Well I started this subject in November 2012 and now it time to finish the unit and post my evaluative statement. Please read and feel free to comment on any thing I posted during the semester.
(1)
an evaluative statement using three (3) experiences documented in your
OLJ as evidence of meeting the learning objectives of the subject (@750
words)
a) An understanding of social networking technologies.
I
developed an understanding of social networking technologies as I
progressed through the learning activities in the subject. I began to
see that out of the static web [Web 1.0] grew people’s desire to not
just consume information but to share it as well. Innovations created
Web 2.0 where people began to make content, publish, discuss, broadcast
multimedia, participate in gaming and virtual worlds. This evolution is
continuing as newer tools segment the social media landscape to
service niche needs. No one tool is a be all and end all in fact
audiences are fickle as they leave one tool to use another such as in
Friendster’s case with a desertion over to Facebook. [1] However, some
developments point towards an immersive environments as being the
future. I participated in a Second Life Training Session we my distance
education class meet together and explored how to use avatars and
interact in ways not normally possible off campus. It does have
possibilities if you are separated by geography as it allows you to
interact and co-create with one another. This is in contrast to my
earlier opinion see - What are gaming and virtual worlds: http://aroundthewebin100clicks.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/web-20-
technologies-and-social-software.html
b) An understanding of concepts, theory and practices of Library 2.0 and participatory library service.
As
I progressed through the Library 2.0 unit my understanding of the
concepts on which it is based and the reasons for participatory library
services grew. The need for change has become apparent as social
networking continues shape how customers interact with service
organizations. Customers now expect to collaborate, have conversations
with these organizations, feel a part of a community and create content
just as they do on any social networking site. Libraries need to meet
the challenges of the four “C’s” by adopting a user centered approach to
providing services.[2] Use of web 2.0 tools such as Twitter, Facebook
and Spark IM make it possible for libraries to engage with customers,
seek feedback, create customer driven change and innovate services.
Thus the customers identifying as owning and being in partnership with
the library service. As a result I now can appreciate why libraries
must evolve and adopt Library 2.0 strategies.
c) Be able to examine the functionality and features of various social networking tools to meet the information needs of users.
There
are many social media tools being used to discuss, share, publish,
network, play games, provide geographic guides and information on
events, critically review services and act as commerce portals. All
these tools place the customer at the center of the network so that
shared opinions and experiences can be used to enhance, improve and
value add to services offered by commercial and non- profit
organizations. Libraries are generally non- profit entities that serve
different user segments. So a social networking strategy must be
tailored to customer demographics, organizational goals and the
prevalent technologies available. This is demonstrated in my post A comparison of libraries using social networking to meet their organizational goals.
Differences in the use of tools chosen may be accounted for by
divergence in operational goals of each organization and how social
media tools support these goals (Gertz, C., personal communication, 21
January 2013). Organizations also need to be forward facing and
investigate new niche tools as they available in order compare them with
current tools and usefulness. For example, Facebook is popular today
but could be replaced by another newer social media platform in the
future.
d)
Able to evaluate social networking tools to support information and
collaborative needs of work groups, communities and organizations.
I
would recommend taking into consideration these points when choosing
tools for an library, work group or whole organization. The needs of
customers differ according to the type of organization they receive
services from. Therefore organizations require a user needs assessment
be done so that the use of social media tools are aligned with
organizational operations and goals.[3] As tools used by a library will
not be suitable for a bank or an arts community. Also the design of the
social network is important so that users adopt the tools quickly,
allowing them to personalize pages, enable easy searching for and
posting of content through multiple means e.g. smart phone access or
laptop etc.[4] The use of social media within an organization also
requires a culture shift by senior management and staff. As their
support and participation is necessary to drive the take up of social
media internally and reap the benefits of sharing information and
receiving feedback. Without considering these points the success of a
social media project may be hindered and loose some of the benefits that
social media offers to organizations.
e) Demonstrated an understanding of the social, cultural, educational, ethical and technical management issues.
Social
networking has fundamentally changed how individuals and society
access, share and use digital content. The rate information is shared
between a person and their networks has rapidly increased since the
invention of mobile telecommunications and social networking platforms.
Social networking has presented governments, corporations and
organizations with security, public relations, legal challenges and
access issues. The individual has to consider their right to free
speech, the responsibility of it and the erosion of privacy in an online
environment. [5] So it necessary for individuals and organizations to
consider and implement policies to protect information and inform users
of their rights.
However,
social networking has tremendous value in education, training and
geographically dispersed organizations. It allows individuals and groups
to work together, share ideas and build relationships when separated by
large distances. Thus strengthening information sharing, corporate
culture and learning throughout an organization. So when used in the
right way social networking can be a valuable tool to communicate, build
trust, educate and provide services to individuals.
References:
1. FredCavazza.net. 2008. Social Media Landscape. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.fredcavazza.net/2008/06/09/social-media-landscape/. [Accessed 18 January 2013].
2. Library 2.0 and participatory library services. 2012. [ONLINE] Available at: http://aroundthewebin100clicks.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/library-20-and-participatory-library.html. [Accessed 19 January, 2013].
3. Grenfell, C. 2011. Deploying microblogging in organizations. Retrieved from:
http://www.steptwo.com.au/papers/kmc_microblogging/index.html
[Accessed 19 January, 2013].
4. Doig, S. 2012. Social networking and the organization. Retrieved from:
http://www.aroundthewebin100clicks.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/social-networking-and-organization.html
5. Doig, S. [2012]. Privacy in the ON-line environment. Retrieved from: http://www.aroundthewebin100clicks.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/privacy-in-on-line-environment.html
(2)
A reflective statement on your development as a social net worker as a
result of studying INF206, and the implications for your development as
an information professional (@750 words).
This is what I said at the beginning of studying INF206:
At
the very beginning of studying INF206 my thoughts about social
networking were confined to my own personal experience. So this
statement from my first entry on this blog reflects this.
“In
INF206 Social Networking for Information Professionals, I hope to
expand my understanding of social networking technologies, to understand
theory and the practice of using Library 2.0 to interact with customers
in creating a collaborative library service. Be able to evaluate
various social networking tools against users and community needs to
recommend a social networking strategy. Then develop knowledge of how a
social networking strategy impacts on individuals and organizations and
the issues associated with using this technology to create and implement
an information policy in an organizational context.”
At
the end of this subject my knowledge about social networking has been
enlarged to include issues about privacy, strategy and the wider world
of government and organizational policy. Upon examining how far my
understanding has progressed since starting my learning journey about
social media and being an information professional. Now as I reflect at
the end of this subject the following thoughts and ideas come to mind.
When
this subject first commenced my understanding of social networking was
limited. I had very specific ideas about what social networking was
useful for on a personal level. Prior to this I had not considered the
uses and implications for organizations in a social media environment.
