Online Matchmaking

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Online Matchmaking

• Taking Readers Advisory to the Next Level

Cheryl Becker, South Central Library System
Jane Jorgenson, Madison Public Library
WAPL 2007
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Why?

• RA is
• Fun
• Personal
• A return to the book
• RA databases seem to lack the most important
  ingredienta person

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Steal this Idea

• Looking for a Good Book? Developing an Online
  Reading Suggestion Service
• Williamsburg (Virginia) Regional Library
• PLA Conference, March 2006
• RUSQ article, Spring 2006
• Could we do this here?

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Steps

• Call for interested parties
• Meeting/Plan
• Tools
• Roles

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Anybody interested?

• Yes!
• Lets explore!

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The Plan

• Start small.
• Mission
• Form Create. Test. Revise. Test again.
• Advisors
• Guidelines and procedures
• Timeline
• Implementation/Promotion

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Mission/Description

• Offer 5-10 suggestions
• Within one week

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Tools

• Basecamp
• Form
• Gmail

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Tools Basecamp

• Project management resource
• Web-based
• Communication and Collaboration
• Hosted on their web server
• Nothing to install or configure
• Only need browser and internet
• Reasonably priced plans

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Basecamp Features

• Messages
• To-Do
• Milestones
• Writeboards
• Files

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Tools Form

• Create, test, revise, test again
• Invited member libraries staff to try it out
• Final version
• Nonfiction
• Fiction
• Uses FormAssembly.com
• Spam prevention character recognition (captcha)

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Fiction
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Tools Gmail

• A Google approach to email
• Shared account
• All can log in, from anywhere
• All correspondence, archive in one place
• Incoming forms automatically forwarded to
  Delegator

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Advisors and Roles

• Periodical calls for volunteers
• Ongoing training
• One person checks Gmail and assigns requests to
  advisors (Delegator)
• System staff supporting roles

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Timeline2006
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2007
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Implementation

• Patrons completed form is sent to Gmail account
• Delegator forwards request to one of Advisors
• Advisor suggests 5-10 titles based on the
  customers input responds via Gmail
• Standard reply Gmail folders
• Keep annotations in Basecamp

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Sample Request
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Sample Response
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Basecamps Role

• Writeboards Procedures, tips, documentation
• Messages Communication
• Messages Annotations database

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Promotion

• Slow rollout gave us time to become
  comfortable
• URL given out at select libraries
• Link to form on Madisons website
• Promoted in Madison blogs/newsletters
• Other libraries added links to form
• Posters, bookmarks, sample press release
• Book Club Café

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How are We Doing?

• Total of 51 forms submitted
• 40 since February rollout
• 10 active Advisors
• 187 annotations in Basecamp database

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If We Knew Then

• Biggest time commitment on front-end
• Staff time vs. number of people served
• Share the load no one overwhelmed by requests
• Appeal of value-added, one-on-one service
• Resource created with annotated titles database

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Success story!
You have done a remarkable job of matching my
likes, for sure! Thank you for enlivening my
2007 Spring Season!
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Questions?

• cbecker_at_scls.lib.wi.us
• jajorgen_at_scls.lib.wi.us
• Thank you!
• Happy Reading!