How to Change the Stereotype

of Your Special Libraryby Joe Matthews

A Free Webinar from

James BassHost

• Intros (2 min)

• How to Change the Stereotype of

Your Special Library(30 min)

• Q&A

AGENDA:

Joe MatthewsLibrary Consultant, Author

How to Change the Stereotype

of Your Special Libraryby Joe Matthews

A Free Webinar from

Agenda

• Stereotypes Overview

• The Top Five Stereotypes

• Suggestions for Action

Introduction

Marian the Librarian

The Survey Said …

# 1 - Everything Is On the Internet

• Everything they need is available for free on the web

• Notion that everything should be available immediately online

• Everything is on the Internet

• Patrons know how to find what they need on their own

• Everything's available on the public web, and they know how to use that.

• They think they have all the resources they need on their organizational unit intranet portals (even when many of the resources they use contain the Library's branding).

• Google has everything I need.

• Feeling Google is quicker and easier.

• Librarians discourage online use

• You can get all the info you need online

• I can find all my information I need on the Internet

• Everything is available online for free

• Google has everything I need

• Everything is on the Internet (online)

• Everything can be found on the Internet for free so why do we need the library anymore

• They believe they should be able to find everything themselves, for free, online.

• I can probably find what I need on the web / Google.

• Everything is online - We have a library?!

• Everything is on the Internet

• I know how to search and what to search

Ways to Change

• Acknowledge that rapid change is happening all around us

• Get out of the library and engage with your customers where they are – observe how they work, what tools they use

• Increasingly people operate at the network level while libraries exist at the organizational level

• Guy Kawasaki has a wonderful book - Enchantment

# 2 - Books Are Our Brand

• Books are still what we do.

• Library only has books

• They’re thinking we just have books (old musty books).

• What I need is not the kind of stuff that's in catalogue (but it is!)

• Books aren't current

• Librarians only use books

• Only for book lovers

• Just a place for books

• The library doesn't have enough relevant/current books

• Books, books, books

• Libraries are old fashioned & just have print books and magazines

• They believe that we have all archival resources indexed by every name within them.

• We only have books available, when the scholars have access to much more

• Library is for books

• Library has print only

• Books are old - information they need not in books

Ways to Change

• Create a new brand

• Librarian by another name …

• Reduce print (book) footprint

• Reduce the reference collection

# 3 - Approachable

• Librarians are perceived at our university as curators of information, not active

collaborators in curriculum/course development processes

• The library is not on their radar

• Librarians don’t know their subject matter

• Librarians are not approachable and don’t want to be interrupted

• They are bothering us if they ask for help.

• Librarians can't understand scientific or complex topics.

• Library resources are too general for the specific questions that I have.

• The surprise that people experience when told that librarians can do in-depth

research (such as market/industry research and analysis)

• Their thinking we don't know the subject well.

• They don’t know whom to approach.

• Librarians aren't helpful

• They think this library is for researchers only

# 3 - Approachable

• Staff not available for personal assistance

• Only for headquarters staff

• Not relevant for information I need

• Not knowing about the research services and resources the library makes available

• You have to have a well-formulated question before the librarian will do a search

• The library is only for administrators or executives

• The library isn't welcoming

• Law Library is only for attorneys

• Employees think the hospital library is only for doctors

• The title of librarians - Cumbersome

• The library is too busy to help me.

• I don't know what the library can do for me.

• Others do without using the library, why should I bother.

• Library is a place for legal research (not CI or other types of research)

• I am not a specialist in their fields

Ways to Change

• Smile

• Get out of the library

• Be responsive

• Observe your users, figure

out how you can add value

• Your Web site stinks

Change is in the air

Old

Gatekeeper

Online searcher

Custodian of collections

Service provider

Information gatherer

Library process

Inward looking

New

Collaborator

Trainer

Facilitator

Information advisors

Problem solver

Business process

Networker

Example

# 4 - Time

• They don't have time to work with us, even though we repeatedly promote Library services as helping them save time.

• Searching in the library is too time consuming.

• The learning curve for library research is too steep.

• It takes too long to get the information you need

• The library isn't convenient for me to get to (not realizing we have remote services)

• Librarian too busy to spend time on my problems

• Didn't know you were open to the public - I don't know what a law library is

• Can't find what they need - scholars have many time constraints and want short-cuts

• Library is not innovative

5 Laws of Librarianship

1. Books are for use

2. Every book its reader

3. Every reader his book

4. Save the time of the reader

5. The library is a growing organism

Ways to Change

• Reduce library cost of operations

• Visible on intranets, course management

systems, Wikis

• Demonstrate ways library adds value

# 5 - Place

• A place for "nerds"

• Only used for research purposes

• We are a place not a service.

• Library as a space is perceived as a nerdy place - not cool to be there

• Our library name does not reflect our holdings any longer.

• The library is too quiet/stuffy

• No noise in the library - actually appeals to many, but....

• Obsolete and not strategic

• Isolated in perfection

• Library is a physical place

Ways to Change

• Outcomes-based performance measures

• We need to let go

• Ready, Fire, Aim

• Engage

Fundamental Question

If we were asked to invent a library today -

Would it look anything like our

libraries of today?

Joe Matthews

Joe@JoeMatthews.org

James Bass

Jbass@eosintl.com