During the session various learning tasks were undertaken to build
knowledge of social networking tools; to understand each tools
strengths, capabilities, weaknesses in engaging with various consumer
groups and the ramifications for private citizens, government and
organizations.
This
course has changed how I view social media as an information
professional. I understand now that as an information professional, how
customers communicate, and by what means, now changes how my profession
functions. This means doing more delivery of services online in virtual
environments that are familiar to our customers. Social paradigms that
exist in the physical world also apply to the online world. For example,
people will compliment and complain, question decisions, want to
request that resources are acquired, and share opinions with others.
Libraries have needed to adapt to this change in client communication
preferences by moving from a paper based service organization to a
digitally rich and interactive online service organization. Some
libraries the adoption of social media has increased the organizations
ability to interact with their customers. Other libraries have gone a
step further and have introduced a bibliocommons [http://www.bibliocommons.com/] catalogue
interface to leverage the social interactions of customers with library
resources. Working with customers this way can lead to innovation in
services in partnership with a library service or information provider.
Thus enhancing the client’s opinion of the organization and enabling
effective community engagement for the organization. When I look at the
way this model works in libraries, especially public libraries, I
realize that I am participating in ‘Government 2.0’ in a smaller scale.
That is the community is working with the local library service to shape
collection development, customer service standards and operational
policies.
However,
I would like to point out that social media is just one channel of
communication. Although print is declining in use, it is still a
valuable medium to reach out to customers who do not want to use online
sources of information. Radio and TV still hold some value in
communicating messages about library policies and programs too. All of
these mediums serve different audiences and so a library, museum or
other organization needs to take into account their audience. Social
media is just one part of an organization’s overall communication
strategy and should not replace other traditional communication
channels. Although I do see more communication, data applications and
entertainment moving towards delivery of content through mostly online
means. Due to improvements in technology and the changes it will bring
on society.
So
as a information professional I should be informed about social
networking trends. As social networking tools that are popular today can
be replaced by newer tools due to changes in public preferences. I
should also be able to teach my customers how to use them so that they
can engage in online advocacy. I can also act as a change
driver/influencer within my organization to make them aware of issues,
government policies and social media trends. On a personal level when
acting for an organization online I need to follow established protocols
and make sure that information posted by me is timely, accurate and
reliable source of information.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
My five top points for discussion when creating a social media policy.
Well here's my 5 point list to discuss with a Social Media Policy at a fictional workplace that's just considering using web 2.0 tools. This list is written from the organization's perspective to discuss employee behavior and responsibilities when using social networks. I've tried to be both practical and upbeat while introducing some accountability.
1. A social media policy is for all employees of a company not just a few that work in marketing. It spells out what is expected of an employee by an employer and what an employee can and cannot do; along with the consequences of using social media irresponsibly. [http://mashable.com/2009/04/27/social-media-policy/]
2. Published information on social networks must comply with copyright and confidentially laws. Not complying runs the risk of both company and employee being sued. All using social media need to know and understand this very significant point. [http://mashable.com/2009/06/02/social-media-policy-musts/]
3. Social media does have pitfalls but with careful consideration can be overcome and bring positive value to your business. It gives customers another channel to directly interact with you and to enable solve problems in your customer's and business's best interests. [http://mashable.com/2009/06/02/social-media-policy-musts/]
4. Employees using social media on behalf of the business must have official permission to do so; have had training; understand the issues surrounding the use of social media; communications with customers should be transperent identifying the employee's position and comments to customers are the official response and will be followed up by the relevant officer.
5. Use of personal social media accounts should be restricted to official rest breaks only. Employees should be aware that use of social media could be monitored when using it on company IT infrastructure. Posting of defamatory remarks or offensive comments may result in disciplinary action.
Do you have any opinions about what a social media policy working group should consider when writing a SM policy?
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Oh say what is truth and who says it is truth?
For this journal post I read the following articles:
Which brings me to think about the phrase "Oh say what is truth" and then to add who says it is truth? The problem with today's interlinked society is that the veracity of information is subjective. It depends upon the context of which the information sort for is retrieved, the experience of the retriever and that of the author of information. Depending on the experience and the reputation of the author the reader will take accuracy of the reported information for granted. However, even authors can make mistakes and these published mistakes can take on a life of their own.
That is why I say that to learn about information literacy and practice it can be one of the biggest gifts we as a society can give to our citizens. To be taught to sift information for oneself, to verify it before trusting it will hopefully make us wiser to the uninformed and junk news grabs of the networked world. To be able to critically think and exercise one's free choice without having to follow the crowd. Is still just as important today as it was in Galileo's day. As a famous saying goes "you can't believe everything that's in print" is still true even if it is on a computer tablet instead of in a newspaper.
Reading these articles made me aware that miss-information can leach into any network. So being taught information literacy skills and passing these skills on to my future clients; will hopefully make me a better information professional than I am now and benefit my customers.
- Wittenberg, K. (2007). Credibility of content and the future of research, learning, and publishing in the digital environment. The Journal of Electornic Publishing, 10(1). Available http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=jep;cc=jep;rgn=main;view=text;idno=3336451.0010.101
- Yardi, S., Romero, D., Schoenebeck, G. & danah boyd. (2010). Detecting spam in a Twitter network, First Monday, 15(1), 4 January. Available http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2793/2431
- Garfinkel, S. (2008). Wikipedia and the meaning of truth. Technology Review, 111(6), 84-86.
Which brings me to think about the phrase "Oh say what is truth" and then to add who says it is truth? The problem with today's interlinked society is that the veracity of information is subjective. It depends upon the context of which the information sort for is retrieved, the experience of the retriever and that of the author of information. Depending on the experience and the reputation of the author the reader will take accuracy of the reported information for granted. However, even authors can make mistakes and these published mistakes can take on a life of their own.
That is why I say that to learn about information literacy and practice it can be one of the biggest gifts we as a society can give to our citizens. To be taught to sift information for oneself, to verify it before trusting it will hopefully make us wiser to the uninformed and junk news grabs of the networked world. To be able to critically think and exercise one's free choice without having to follow the crowd. Is still just as important today as it was in Galileo's day. As a famous saying goes "you can't believe everything that's in print" is still true even if it is on a computer tablet instead of in a newspaper.
Reading these articles made me aware that miss-information can leach into any network. So being taught information literacy skills and passing these skills on to my future clients; will hopefully make me a better information professional than I am now and benefit my customers.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Privacy in the ON-line environment.
For this post I read:
What is important in terms of how we present and manage those identities online?
