The uprising of Social Media

Houeida Charara, Omar Farhoud & Hani Salem

iUser DB Evolution: An Information Revolution

2nd General Conference LLA Beirut, May 20-22, 2014

Abstract

• This presentation discusses the use of social networking tools in academic libraries environment, with special emphasis on LAU Libraries.

• With the rapid expansion of information technology in modern academic library setting, several libraries nowadays are transforming their services in different ways, including but not limited to the inclusion of social media in their daily operations to outreach their users.

• This will entail a changing role of librarians to accommodate with this new era of learning by updating their skills to fulfill users’ needs.

• While the majority of LAU Libraries staff had positive perceptions on the usefulness of social networking tools, the participation of students showed to be limited in addition to hesitancy witnessed among library staff.

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Abstract (Cont’d)

• Benefits and challenges facing library staff in the implementation of social media, will be explored, as well as staff perceptions regarding the usefulness of social networking tools; factors influencing library administration’ decisions whether to use these tools or not will also be analyzed.

• Facebook, Twitter , YouTube and Instagram are the most commonly adopted apps in university libraries, in addition to Tumblr, Pinterest, Flickr and so on. Last but not least the physical environment needs to be compliant with emerging technologies to go “beyond library walls”.

Keywords: Social Media, Digital environment, User engagement, Facebook

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Outline • What are Social Media? • Social Media tools • Social Media in Academic Libraries • LAU Libraries experience

– Facilities & Services: Transforming library services. – Human resources perspective: Changing role of librarians; acquiring new skills. – Students: Using Social Media to market library events, resources and services.

• Benefits and challenges • Conclusion

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Social Media Definition

• Social Media is a communication phenomenon. The Oxford English Dictionary Online (2014) defines it as:

Web sites and applications which enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking

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Social Media Core Features

• User profiles • Friending • Groups • Individual messaging • Announcements • Videos, Photos, Music • Blogs, Journals, Wikis • Searching • Privacy controls • Comments & feedback

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Social Media Tools Facebook is a popular free social networking website that allows registered users to create profiles, upload photos and video, send messages and keep in touch with friends, family and colleagues. Instagram is a fun and quirky way to share your life with friends through a series of pictures. Snap a photo with your mobile phone, then choose a filter to transform the image into a memory to keep around forever.

YouTube: Founded in February 2005, YouTube allows billions of people to discover, watch and share originally-created videos.

Flickr is an image and video hosting website that allows you to upload your photos, then easily share them through Facebook, Twitter, email, blogs and more.

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Social Media Tools Twitter: Twitter is a real-time information network that connects you to the latest stories, ideas, opinions and news about what you find interesting.

Tumblr is a microblogging platform and social networking website founded by David Karp and owned by Yahoo! Inc. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content to a short-form blog.

SlideShare allows you to share presentations, documents and professional videos.

And more…

Blogs (WordPress), Wikis, Social Bookmarking (Delicious), Tagging etc…

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What is Social Media Curation?

• “Social Media curation is when you filter, select, review and reposition quality content on the web for a specific audience and/or topic”.

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Image Source: instamom101.com - March 4, 3:35 PM

Social Media Curation Tools

• Pinterest is a Virtual Pinboard that lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.

• Scoop it helps you discover and collect great content from all over the web to feed your topic (Scoop it: It just works)

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Social Media in numbers

• 2.7 billion (40% of the world population) use Social Media where 1.2 billion use Facebook (Business Insider, October 2013).

• 67 % of internet users (18-29 years old) use Social Media (Stoeckel, & Sinkinson 2013).

• From 2,000 faculty across USA, 2/3 of these use Social Media in class context (Stoeckel, & Sinkinson 2013).

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Social Media in Academic Libraries

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Characteristics of Social Media in academic libraries: • Two-way communication: students institution (Library).

• Multidisciplinary subject coverage.

• Users’ privacy.

• Content updated continuously.

