanding and advancing learning throughout the human lifecycle, with a particular emphasis on the processes of reading and other forms of communicating story, information, and meaning through library and library-related contexts. The emphasis on human learning, content, and meaning distinguishes library science from the newer field of information science. (Bill Crowley, October 6, 2006)

Here I have to let you in on a little secret. If you are employed with a public, school, or academic library—and really believe that you are an information specialist and not a librarian—you are either engaging in wishful thinking or you have been successfully brainwashed by your ALA-accredited program.

Great article in Library Journal on the positive response from students, faculty and librarians from putting librarians in the departments where they become active members of the faculty involved in teaching and research.

I’m breaking my own rule here–and I will put this on the LFA blog too–but this article that Sara Jameson forwarded is too good not to bring your attention to:
Digital Breadcrumbs: Case Studies of Online Research in a recent issue of Kairos http://kairos.technorhetoric.net/11.2/ comes complete with audio and visual files. Really fascinating ethnographic investigation of evolving search strategies among undergrads and grads with some insightful recommendations for where libraries need to go. Similar to many things said elsewhere (e.g., Jeremy’s article; Webster, et al article about Library Find, etc.) but in somewhat more accessible (less technical) language for those of us who need that. Some provocative material to spur discussions of library instruction, information literacy, etc. What exactly should we be teaching in the future?

Excellent set of articles in the current issue including very timely pieces on Faculty-Librarian Collaboration to Achieve Integration of Information Literacy (by Lindstrom & Shonrock), Core Competencies for Business Reference and Libraries in the Contact Zone: On the Creation of Educational Space (James Elmborg). RSS subscription available.