All of us who use the internet leave a foot print which in turn can be used by others to create a profile or an identity. Theses identities can enhance our reputations or have negative effects. It can improve our ability to get a promotion, obtain financial benefits or influence others. On an organisational front a commercial entity also requires that it's online identity creates trust and confidence to engage positively with it's customers. Without careful management both private citizens and corporations can both suffer a poor public image, lack of confidence in the ability to deliver services and finally affect monetary earning capacity. Once a piece of information is on the internet, social site or indexed in a search engine it's there for ever. It isn't editible nor can it be removed, it can still influence opinions years after an attempt to correct the miss-information was made. That makes it even more important to think about what we are posting on line, when we are posting those updates on line. As the consequences can come back to roost years after individuals and coporations have assigned incidents to the history books. All the more reason to have a personal and/or corporate information policy, proceedures and guidelines?
What can we share and what should we retain as private to the online world?
As a private person I am of the opinion that we should share only that we need to share. The concept of social privacy is important as I only want to share information with people I know or have some sort of relationship with. I do censor what I put up on line and it probably doesn't make very exciting reading. How ever, with this networked world you can't get a package delivered from on online shop without you sharing some personal details about yourself. Nor can you apply for a new job without putting your resume online for a potential employer to see. For me how much I share depends on the amount of control I have over the information I give. Whether the site I give the information to is a government one or a commercial one. If a commercial one is it an Australian Site that is governed by the Privacy act? Or if overseas do I have to rely on the terms of service and that the company will do the right thing with my personal details. For me I am inclined only enough information in exchange for a service that I require if I perceive I have less control over the information shared. Sorry if I sound vague that's because with each site the terms of services may view privacy over my information differently. Therefore I have to take each one on a case by case basis and is it worth it to get the services I require.
- Davis, L. (2009). 8 tools to track your footprints on the Web, February 1. Available http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/8_tools_to_track_your_footprin.php
- Pearson, J. (2009). Life as a dog: Personal identity and the internet. Meanjin, 68(2), 67-77.
- Raynes-Goldie, K. (2010). Aliases, creeping, and wall cleaning: Understanding privacy in the age of Facebook, First Monday, 15(1), 4 January. Available http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2775/2432
What is important in terms of how we present and manage those identities online?
All of us who use the internet leave a foot print which in turn can be used by others to create a profile or an identity. Theses identities can enhance our reputations or have negative effects. It can improve our ability to get a promotion, obtain financial benefits or influence others. On an organisational front a commercial entity also requires that it's online identity creates trust and confidence to engage positively with it's customers. Without careful management both private citizens and corporations can both suffer a poor public image, lack of confidence in the ability to deliver services and finally affect monetary earning capacity. Once a piece of information is on the internet, social site or indexed in a search engine it's there for ever. It isn't editible nor can it be removed, it can still influence opinions years after an attempt to correct the miss-information was made. That makes it even more important to think about what we are posting on line, when we are posting those updates on line. As the consequences can come back to roost years after individuals and coporations have assigned incidents to the history books. All the more reason to have a personal and/or corporate information policy, proceedures and guidelines?
What can we share and what should we retain as private to the online world?
As a private person I am of the opinion that we should share only that we need to share. The concept of social privacy is important as I only want to share information with people I know or have some sort of relationship with. I do censor what I put up on line and it probably doesn't make very exciting reading. How ever, with this networked world you can't get a package delivered from on online shop without you sharing some personal details about yourself. Nor can you apply for a new job without putting your resume online for a potential employer to see. For me how much I share depends on the amount of control I have over the information I give. Whether the site I give the information to is a government one or a commercial one. If a commercial one is it an Australian Site that is governed by the Privacy act? Or if overseas do I have to rely on the terms of service and that the company will do the right thing with my personal details. For me I am inclined only enough information in exchange for a service that I require if I perceive I have less control over the information shared. Sorry if I sound vague that's because with each site the terms of services may view privacy over my information differently. Therefore I have to take each one on a case by case basis and is it worth it to get the services I require.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Access issues and the evolving cloud.
== Information access for all, adequate bandwidth/wireless/mobile connectivity and the 'digital divide'.==
I read these two articles for this post:
Bertot, J. C., Jaeger, P. T., McClure, C. R., Wright, C. B., & Jensen, E. (2009). Public libraries and the Internet 2008-2009: Issues, implications, and challenges. First Monday, 14(11). Available http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/viewArticle/2700/2351
and
Nelson, M. R. (2009). Building an open cloud [Cloud computing as platform]. Science, 324(5935), 1656-1657.
These two articles have different perspectives on accessing the internet. Bertot's exploration of the access for all debate comes from the expectation that is placed upon public libraries by customers and the government to deliver e-services. The demand for access to e-services via the internet continues to increase.
Since the GFC some public libraries in the US have struggled to keep service standards the same. As budgets have contracted the ability to provision of contact hours, failure of infrastructure to keep up with demand and government's reliance electronic services has placed added burden on public libraries.
While this may not seem such an issue in affluent city areas. The problems with having sufficient time to look for work, maintain electronic contact with family or friends, accessing government information in poor urban or rural areas via the internet has been exacerbated. Most libraries in this study group reported that they do not have enough computer terminals to services their needs, the connection is slow due to insufficient bandwidth and frequently the customers alloted time is inadequate for their needs.
Nelson points out that as technology evolves more computing services will migrate from our desktops to the internet's cloud. There are three scenarios that he forsees that may happen, a) many clouds - the lack of government policy has made it possible for silos of data to exist tied to specific platforms without any interoperability; b) data has the ability to migrate from cloud to cloud but not with its software and c) both data and software are interchangable between cloud hosts.
I can see that as this technology evolves it will place even greater demand on public libraries for access to internet services. This is because we are moving from an internet of things to an internet of everything. We as public librarians have a duty to be advocates for our customers. We can lobby governments so that they are better informed about technology trends and issues. Hopefully to better resource our libraries better but also promote policies that encourage further democratisation of internet services such as cloud storage.
Got any comments?
Thursday, January 3, 2013
The Digital Shift, Information Policy and Society.
Here are five trends that I identified from the video above:
1. The switch to digital media from traditional media is impacting how products are marketed to individuals.
2. People are more inclined to not pay for material downloaded off the internet than they are to legally get access. But they would rather pay for add free TV than sit through mundane advertisements.
3. Miniaturization of technology has enabled more people to conveniently communicate and use the internet from anywhere than possible in the past.
4. Alot of people are using social networks whether to promote causes, products or ideologies or just to comment about current issues to friends, family or anyone who'll listen.
5, Social media is now a conduit for breaking the lastest news stories due to it's crowd sourcing ability.
These 5 trends that have been identified since the transition from traditional media to digital media began. This digital shift has impacted upon how governments, corporations and individuals communicate, exchange and control information. Governments and corporations have attempted to control the flow of information with policies and laws in order to protect intellectual property and resources invested in creating content for profit. While some consumers of digital content challenge this control by pirating content avoiding paying for it through illegal networks while others would prefer to pay to view content add free. The ability to access content from multiple sources has meant that governments and media organizations had to join the digital revolution in order to reach out and communicate with digital citizens.