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Social Media in Academic Libraries

• Purpose of libraries using Social Media:

Source: Chu S K, and Du H S Journal of Librarianship and Information Science 2012; 45:64-75

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0 5 10 15 20

Group Discussions

E-resources/database trials

General Library Info

Enquiries

Library Resources

Online Resources

Library Events

Libray News Dissemination

Social Media in Academic Libraries

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Source: Social Media, Libraries, and Web 2.0: How American Libraries Are Using New Tools for Public Relations and to Attract New Users — Fourth Annual Survey, November 2011 (PDF). Columbia, S.C., South Carolina State Library, 2012

Top Rated Social Media

• ~1.2 billions users.

• ~450 millions potential users from WhatsApp.

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Image Source: Internet March 19, 2014

Lebanese Academic Libraries using Facebook

• ALBA-Bibliothèque ~575 likes, posts events, news, pictures, and new acquisitions.

• AUB University Libraries ~2,546 likes, posts events, news, links, pictures, and highlights special collection.

• BAU Libraries ~18 likes- Inactive since May 4, 2012. • Islamic University of Lebanon- Central Library ~585 likes, posts photos,

contact, Twitter and Poll. • LAU Libraries ~2,196 likes, posts events, news, links, photos, twitter,

Instagram, OCLC WorldCat, Videos, and New Thesis Guidelines. • NDU Libraries ~794 likes, posts events, news, links, and points users

toward library resources and services such as OPAC, Ask a Librarian, FAQ’s, Staff Picks, Latest acquisitions, etc.

• UOB Libraries ~564 likes, posts events, news, pictures, and videos. • USJ-Bibliothèque Orientale ~420 likes, posts events, news, pictures and

Notes.

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Other Social Media used in Lebanese Academic Libraries

Twitter LAU Libraries ~13 followers, under construction. AUB Libraries ~818 followers, sharing libraries activities and events.

YouTube AUB Libraries uploaded one video only, published on Oct. 9, 2013; AUB Libraries Open Day 2013/14 ~37 views.

Instagram LAU_Libraries ~138 followers, current images of LAU Libraries activities.

Tumblr and Flickr Even though well known globally, they are not used by Lebanese Academic Libraries. N.B. Listings in slides 16 & 17 cannot pretend to be complete. Data collected when found on the net

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LAU Libraries Target

To outreach students with a tool(s) they are familiar with

Rely on Open Source tools (FBML, Meebo, etc…)

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LAU Libraries Experience

• Joined Facebook in November 11, 2008.

• 2194 likes.

• Photos, Videos, Notes, Events, Announcements.

• Twitter Instagram Online Catalog

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LAU Libraries Experience

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LAU Libraries & Facebook

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AMICAL -OCLC Forum March 9, 2013

LOH event 2013, Byblos Campus

How to get materials not available at LAU libraries? Use ILL/DDS Services

RNL Final Exams schedule

Book Exchange Day @ Your Library

New Theses Guidelines

“De-stress @Your Library!” event

Come and check our Fiction’s Display at Byblos Library Danielle Steel’s week Don’t miss any updates

Image Source: becsouthernsydney.com.au - March 02, 10:00 AM

Marketing Events via FB: Library Open House

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Marketing via FB: De-Stress@Your Library

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LAU Libraries Facebook Visits

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Photo Photo Note Note Photo Photo Note Note Status Note Status Status Status09-Mar-

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14visits 1200 603 271 254 668 707 459 543 612 418 682 641 377

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Image Source: mombizcoach.com/ - March 13, 6:00 PM

Marketing Services via FB: Reference Chat

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Marketing Resources via FB: OPAC

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Free Reference Services

Zoho Chat is a web based chat system. You can access Zoho Chat using just a web browser and an internet connection. It does not need any software to be downloaded or installed

N.B. Meebo acquired by Google in June 2012 Not free anymore New Tool

Jelly: Jelly is a new way to search with pictures and people from your social networks. It's also people helping each other—something that's both meaningful and fun

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Traditional Librarians

• “Traditional librarian is known as a person located in the library building carrying out the tasks like acquiring, organizing, preserving the printed documents besides helping the readers in locating the information needed by them” (Rao & Babu, 2001).

