JCPLA Adult Services Roundtable: January 2021

Adult Services Roundtable
Virtual Readers Advisory:

Why? How? Right now!!

January 21, 2021

Adult Services Roundtable Meeting, January 21, 2021

Attendees:

Shannon, Hoover

Terri, Vestavia Hills

Joi, Vestavia Hills

Leslie, Avondale

Maura, Trussville

Deidre, Bessemer

Ellen Shade, BPL

Michelle, Irondale

Bridgett, Homewood

Heather, Homewood

Joan, Avondale

Lynn Hutchins, BPL

Pam Jessie, BPL

T West, BPL

Loretta, Books-by-Mail

Holley, O’Neal

We discussed the increased awareness and usage of various virtual reader’s advisory tools to those patrons that are no longer browsing our shelves. Holley’s favorite venue is to create blog posts to the O’Neal Library’s website (https://www.eolib.org/ at the bottom of the page). These are archived and can be accessed by patrons looking for something new to read. Often, Holley will get a list of the top 5 fiction and nonfiction titles on Libby that have the most holds on them and she will create a “while you wait” booklist based on these titles. This gives the patron waiting for that top seller some alternatives to read while they wait for their hold! These do take her the most time because she has to do a great deal of leg work in coming up with read-alikes but the work pays off for her patrons. Maura shared Trussville’s Read-Alikes page from their website (updated by Susan)

Holley also directed us to O’Neal Library’s “Shelf Care” page (managed by Amanda) which gives reading recommendations (using Communico to create) – most of which are updated and populated by staff members fairly often. This utilizes widgets to scroll book covers. If a library could do one thing well, it would be beneficial to come up with a page like this so that you can direct patrons to the webpage. It includes Staff Picks, NYT Bestsellers, Book Group picks and whatever else you may want to include. Next week, Holley’s Genre book group is discussing the Harlem Renaissance so one widget is just book recommendations for that group.

Hoover does a similar thing using e-newsletters but it is mostly fed through Ebsco’s LibraryAware – in other words no one person updates it, although that is an option. Most of the heading are things like “Mysteries and Thrillers” or “NYT Bestsellers.” Patrons sign up for these e-newsletters on their own or by our urging. A great many patrons say this is where they get their best recommendations. We call this service “NextReads” and you can view the options here.

Virtual RA can take place over the phone or via email too. If a patron wants a recommendation, we need to respond consistently and with skill. Please see the resource list at the end for a list of RA websites recommended to make any decision an easier one. We discussed the problem some of us face when patrons are return visitors and want new titles. How are people keeping track of what was last recommended without imposing on patrons’ privacy? Two methods would be to create a Google doc with patron info or a simple Excel spreadsheet (with access only to those that need it). Another method would be to ask the patron to turn on their reading history for the special purpose of keeping track of the books. (This is done using the patron’s account in Encore. Librarians would need access using the patron’s card number and PIN. However, with frequent visitors, it might be worth the trouble.) I wish that we had the funds to create an easy, stapled little notebooks with the library logo and “reading history” as a giveaway to older patrons that might be encouraged to keep a list of what they like and don’t like! Hoover has one patron who only listens to books-on-CD and she hauls around several packs of old index cards all banded together – boy she was not happy when we rearranged the books-on-CD by Genre!! It threw her off her system!

At Hoover, we have an online form asking all kinds of questions to gauge a reader’s interest. It’s called Novel Destinations and patrons use it often when it is advertised on social media. We have the paper version at the desk in case we have the need. One patron is on her 17^th iteration of Novel Destinations! We keep giving her more books based on her one-time first request! (Her favorite librarian keeps track of what she recommends and what the patron enjoyed. They’ve developed a good rapport!)

Joi talked about her increased satisfaction in finding books for patrons and doing general readers advisory. She likes to create handouts for patrons (which could then go online) using Canva.com and uploading book covers. She also gathers books for patrons into what she calls Browser Bags – based on the patrons needs and likes. She collects anywhere between 4 to 6 books for each browser bag. Many other participants said they also use Canva.com – Heather noting that there is a reasonable “non-profit” costs to Canva if anyone wants to pursue it. For free pictures to upload, Pixabay.com, Unsplash.com and Freepix.com were all recommended as free sources for downloadable photos and art. Michelle at Irondale also plugged thenounproject.com for free symbols and icons.