Citizens have also benefited from the miniaturizing of technology and the advent of mobile communications by being able to access social networking sites on the move. Giving people the ability voice opinions, influence others and access content on any topic at any time.
This has made it necessary for governments and corporations to develop information policies to address the behaviors of individuals which are contrary to the common good of nations and protect intellectual property. For example individuals can voice an opinion that may contain factual errors which could affect reputation of another person or cause undue financial hardship to an organization or an individual. This is particularly pertinent when considering an individual may act on behalf of a government body or being in an influential officer in a corporation. Having an information policy in place provides a means to manage social media use and regulate an individual's behavior in accordance with accepted organizational practices. The policy is also necessary to inform individuals using social media of their responsibilities when acting in behalf of an organization and any consequences of misuse.
Do you have any comments?
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Draft Social Media Strategy For a Library Service
Hmm, a draft media strategy for a library and information service....
May I suggest pulling the demographics of you users of your services from your memberships database? Getting a break down of who your users are may help you in formulating a social media strategy. Then find out which social media platforms are likely to be used by your customers according to age group. Then monitor these social media sites for opinions and attitudes towards your product such as a library service. This will give you an opportunity to listen to what they have to say. Then establish your presence on the social media sites that are most used by your target groups. Give your customers a chance to interact with you. So you can influence their opinions - now here is the really important thing do it transparently. If you are going to engage your customers you have to do in a meaningful way - follow through and work with your customer and offer solutions. You are here working with customers for the long term and not when it suits you. These interactions should be respectful between you and your customer. Remember it cuts both ways, your page should also a have a customer use policy explaining what behavior is acceptable when customers post comments and links. But most of all communicate about ideas that matter to your customer in a fun and bubbly way. Make it interesting to your customer after all no one wants to be talk down to, or have advertising thrust upon them with each post you write and participate in their conversations with information that matters to them such as links to services that they need. Remember some people a passive consumers of information and services, others have an opinion and wish to share it, some will converse with you and your customers may even collaborate by posting content. However, not all your customers will use the same social media sites and thus your organizations efforts will need to be targeted.
May I suggest pulling the demographics of you users of your services from your memberships database? Getting a break down of who your users are may help you in formulating a social media strategy. Then find out which social media platforms are likely to be used by your customers according to age group. Then monitor these social media sites for opinions and attitudes towards your product such as a library service. This will give you an opportunity to listen to what they have to say. Then establish your presence on the social media sites that are most used by your target groups. Give your customers a chance to interact with you. So you can influence their opinions - now here is the really important thing do it transparently. If you are going to engage your customers you have to do in a meaningful way - follow through and work with your customer and offer solutions. You are here working with customers for the long term and not when it suits you. These interactions should be respectful between you and your customer. Remember it cuts both ways, your page should also a have a customer use policy explaining what behavior is acceptable when customers post comments and links. But most of all communicate about ideas that matter to your customer in a fun and bubbly way. Make it interesting to your customer after all no one wants to be talk down to, or have advertising thrust upon them with each post you write and participate in their conversations with information that matters to them such as links to services that they need. Remember some people a passive consumers of information and services, others have an opinion and wish to share it, some will converse with you and your customers may even collaborate by posting content. However, not all your customers will use the same social media sites and thus your organizations efforts will need to be targeted.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
A comparison of libraries using social networking to meet their organizational goals as at December 23, 2012.
-->
Table representing the use of social media services across 3 public library services.
Library Name
|
Blogs
|
You Tube
|
Flickr
|
Google Maps
|
Podcasts
|
Twitter
|
Facebook
|
Myspace
|
RSS Feed
|
Wikis
|
Library Thing
|
Apps for smart phones
|
Libraries ACT
|
Adult book club.
General News/reading programs/local history
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
Casey-Cardinia Library Corp
|
Adult bookclub
Teen book club
Local history
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
No
|
Yes
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Christchurch City Libraries
|
General News
Adult book club
Teen book club
|
No
|
Yes
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
No
|
Yes
|
No
|
No
|
No
|
Why should libraries be on social media?
1. Communication/marketing. We need to be where are customers are so that we
can know their opinions about the services we are offering them.
Twitter is great for this as we get instant feed back on a particular
topic or issue that is currently being discussed by our community.
Facebook serves libraries in a similar way but it allows us to post
multimedia content and more indepth stories and to solicit detailed
opinions. It is interesting to note that all of the three libraries
have chosen to use Facebook but one decided to make smart phone apps
available instead of communicating through Twitter.
2. Enriching our customers lives through outreach. Social media can
serve both as an outreaching and an enriching tool. All three
libraries have chosen to write blogs. Each of these blogs have a
different subject/demographic focus and enable libraries to engage
with readers when it suits them tailoring content to that particular
demongraphic's interests and needs. For instance, teens would be
interested in local history and seniors may not want to read about
the latest world of warcraft cheat book either. Having different
blogs for different groups accomplishes looking after the long tail -
groups of people with neiche interests.
3. Recording history as it happens. Just look at social media as a
whole. What does it do? People are communicating about events that
have happend and their opinions. In this case they've just heard Mick
Inkpen chat about making picture books. Photos can be uploaded on to
Flickr, tweeted on Twitter and a blog post giving a synopsis of the
event. Your library is building social history timeline to be shared
with anyone who is interested. This makes them feel apart of what is
happening in their community and at the library. This strengthens the
social fabric of the community around them through engagement with
government services.
What do you think?
What do you think?
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Defining Librarian 2.0
Well, the more I think about what it means to define a Librarian 2.0 the more it seams like I am writing a position description for myself. So what should go in to this position description? I would like to borrow the 8 headings from Partridge's paper and use them below:
• Technology
Librarians 2.0 needs to understand technology trends, know how to use the most popular tools and be able to critically assess them for their usefulness in collaborating with our clients, to build a community and to communicate efficiently with our communities. Different communities will require different approaches and tools. We need to learn what works and what doesn't work and be proactive in trying new approaches when using technology.
• Learning and Education
For Librarians 2.0 the LIS degree is only the launching pad for our learning and life long professional journey. The Librarian 2.0 needs to be engaged in life long learning to ride the wave of future change. We are responsible for our professional education whether it be informal or formal settings. Our profession is no longer gatekeepers but facilitators. This facilitation role requires us to posses IT skills previously reserved for professional web designers, database administrators and communication experts. We are required to explain to our customers how technology works and the ways its use would benefit them what ever their circumstances.
• Research or Evidence Based Practice
Librarians 2.0 should develop best practice by using analytical tools, be involved in research, evaluating and reassessing current processes to ensure a proactive approach of delivery user centric services to our communities.