• Librarians have been information providers for centuries. As a result, they have the opportunity to use modern tools and provide quicker, more complete, and more sophisticated service to their users.

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Librarians & Social Media • In the last decade, most library directors didn’t predict any role of Social

Media in academic environment.

• Librarians started using Social Media by displaying their status whether they were online or not.

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Librarians & Social Media

Later on librarians used Social Media to: • Promote library services,

workshops, and events. • Provide better access to

information. • Enhance instruction. • Collect feedback from patrons.

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Image Source: Internet March 19, 2014

Changing Role of Librarians Traditional vs. Social

• Traditional Librarian

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Changing Role of Librarians

April 29, 2011 32

Changing Role of Librarians

33 Source: infographic: Portrait of a {social} librarian Popular infographic shows breadth of librarian role By Colleen DeLory www.elsevier.com

Librarians and Change

• Librarians feel that they are threatened by new technologies.

• Librarians lack some advanced technical skills when dealing with hardware and software.

• Librarians are no longer the only source of information especially after the widespread of Internet.

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Q: Who’s the tech leader @your institution?

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Students & Social Media

• Students enjoy the use of Social Media. • Students are more comfortable in using Social Media to

communicate with others. • Library staff realized that Social Media provided a direct

access to students’ ideas and suggestions. • Students are able to keep up-to-date with news & information

from the library despite infrequent actual visits to the library.

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Image Source: Internet March 13, 11:00 AM

Benefits

Social Media are beneficial for libraries in several ways, mainly to:

• Outreach users with a tool (s) they are familiar with.

• Market library resources, services and activities.

• Keep the library as a social hub for all students.

• Provide better access to information. • Collect feedback from users.

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Image Source: Internet- March 13, 08:22 PM

• While social networking websites appear to have benefits for libraries, their use generated new challenges. Benefits Challenges

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Challenges Social Media’s implementation in academic libraries created several challenges:

Librarians • To accept the technological change in the profession. • To acquire basic technical skills. • To master, monitor, and administrate new

technologies. • To build communication channels with students.

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Image Source: Internet March 19, 2014

Challenges (Cont’d)

Library Administrators • To find the adequate budget and funds. • To dedicate more staff. • To provide high level training to library staff. Students • To avoid undesirable invasion of their privacy.

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Image Source: Internet March 19, 2014

Social Media Policies in Academic Libraries

• EDUCAUSE Library SOCIAL MEDIA POLICIES.

• Bucknell University Social Media Guidelines (dated April 1, 2011).

• Drexel University Queen Lane Library Social Media Policy.

• Duke University Social Media Policy Social Media Guidelines for Communicators (dated October 21, 2010).

• UNH Social Media Guidelines (dated January 19, 2012).

• University of Virginia Library Social Media Guide Social Media Guidelines and Special Issues (dated June 21, 2011)..

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Social Media Policies in Academic Libraries

• Oregon State University Libraries Social Media Policy. • University of Baltimore Langsdale Library Langsdale Library

Social Media Policy (dated March 20, 2013). • Walden University Library Social Networking Policy (dated

January 15, 2013). • Washington State University Libraries Social Media Policy

(dated August 8, 2011). Useful link: Is Your Use of Social Media FERPA Compliant? http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/your-use-social-media-ferpa-compliant

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Conclusion • The use of Social Media is increasing globally in type and

usage. Consequently libraries cannot keep away from this trend.

• Technological advances and users expectations enforce universities in general and libraries in particular to provide their services via a popular medium, i.e. -SOCIAL MEDIA- in order to encourage students’ participation and engagement.

• Librarians skills need to be updated continuously to fulfill the ever growing demand of the Millennials; Accordingly Library Administrators need to allocate budget for staff professional development.

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