Virtual Bookshelf at Vestavia Hills is something that I think several libraries have initiated since lockdown. These are lists with hyperlinks for hot reads, fall picks, new juvenile fiction – really, any kind of subheading that can be used within Sierra to create an ever-updated search. Hoover uses “Check out our new materials” so patrons can see what’s new and place holds directly online. I think a bunch of libraries have created similar pages since the pandemic began.

RA videos: I talked about doing my short 2-5 minute videos of which I does about 6-8 per month. Using either my iphone or home laptop, I’ve done enough that I have fewer errors. Keys to doing this with a modicum of success is repetition and bravery. I research the book using online resources like NoveList or book reviews. I try to grab a few good take aways or quick quotes about the book that will intrigue readers. I may talk about setting, characters, or even the tone of the book. After I have the recording, I send it through Microsoft Teams to the person on our staff who LOVES to edit video (not everyone has this person!) I created one consistent graphic for the beginning of the video that I simply change to match the book. The video person just puts them together and trims any fat to create a tighter video. Then it’s posted to our YouTube channel and Facebook page. I share it on my personal page and most have been getting between 50-200 views per month, depending on the title. Examples to view: The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin, The works of Thrity Umrigar, and While You Wait for Midwife Murders by Patterson. Our Nonfiction department has a very popular Genre book group and my colleague, Pam Bainter, does short videos to help patrons navigate that month’s topic. Here are two examples: Short Nonfiction Reads and Insatiable Readers Choices.

Making these videos have gotten easier over the months and my fear is nearly nonexistent. I have gotten to where they could even be posted without editing and flashy extras – they just need to be clean with good sound. The handout I created for this meeting has some great tips for recording virtual RA! Give it a read…

Heather shared that Homewood has finally established a social media team after wanting to create one for a while. The team, more specifically Heather, is scheduling Instagram and Facebook posts ahead of time, such as “If you like…” selections. She uses Canva to do a small, three or four book title visual for the immediate satisfaction – these posts keep the library at the forefront.

Some of our RA has been driving people to our virtual services, especially when the libraries were physically closed. We created online recommendations to Libby and Hoopla because that was what was available to the patron. We still try to mix up the formats in our RA service. Speaking of the various methods we have discussed here, there are many librarians out there unable to do these things because of time and staff limitations. I asked the participants if a small library was only going to focus on one method or one kind of service to focus on, what would it be? Heather answered with the response that it would depend on your library’s patrons. Some libraries’ users will not have a very active online patronage – so devoting your time to Facebook posts or Instagram posts may not be a wise use of time. However, creating window displays that say “give us a call for more suggestions” will win them over.

Most libraries response would be a mixture of medias, services and being open to responding to a patrons’ needs via whatever format they feel comfortable with. Holley mentioned specifically an e-newsletter from BookBub – she will “steal” an idea from them and create her own small handouts/flyers to give out, i.e. top 10 audiobooks for 2020. These have become very popular in her library.

Lastly, if you are limited in time, money and staff, pick something virtual that you want to try and keep it consistent and useful. If you decide to add a widget to your website, update it on the regular. If you have a blog, bring new content every few days or every week, at least. Instead of trying to be all things to all people, do something well that patrons can count on – even as technology evolves, you can still put out content on a blog or on Facebook that is useful to the patron.

2020 taught us to be brave and give things a try. Put yourself out there and try new things. They may end up in the wastebin of history or they might become a raging success. However, as our library landscape changes and evolves, we need to evolve along with them!

Below is the “Handout” I created for the meeting with links to various websites and videos that may give you some ideas for starting your virtual RA journey!

Different Forms of Virtual Readers Advisory:

Online form/Paper Form

o Hoover: https://bit.ly/3oa1eIh

Ask a Librarian/email requests

Phone/email inquiries

RA videos/shorts

o https://youtu.be/b5LNKJmSMMo

HPL Commercial for Novel Destinations…

o https://youtu.be/hAYbL2Dwkzo

Book Talks

Instagram shorts

Blog posts

o http://www.hooverlibrary.org/blogs/shannonh

Pinterest boards for visual book advertisements

o https://www.pinterest.com/darienlibrary/real-time-book-recommendations/

o “They have found using Pinterest appeals to an audience that does not typically use the catalog. Darien Library also creates links to their catalog from Pinterest.”

o Article: Moving Readers’ Advisory Online by Karen Pundsack on September 10, 2014

JCPLA RA video on Virtual RA:

o https://youtu.be/LiBoA_HjgTA

Online Readers Advisory supplements and sometimes replaces the

in-person interaction.