• Communication
Librarians 2.0 must be good communicators whether verbally, in writing or visually as there are many mediums in which we are required to use to effectively share our message. We should be able to communicate with all levels of society, whether lobbying governments, colleagues or executive committees to enable us to resource programs when there are competing agendas from within or outside our sponsoring institutions.
• Collaboration and teamwork
Librarians 2.0 are members of a team. We work in a team to provide user centric services this may involve establishing cross sector partnerships with IT service providers, education practitioners, community organizations and individuals. We support our work teams programs and goals in order to deliver these user services on a local, state or national basis. We also contribute ideas and assess processes in order to improve productivity and service delivery.
• User Focus
Librarians 2.0 are user focused. We seek to support our communities in their life long learning discovery journey by understanding their needs and providing the channels to deliver resources most convenient to them. We design our systems and processes to with the user in mind and to remove access barriers.
• Business savvy
Librarians 2.0 should be able to create, design and implement projects on time and on budget. Then assess the project outcomes against the our sponsoring institutions strategic goals and mission. This requires us to be able to think outside the box, be good at time management and be able to communicate effectively the results to our stake holders in order to demonstrate our relevance to the organization.
• Personal Traits
Librarian 2.0 is a person who listens to others, communicates well, is proactive in learning about new information technologies and trends. We are not afraid of making mistakes instead we learn from them to improve our systems, processes and approaches. We take our own life long learning journey seriously in order to reach out and help our own communities create, collaborate and communicate in the ways they choose.
CONCLUSION
You can of course disagree with me as there is no standard definitions of what a Librarian 2.0 is or does. This profession is one of evolutionary skills set rather than a static one. As technology and processes change so will it require today's librarian's to morph to suit the needs of their communities that they service. Whether it is in an office as a knowledge manager, a administrator on an organization's intranet, working for Google or in a traditional setting our skill set and personal traits will continue to find a relevant place in our society.
References:
[1] Partridge, H., Lee, J., & Munro, C. (2010). Becoming "Librarian 2.0": The Skills, Knowledge, and Attributes Required by Library and Information Science Professionals in a Web 2.0 World (and Beyond). Library Trends,59(1-2), 315-335.
• Technology
Librarians 2.0 needs to understand technology trends, know how to use the most popular tools and be able to critically assess them for their usefulness in collaborating with our clients, to build a community and to communicate efficiently with our communities. Different communities will require different approaches and tools. We need to learn what works and what doesn't work and be proactive in trying new approaches when using technology.
• Learning and Education
For Librarians 2.0 the LIS degree is only the launching pad for our learning and life long professional journey. The Librarian 2.0 needs to be engaged in life long learning to ride the wave of future change. We are responsible for our professional education whether it be informal or formal settings. Our profession is no longer gatekeepers but facilitators. This facilitation role requires us to posses IT skills previously reserved for professional web designers, database administrators and communication experts. We are required to explain to our customers how technology works and the ways its use would benefit them what ever their circumstances.
• Research or Evidence Based Practice
• Communication
Librarians 2.0 must be good communicators whether verbally, in writing or visually as there are many mediums in which we are required to use to effectively share our message. We should be able to communicate with all levels of society, whether lobbying governments, colleagues or executive committees to enable us to resource programs when there are competing agendas from within or outside our sponsoring institutions.
• Collaboration and teamwork
Librarians 2.0 are members of a team. We work in a team to provide user centric services this may involve establishing cross sector partnerships with IT service providers, education practitioners, community organizations and individuals. We support our work teams programs and goals in order to deliver these user services on a local, state or national basis. We also contribute ideas and assess processes in order to improve productivity and service delivery.
• User Focus
Librarians 2.0 are user focused. We seek to support our communities in their life long learning discovery journey by understanding their needs and providing the channels to deliver resources most convenient to them. We design our systems and processes to with the user in mind and to remove access barriers.
• Business savvy
Librarians 2.0 should be able to create, design and implement projects on time and on budget. Then assess the project outcomes against the our sponsoring institutions strategic goals and mission. This requires us to be able to think outside the box, be good at time management and be able to communicate effectively the results to our stake holders in order to demonstrate our relevance to the organization.
• Personal Traits
Librarian 2.0 is a person who listens to others, communicates well, is proactive in learning about new information technologies and trends. We are not afraid of making mistakes instead we learn from them to improve our systems, processes and approaches. We take our own life long learning journey seriously in order to reach out and help our own communities create, collaborate and communicate in the ways they choose.
CONCLUSION
You can of course disagree with me as there is no standard definitions of what a Librarian 2.0 is or does. This profession is one of evolutionary skills set rather than a static one. As technology and processes change so will it require today's librarian's to morph to suit the needs of their communities that they service. Whether it is in an office as a knowledge manager, a administrator on an organization's intranet, working for Google or in a traditional setting our skill set and personal traits will continue to find a relevant place in our society.
References:
[1] Partridge, H., Lee, J., & Munro, C. (2010). Becoming "Librarian 2.0": The Skills, Knowledge, and Attributes Required by Library and Information Science Professionals in a Web 2.0 World (and Beyond). Library Trends,59(1-2), 315-335.
Friday, December 14, 2012
My top 10 criteria for an effective Library 2.0 website.
After reading Brian Mathews - Web Design Matters: the top 10 for libraries, Louis Lazaris - Designing Websites for Kids: Trends and best practices and John McBernie - Your online identity: Key to marketing and being found. I have formulated my own top ten key library site design features.
1. Promotion there should be space for announcements about upcoming events and new services include blog tailored to your communities interest.
2. The layout should be dynamic and use cascaded menu templates to keep the visual appearance of clean and clutter free. The placement of most recent content should be in the top portion of the screen.
3. Use of banners and photos to break up text as no one likes to read reams linked text. Graphical elements such as photos help to visually break up a web page making it easier on the eyes.
4. Include familiar symbols as navigation tools on the website such as arrows and icons. All call to action areas should be navigable to in no more than 2 clicks.
5. Make it easy ask questions receive and receive a response. Arrange your website template so that in a prominent place contact details are distinctly displayed. Include other chat and communication technologies such as Twitter, Instant Chat, and Facebook etc. to create communication with your community and a sense of trust.
6. The search functions on the website should be easily navigated to from the library's home page. Consider a federated search screen with the ability to filter results by genre, format type and year of creation.
7. Allow library members to contribute reviews about items they have borrowed or services they have used.
8. Create areas on the Library website for teens and children then tailor the content for these age groups.
9. Make apps available via your library website to access library services and search the catalogue. As increasingly customers are accessing services on the web through mobile platforms such as smart phones and tablets.
10. Optimize the library website design for accessibility by disabled people.
So let's evaluate the Queanbeyan City Council website against these criteria and see how meets them or if more changes are required.
