10 Steps to a User-Friendly Library Website

TEN STEPSTO A USER-FRIENDLYLIBRARY WEBSITE

DISCLAIMER!

DISCLAIMER!

THE CATALOGPROBLEM

OCLC PERCEPTIONS REPORT 2010

USEFUL

DESIRABLEUSEABLE

REDUCEYOUR

WEBSITE

STEP ONE

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nirak/2739706627/

LESS IS

MORE

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LESS IS

MORE

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LESS IS LESS

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SIGNAL:NOISE

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16%

8%

49%

27%

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21%

11%67%

SCOPE YOUR SITE

BASIC

BASIC

DESTINATION

BASIC

DESTINATION

PARTICIPATORY

BASIC

DESTINATION

PARTICIPATORY

COMMUNITY PORTAL

BASIC

NO MAJOR USABILITY ISSUES

RELEVANT FUNCTIONALITY

NECESSARY INFORMATION

DESTINATIONLIBRARIAN CREATED CONTENT

BASIC INTERACTIVITY

PARTICIPATORYSERIOUS USER GENERATED CONTENT

PATRONS CREATING CULTURE

COMMUNITY PORTALLIBRARY WEBSITE AS COMMUNITY PLATFORM

THE WEBSITE BECOMES A COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGE BANK

COMMUNITY PORTAL

DESTINATION

PARTICIPATORY

BASIC

COMMUNITY PORTAL

DESTINATION

PARTICIPATORY

BASIC

INFLUX.US/ONEPAGER

MOBILEFIRST

STEP TWO

READ THIS

CONDUCTUSABILITY

TESTS

STEP THREE

USABILITY TESTINGIN FIVE WORDS

WATCH PEOPLEUSE YOUR WEBSITE

NON-LIBRARIANS

FIND A MAGAZINE ARTICLE

FIND A MAGAZINE ARTICLE

FIND A MAGAZINE ARTICLE

FIND A MAGAZINE ARTICLE

FIVE SECOND TESTS

WHY TEST WEBSITES?

WHAT SHOULD WE TEST?

CRITICAL TASKS =

MUST HAVES FOR YOUR USERS

1. USE YOUR PERSONAS2. ASK LIBRARY USERS3. ASK STAFF4. LOOK AT ANALYTICS

SCENARIOS

“Search a library database for an article about exercise.”

“You want to run a marathon and need to know how to train for it. Find the latest information in a magazine about training for a marathon.”

RECRUITING TESTERS

CONDUCTING A TEST

SCRIPTS

TEST ROOM SETUP

SHOULD WE RECORD TESTS?

THE DEBRIEF MEETING

MINDYOUR

NAVIGATION

STEP FOUR

SITE NAMEPAGE NAMEWHERE AM I?WHERE CAN I GO?HOW DO I SEARCH?

PLACEFULNESS

PLACEFULNESS

PLACEFULNESS

NAVIGATIONAL OVERLOAD

WRITE FOR THE WEB

STEP FIVE

FUNCTIONALREADING

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?

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?YOUR SITE = FAQ

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flickr.com/photos/eye2eye/50892860

A library card is required to check out library items

With a library card you may check out unlimited DVDs, books and more.

You can check out all sorts of stuff once you get a card.

Do it already!

DOCUMENTSVS.

INFORMATION

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PORTABLEDOCUMENTFORMAT

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PORTABLEDOCUMENTFORMAT

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HEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTHEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENT

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HEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENT

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REMOVE UNNECESSARYWORDS

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REMOVE WORDS

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http://www.yourlibrary.org/section/ref/12/list6/dir/kids.html

http://yourlibrary.org/kids

DON’T WRITEIN ALL CAPS!!!!

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PAGES MUST NOT BE WRITTEN BY PASSIVE VOICEDLIBRARIANS

WRITE IN THE ACTIVE VOICE

ONE THOUGHT PER SENTENCE.

FRAGMENTS CAN WORK.

THE LIBRARY = WEwebsite tips

THE LIBRARY = WEwebsite tips

PATRONS = YOU

THE LIBRARY = WEwebsite tips

PATRONS = YOU

PATRONS = I

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WHAT IS YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS?

HOW DO I RESET MY PIN?

LINKSwebsite tips

LINKSwebsite tips

CLICK HERE

Click here to go to your account

Access your account.

READ THIS

Q&A BREAK

CONTENTAUDIT

STEP SIX

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CONTENT AUDIT

ACCURATEUSEFULNESSUSEDWEB-WRITTENON MESSAGELAST UPDATED

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000000

WEB WRITTEN

CONTENTSTRATEGY

STEP SEVEN

PLANNING FOR THE CREATIONDELIVERY &GOVERNANCE OF

USEFULUSABLE &DESIRABLE CONTENT

WHAT DO PEOPLE NEED TO DO ON THIS SITE?

CRITICAL TASKS

REQUESTCREATEEDITAPPROVEPUBLISHUPDATEARCHIVE/REMOVE

WORKFLOW

REQUESTCREATEEDITAPPROVEPUBLISHUPDATEARCHIVE/REMOVE

STRUCTURE

CATEGORIZE

STYLE

WORKFLOW

USEGRAPHICDESIGN

STEP EIGHT

KULER.ADOBE.COM

colour matters

USE CONVENTIONS

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HEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTHEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENT

HEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENT

HEADINGCONTENT CONTENT CONTENT CONTENTCONTENT CONTENT

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Library closed Tuesday, November 11th

USERRESEARCH

STEP NINE

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flickr.com/photos/etches-johnson/5614226072/

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CREATEPERSONAS

STEP TEN

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BRAINSTORMCOMMON TASKS

GROUP TASKS^UNIQUE

NAME GROUPS

PRIMARY

26Age

Quote

Undergrad Student w/ Disability

Esther CambridgeTed Hendricks

Connect the theory and practice of teacher education for education students.

Connect students with education theorists.

Teach students how to find good, quality research.

Become a better researcher, using library resources more effectively

Encourage students to ask questions and think critically

Find a job in my field.

Get as much content as I can online for all my classes.

Get better at narrowing down my research focus.

Get better at keeping up with the research happening in my field.

Education FacultyUndergrad Researcher

Find research materials as quickly as possible

Maintain high GPA

Balance schoolwork with life

Get a research assistant job.

Get better at doing research faster and more efficiently.

20

"I don't do as much group work as I'd like to… it's hard because a lot of

students don't really know what to do around some who's disabled. It's not their fault, they're just not used to it… My biggest issue is trying to figue out

how to make them feel comfortable, you know?"

"I'm all over campus. Sometimes I'm in a practice space, sometimes I'm looking

for good wifi, and sometimes I'm too exhausted to go anywhere so I do

research at home."

Alice Cummings

Use technology to improve access to textbooks and other printed materials.

Use as many campus resources to improve my mobility and access to materials.

Become as independent as possible getting around campus.

45

Sylvia Page

@ Potsdam

Goals

Name

Music Graduate Student

22

"I don't use the library stuff....I just use Google Scholar because I type what I want and it pops up with the exact article I'm looking for."

"I've never been good about bringing my classes to the library...I know I could

collaborate more with the librarians here, but honestly, I just haven't had the time to do that, and I've felt a little badly

about it."

Potsdam University Libraries Personas 1 of 2SAMPLE PERSONA DOCUMENT

QUICKCONCLUSION

Q&A

THANK YOUFOR YOUR TIME

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WALKINGPAPER.ORG@WALKINGPAPER

E.TCHES.CA@ETCHES

AMANDA

AARON

TEAM@INFLUX.US