Examples of Online forms:

Do Your Own RA @ Home:

o https://www.carnegielibrary.org/want-to-do-your-own-readers-advisory/

BookMatch:

o https://fauquierlibrary.org/for-readers/draft-bookmatch-readers-advisory-form/

What’s Your Next Best Read?

o https://www.meridenlibrary.org/readers-advisory/

Hoover Library’s Novel Destinations:

o https://bit.ly/3oa1eIh

“You need to build an experience that’s intuitive for the user.”

Jeremy Graybill, marketing and online engagement director, Multnomah County (Oreg.) Library
How digitized readers’ advisory stays personalized
By Terra Dankowski | September 1, 2016

https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2016/09/01/recommended-reading-readers-advisory/

Inspiring articles:

Programming Through the Pandemic

by Erica Freudenberger
May 22, 2020

https://www.libraryjournal.com/?detailStory=Programming-Through-the-Pandemic-covid-19

Lockley pressed the entire collection development staff into service to provide recommendations for adults, teens, and kids. “We reached almost 2,200 people during our live Reader’s Advisory event, with 148 comments and 13 shares over the course of two hours,” says Lockley, who hopes to replicate the success of this program on Twitter in the coming weeks. The library also has an online reading challenge group on Facebook with more than 200 members, who explore new genres and authors each month. “The COVID-19 situation has inspired everyone on staff to be creative and come up with new ways for us to reach out and interact with our customers—no matter where they are,” says Lockley. “Offering live online RA at my library has been a personal dream for some time and it was exciting to see it in action.”

Reader, meet book: RA on-the-go

https://www.ebsco.com/blogs/novelist/reader-meet-book-ra-go

Also, view the web-based RA webinar created by NoveList. You do not have to be a subscriber…

https://www.ebsco.com/blogs/novelist/webinar-form-based-readers-advisory-when-your-readers-and-staff-are-home

Recording RA videos

Some Tips

Source: https://bookcartqueens.com/2020/09/02/virtual-readers-advisory/

Book talk video filming tips:

· Film in Short Clips. My filming structure involves me talking for 1-2 sentences before cutting to a new clip. I find this really valuable when I am trying to get my words exactly right (especially important when sharing books that talk about racism, neglect, or aspects of a culture that isn’t my own). I don’t memorize what I’m going to say, but this quick structure makes it a lot easier for me to redo a clip as needed. Refilming something 20-30 seconds long is easier, and it is much less frustrating than getting to the end of the clip and messing up a pronunciation.

· Add visual interest. Add images from the book whenever possible. Some books are chapter books without images where this doesn’t make sense, but whenever I can, I add images and change them regularly. An adult has about an 8-second attention span in non-COVID times. Watching me sit and talk at a screen for even just a minute is boring. Images help.

· Talk about books you like. Always. I only book talk books I’ve read, enjoy, and can vouch for. I’m not this strict when I’ve got an in-person reader’s advisory experience, with a patron in front of me asking for Wonder readalikes, but when I’m only able to take a handful of books to a classroom, or in this case, select what books I want to put my time and effort behind highlighting, I want to make sure they are books I genuinely enjoyed and think kids will enjoy too.

· Recommend diverse books. Following the last tip, this means you need to be reading diverse books. Hopefully you are. I don’t care how white your community is–even if your community is made entirely of clones of one Christian, straight, physically and mentally able white boy–there is a whole world out there that those kids need to be aware of and empathetic toward. (Also, if you are living in a community filled with cloned children, I would suggest you stop reading now and run. Fast.)

· Look up those pronunciations. Author names, illustrator names, character names, settings. Look up them all. Don’t be the Annamarie of three years ago who mispronounced Amina’s name repeatedly in a book talk video for Amina’s Voice that still makes me cringe every time I see it on YouTube.

· Of course, all the regular technical things:

· Film with the highest quality camera you can access

· Good lighting (don’t sit in front a window, avoid shadows)

· Good sound

· Consistent feel/intro/conclusion

· Easy access for a viewer to put the book on hold in your catalog