When I visited the site on the 13/12/12 there wasn't an actual section on the home page that said announcements and policy changes. Just a note about the library having moved to a new building recently. I would have liked to see upcoming events announcements with the ability to subscribe to an RSS Feed for this section.
The home page style was very basic and not very engaging - just quick links for the basic library functions such as searching the catalogue, using electronic reference and navigation to the children's page. This site could be made more engaging with photos of actual library activities, a menu classified according to customer demographics. Although the basic style of the site is very clean and easy to use with one click - just not interesting as a destination.
QCC Libraries definitely needs to cultivate an online social media presence to reach out to customers. There was no chat service, Facebook or Twitter account links displayed only the ability to share page links using Share This. I only found an email address and telephone contact details for the staff. Adding social media tools would help to capture a wider geographic and demographic customer base as this area as the population expands.
While it was easy to find the catalogue, the search interface would benefit from an upgrade to a one stop search interface. Having to query for videos, music and books separately and uses more time than is required. At this time the website has no ability to incorporate reviews about library materials and services. QCC Libraries would benefit from this by customers having a user centric medium to drive service innovation and collection development.
The QCC Library service also needs to incorporate a specific children's and teen's section to the website. While it addresses the need to provide information on what services are available to families it's not presented in a way that children would find interesting. It is important to engage children with online library services to encourage resource discovery and reading skills during their formative years of education. Here you could include a blog about the latest children and teen resources releases, invite children to write a review and include author talks. Perhaps invite an author to have a tweet session with fans via the library page or a homework help instant reference service. Also provide video feeds of author visits for children who couldn't attend the meet the author sessions via YouTube.
Once laptops were what the general public were using to access the web. Now the mobile revolution has hit with IPads, Android Tablets, Smart Phones. Library sites need to provide an optimized way to access their content. As yet QCC Libraries has not advertised on it's site that there are apps available for Apple, Windows or Android devices. I would recommend that's something they should look at doing in the future.
Although not mentioned in any of the articles by Mathews, Lazaris and McBernie websites especially for library services should be compliant with accessibility standards. As disabled members of the community need to access library services too. While I had no opportunity to test whether the QCC Library site was compliant it was evident that the pages could be read by a text to speach reader such as ISpeach and Microsoft Text to Speach Reader.
So there are my recommendations for changes to the QCC Library Website. These changes will enable the service engage with their clients in a user centric way. Creating trust and continuous improvement in partnership with their local community whom they serve.
References:
[1] Lazaris, L. (2009). Designing websites for kids: Trends and best practices, Smashing Magazine, (27 November). Retrieved from http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/11/27/designing-websites-for-kids-trends-and-best-practices/
[2] Mathews, B. (2009). Web design matters: Ten essentials for any library site. Library Journal, (15 February). Retrieved from http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6634712.html?industryid=47126
[3] McBurnie, J. (2007). Your online identity: Key to marketing and being found. FUMSI, (October). Retrieved from http://web.fumsi.com/go/article/share/2510
1. Promotion there should be space for announcements about upcoming events and new services include blog tailored to your communities interest.
2. The layout should be dynamic and use cascaded menu templates to keep the visual appearance of clean and clutter free. The placement of most recent content should be in the top portion of the screen.
3. Use of banners and photos to break up text as no one likes to read reams linked text. Graphical elements such as photos help to visually break up a web page making it easier on the eyes.
4. Include familiar symbols as navigation tools on the website such as arrows and icons. All call to action areas should be navigable to in no more than 2 clicks.
5. Make it easy ask questions receive and receive a response. Arrange your website template so that in a prominent place contact details are distinctly displayed. Include other chat and communication technologies such as Twitter, Instant Chat, and Facebook etc. to create communication with your community and a sense of trust.
6. The search functions on the website should be easily navigated to from the library's home page. Consider a federated search screen with the ability to filter results by genre, format type and year of creation.
7. Allow library members to contribute reviews about items they have borrowed or services they have used.
8. Create areas on the Library website for teens and children then tailor the content for these age groups.
9. Make apps available via your library website to access library services and search the catalogue. As increasingly customers are accessing services on the web through mobile platforms such as smart phones and tablets.
10. Optimize the library website design for accessibility by disabled people.
So let's evaluate the Queanbeyan City Council website against these criteria and see how meets them or if more changes are required.
When I visited the site on the 13/12/12 there wasn't an actual section on the home page that said announcements and policy changes. Just a note about the library having moved to a new building recently. I would have liked to see upcoming events announcements with the ability to subscribe to an RSS Feed for this section.
The home page style was very basic and not very engaging - just quick links for the basic library functions such as searching the catalogue, using electronic reference and navigation to the children's page. This site could be made more engaging with photos of actual library activities, a menu classified according to customer demographics. Although the basic style of the site is very clean and easy to use with one click - just not interesting as a destination.
QCC Libraries definitely needs to cultivate an online social media presence to reach out to customers. There was no chat service, Facebook or Twitter account links displayed only the ability to share page links using Share This. I only found an email address and telephone contact details for the staff. Adding social media tools would help to capture a wider geographic and demographic customer base as this area as the population expands.
While it was easy to find the catalogue, the search interface would benefit from an upgrade to a one stop search interface. Having to query for videos, music and books separately and uses more time than is required. At this time the website has no ability to incorporate reviews about library materials and services. QCC Libraries would benefit from this by customers having a user centric medium to drive service innovation and collection development.
The QCC Library service also needs to incorporate a specific children's and teen's section to the website. While it addresses the need to provide information on what services are available to families it's not presented in a way that children would find interesting. It is important to engage children with online library services to encourage resource discovery and reading skills during their formative years of education. Here you could include a blog about the latest children and teen resources releases, invite children to write a review and include author talks. Perhaps invite an author to have a tweet session with fans via the library page or a homework help instant reference service. Also provide video feeds of author visits for children who couldn't attend the meet the author sessions via YouTube.
Once laptops were what the general public were using to access the web. Now the mobile revolution has hit with IPads, Android Tablets, Smart Phones. Library sites need to provide an optimized way to access their content. As yet QCC Libraries has not advertised on it's site that there are apps available for Apple, Windows or Android devices. I would recommend that's something they should look at doing in the future.
Although not mentioned in any of the articles by Mathews, Lazaris and McBernie websites especially for library services should be compliant with accessibility standards. As disabled members of the community need to access library services too. While I had no opportunity to test whether the QCC Library site was compliant it was evident that the pages could be read by a text to speach reader such as ISpeach and Microsoft Text to Speach Reader.
So there are my recommendations for changes to the QCC Library Website. These changes will enable the service engage with their clients in a user centric way. Creating trust and continuous improvement in partnership with their local community whom they serve.
