[Web4lib] prove that library 2.0 isn´t useless

[B.G. Sloan]

  The concept of ROI and libraries is an interesting one. I would imagine that in the physical library there are a lot of returns on investments that don't look too good (e.g., books that are acquired but never read, etc., etc.).
   
  To be fair, if libraries were to try to measure ROI for Library 2.0 projects, they should do the same for projects in the physical library. Do libraries do that? If so, how?
   
  Bernie Sloan

"Anderson, Patricia" <pfa at umich.edu> wrote:
  The flaw in this question is the assumption that unless something brings patrons to the physical library it is useless. Gatecounts are a ROI metric whose time is past. There are other ways we can and should be measuring patron engagement with the librarians and the resources provided by the library. For one, I would like to see something that measure the amount of TIME spent in what type of interactions with patrons, rather than numbers of questions answered, just for one.

Sorry for turning the question on its head, but I think this really is a "return on investment" question, rather than a Library 2.0 question. We have to answer first how we measure ROI, and *then* we can look at how Library 2.0 and social technologies impact on that.

My two cents,

Patricia Anderson, pfa at Umich.edu


-----Original Message-----
From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org on behalf of Jorge Serrano Cobos
Sent: Fri 11/2/2007 6:20 PM
To: Web4lib at webjunction.org
Subject: [Web4lib] prove that library 2.0 isn´t useless

Hi:

Reading "We Know What Library 2.0 Is and Is Not" by Michael Casey and Laura
Savastinuk in
http://www.librarycrunch.com/2007/10/we_know_what_library_20_is_and.html comes
to my mind the need to have more figures, more numbers, more indicators, to
demonstrate if a change in our websites to Library 2.0 approach, even just a
1.0 better performance and user centered design change, does really brings
more users to physical library.

Do you have any figures on this issue? Could you prove it? Any experiences
showing that a usability design change, not only brings more users to the
web, but more requests? And a library 2.0 approach? Or is the step from the
web to the real bookshelf too long?

Thanks in advance, and sorry for my english... (I´m spaniard)

-- 
Jorge Serrano-Cobos
Head of Digital Content Department
http//www.masmedios.com

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