References:
[1] Lazaris, L. (2009). Designing websites for kids: Trends and best practices, Smashing Magazine, (27 November). Retrieved from http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/11/27/designing-websites-for-kids-trends-and-best-practices/
[2] Mathews, B. (2009). Web design matters: Ten essentials for any library site. Library Journal, (15 February). Retrieved from http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6634712.html?industryid=47126
[3] McBurnie, J. (2007). Your online identity: Key to marketing and being found. FUMSI, (October). Retrieved from http://web.fumsi.com/go/article/share/2510
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Library 2.0 and participatory library services.....
Libraries once use to be a place where people would come to ask a librarian for information and use the resources housed in a physical building. All the resources were in a physical format and needed to be organized by staff and delivered to library clients to take home. Now that has all changed.... more resources are being delivered electronically for users to consume anywhere to create new resources 24/7. Libraries need to adapt and innovate themselves so that content and services are available anytime and are collaboratory with their existing and potential clients.
Libraries can move into the Library2.0 space by employing the 4 C's [1] which are:
1. Collaboration
2. Conversation
3. Community
4. Content Creation
Arizona State University Libraries [lib.asu.edu/librarychannel/] has already embraced this model of user centered services by using a wide variety of social media channels to enable 360 degree communication with their customers. I checked out their library minute, Facebook account and Tweets. I think that the use of these web 2.0 tools are valuable outreach activity to inform students about new options and ASU library services. Some students even replied with their opinions to the Library Minutes posted on Youtube. Although the communication tool that got the most traffic was Twitter. This gave me a sense of creating a conversation and that there was collaboration between the library staff and the student community. I was amazed how professional the staff members were in their replies even when the students weren't being that polite about particular problems. So when assessing the ASU libraries on the use of web 2.0 tools the was evidence that collaboration, conversation and community were certainly being engaged in by both the ASU Library staff and the student population. However, I didn't find any content creation activities being engaged in by the students using ASU library content. But I could be wrong - it really depends on if you mean ie. making a mash up or leaving a comment is creating content. One the whole I think ASU Libraries have embraced the concept of Library 2.0 and are applying it in away that benefits both the library services and the student community.
References:
[1] Charles Sturt University, (2011)., What is library 2.0? Interact Module 3: Library 2.0 and paticipatory library services.
[2] Arizona State University Libraries, [2012]. See: lib.asu.edu/librarychannel/
Friday, December 7, 2012
Really Simple Syndication and the Customer Connection in Libraries.
Have you considered how busy your customers are? What would it mean if you could push tailored content to their desktops and let them read information relevant to their current projects? On the flipside many libraries are facing budgetary and staff cuts and having to innovate the way services are delivered to their clients. One way to do this is by using RSS [Really Simple Syndication] alert service to send current awareness updates, table of contents, news paper articles, new items alerts and updated content from websites. Centrally organizing content and pushing it out to via a RSS feed saves you and your clients time by having only one place to publish and read content. Your clients can subscribe to the feed or unsubscribe at any time, they don't have to search for information relevant to current projects and are read using a feed reader thus not spamming their email boxes. This enables your clients to stay up to date with the current information without all the advertising associated with industry newsletters. However, all feeds must be targeting to the correct audience by conducting an information needs analysis first![1]
Some of the more innovative ways RSS feeds are being used is inconjunction with social media. For example you can create an RSS feed for your Pinterest pin board by adding /feed.rss to the end of your Pinterest page URL. This is a most useful way of using RSS as your clients can receive a feed pointing them to the library's new acquitions of the month, interesting items in the collection, event promotional photos and staff profiles. [2] For full instructions on how to add RSS feeds to Pinterest see: Making RSS Feeds for your Pinterest Boards.
Also what about alerting your customers to the fact that they have overdue items or a requested items are available for collection? [3] See: Library Elf RSS Feeds
Or Use RSS to announce emergency opening and closings or changes to opening hours. [4] See: University of Stirlings - Opening hours
These are just a few ways to use RSS in your library or information resource center to enhance services already available. In a world that is so fast paced as ours up to date information is the key currency. Keeping your users informed about topics of interest that affect them will not only enhance their job efficency and ability to respond quickly to current situations but enhances your standing as a provider of quality information services.
References:
[1] Hart, Laurrie G., [2007], Libraries 2.0: RSS feeds dynamic uses for special libraries. From: www.sla.org/pdfs/sla2007/hartrssfeeds.pdf
[2] Vanum, Ken., [2012], Pinterest via RSS. Retrieved from: http://www.rss4lib.com/2012/03/pinterest/
[3, 4] Ekins, Andy., [2009], RSS use in libraries. Retrieved from: http://cccu-lib-tech.blogspot.com.au/2009/04/rss-use-in-libraries.html
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Social Networking and the Organization.
What are the potential benefits of implementing social networking in an organization? I say potential benefits because if any of these four crucial groups, a] top management, b] middle management, c] champions and advocates are not engaged with the project it will hamper the acceptance and use of social networking within the organization. [1]
However, assuming that all four of these groups are supportive of the project benefits that can flow through to the organization are:
A. Creating brand equity and raising awareness about who your organization is and employee rolls within the company. [2]
B. Forging relationships both within and outside the organization. [3]
C. Grow a sphere of influence in your target community. [4]
D. Discover new opportunities for personal and organization growth. [5]
E. Share information and engage in informal learning activities. [6]
So your organization has decided to implement a social network. Do you already have a intranet? Examine your choices of social networking software in the light of:
Will the SN platform be interoperable with your current intranet? Will you store you data in-house or use a data farm? Or will you choose a cloud application? How responsive is SN's customer support when problems occur? Examine your strategic needs and goals against the available SN platforms available. Do any of these suit your organizations requirements? Is it scalable and can you add additional features as required in the future? If the product is suitable what are are the set up and recurring costs in running the SN platform?
If none of suit your organization is it cost effective to design your own system in house?
Ten things to consider when designing your own social network:
A. Engage your users quickly - let them know in an instant what your network is about. Enable users to find contacts quickly, add personal content and view status updates. [7]
B. Allow users to personalize pages and add applications. [8]
C. Current content is the life blood of the network. Enable users to easily update their status and push new content to prominence. [9]
D. Allow users to group and filter friends and the posted content. [10]
E. Offer users vetted 3rd party applications and make the SN platform portable to any device. [11]
F. The SN platform should allow for multiple means of communication. Whether that be personal messaging, public wall, or texting. [12]
G. Make the user interface simple and don't overwhelm your user with unnecessary updates, features or design. [13]
H. Site interactions with users should be easy and encourage the desired response from the account holder. Also everyone likes to see a photo of themselves and of their contacts on a user's profile. This personalizes the interaction and gives interactions a measure of trust. [14]
I. Include a search mechanism to find people, places, departments and contact information. [15]
J. Users need easy ways to grow their networks you can include a member directory or to make user groups. [16]
If the goal of the organization is to create a culture that is open, shares information with customers both inside and outside. Then you will need a multi-pronged approach such as including change management education for all employees, approach and successfully sign up all levels of management, advocates and champions. Give sufficient training to enable these change agents to feel comfortable in using the social networking tools, have policies in place to specifically describe appropriate user behavior and release of information. Also when the culture issues have been addressed the intranet team need to have considered and chosen a product that is in line with the needs and strategic direction of the company. The social network platform implemented should be easy to operate for users while providing sufficient options for maintenance and support by the intranet team. That said, the social network installation and forward running costs should be factored in order for it to become a valued and stable corporate communication tool. As it's no use having a tool that is the latest flavour of the month and then be discontinued in six months time due to poor budgetary planning.
References:
1. Manchester, Alex. [2012]., Selecting social enterprise network software. Retrieved from: http://www.steptwo.com.au/papers/kmc_selectingsocia/index.html
2-6. Steckerl, Shally. [2007]., Survival Guide: Online Social Networking. Retrieved from: http://web.freepint.com/go/features/2346
3-16. Chapman, Cameron. [2009]., Social network design: Examples and best practice. Retrieved from: http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/07/13/social-network-design-examples-and-best-practices/#more-7993
However, assuming that all four of these groups are supportive of the project benefits that can flow through to the organization are:
A. Creating brand equity and raising awareness about who your organization is and employee rolls within the company. [2]
B. Forging relationships both within and outside the organization. [3]
C. Grow a sphere of influence in your target community. [4]
D. Discover new opportunities for personal and organization growth. [5]
E. Share information and engage in informal learning activities. [6]
So your organization has decided to implement a social network. Do you already have a intranet? Examine your choices of social networking software in the light of:
Will the SN platform be interoperable with your current intranet? Will you store you data in-house or use a data farm? Or will you choose a cloud application? How responsive is SN's customer support when problems occur? Examine your strategic needs and goals against the available SN platforms available. Do any of these suit your organizations requirements? Is it scalable and can you add additional features as required in the future? If the product is suitable what are are the set up and recurring costs in running the SN platform?
If none of suit your organization is it cost effective to design your own system in house?
Ten things to consider when designing your own social network:
A. Engage your users quickly - let them know in an instant what your network is about. Enable users to find contacts quickly, add personal content and view status updates. [7]
B. Allow users to personalize pages and add applications. [8]
C. Current content is the life blood of the network. Enable users to easily update their status and push new content to prominence. [9]
D. Allow users to group and filter friends and the posted content. [10]
E. Offer users vetted 3rd party applications and make the SN platform portable to any device. [11]
F. The SN platform should allow for multiple means of communication. Whether that be personal messaging, public wall, or texting. [12]
G. Make the user interface simple and don't overwhelm your user with unnecessary updates, features or design. [13]
H. Site interactions with users should be easy and encourage the desired response from the account holder. Also everyone likes to see a photo of themselves and of their contacts on a user's profile. This personalizes the interaction and gives interactions a measure of trust. [14]
I. Include a search mechanism to find people, places, departments and contact information. [15]
J. Users need easy ways to grow their networks you can include a member directory or to make user groups. [16]
If the goal of the organization is to create a culture that is open, shares information with customers both inside and outside. Then you will need a multi-pronged approach such as including change management education for all employees, approach and successfully sign up all levels of management, advocates and champions. Give sufficient training to enable these change agents to feel comfortable in using the social networking tools, have policies in place to specifically describe appropriate user behavior and release of information. Also when the culture issues have been addressed the intranet team need to have considered and chosen a product that is in line with the needs and strategic direction of the company. The social network platform implemented should be easy to operate for users while providing sufficient options for maintenance and support by the intranet team. That said, the social network installation and forward running costs should be factored in order for it to become a valued and stable corporate communication tool. As it's no use having a tool that is the latest flavour of the month and then be discontinued in six months time due to poor budgetary planning.
References:
1. Manchester, Alex. [2012]., Selecting social enterprise network software. Retrieved from: http://www.steptwo.com.au/papers/kmc_selectingsocia/index.html
2-6. Steckerl, Shally. [2007]., Survival Guide: Online Social Networking. Retrieved from: http://web.freepint.com/go/features/2346
3-16. Chapman, Cameron. [2009]., Social network design: Examples and best practice. Retrieved from: http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/07/13/social-network-design-examples-and-best-practices/#more-7993
Web 2.0 Technologies and Social Surfing.
Social networking depends on software to enable users to create a profile, share videos, photos, posts about any subject they wish to write about, connect with friends, colleagues, family and other people with similar interests. These social networks allow users to mash up data from different sources and import it into the users time lines. The growth of these social networks is increasing rapidly. To illustrate this in 2010 there were 11 social networks and if they were pictured as a map of the earth Facebook would be the largest country on Earth!
 | ||
| From http://www.pamorama.net/2011/01/30/65-terrific-social-media-infographics/#axzz2Dys2yPL5
Of course what this infographic doesn't show is the demographics of each social networking space. According to Emarketer, Facebook's demographics have more people in the WWII Generation than in any other age group. While you will find just the opposite with 65% of Generation Y using MySpace.
Most social network users created accounts because they wanted to keep up with friends. However, since there are many different social networks to choose from you can of course expect each to target a audiences differently and offer content plus services accordingly. So depending the age group libraries which to target and grow new
customer segments they will have to tailor their social media
campaigns according to the social space which have most customers within
these demographics.
Now with everyone tweeting, blogging, socializing on line the power for voicing one's opinion or experience of a product of service has taken on new meaning. Not only can your experience be shared with just people you know but a whole city, country or even the world! Providers of services need to understand the power of the social network and have a presence on social networks in order to engage with new, existing and potential customers in order to leverage and improve building customer relationships. In order to engage with customers for a positive outcome service providers need to follow these five steps:
1. Follow your company guidelines/policy about the use of social networking sites. The create an official company site on your chosen social networking sites. Designate a person to officially speak on behalf of the company.
2. Always write in the first person.
3.Focus on the subject of the conversation and be respectful to the customers while keeping their cool on line.
4. Provide resources in order to help clarify and offer a solution to a problem or thank customers for positive feed back.
5. Checks that no personal information has been shared. Source: http://www.commoncraft.com/video/social-media-and-workplace Yes, social networking is a valuable tool to encourage interactions with internal and external customers. If handled correctly it can actually innovate and grow your business in the digital economy. Social networking is the new king of information sharing since traditional media is now becoming less relevant in the era of push button publishing. What does this mean for libraries and information centers? We need to be more user centric in an age where our customers are doing more googling for themselves to find answers. One way for us to be responsive to their needs is to engage with them using common communication platforms according to strategic demographics.
References:
1. How the old, the young and everyone in between uses social networks. Retrieved from: http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007202
2. Social media in the work place. Retrieved from: http://www.commoncraft.com/video/social-media-and-workplace |
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