Do the Math: Usage Drives Content Decisions

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Do the Math Usage Drives Content Decisions

• May 15, 2009
• Association of College Research Libraries
• New England Chapter
• Laura Crain
• Associate Director for Collection Services
• Saint Michaels College

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How Does Usage Drive Content Decisions?

• Allocation formula based on circulation
• Collection analysis
• Purchasing based on student and faculty use
• Retain subscriptions based on cost-per-article
• Anticipate expected use

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References

• Canepi, K. (2007). Fund allocation formula
  analysis Determining elementsfor best
  practices in libraries. Library Collections,
  Acquisitions, Technical Services 31, no. 1.
• Franklin, B. (2005). Managing the electronic
  collection with cost per use data. IFLA Journal
  31, no.3.
• Kaay, A. Zimmerman, P. (2008). The Development
  and application of a unique percentage-based
  allocations formula at the University of Windsor.
  Library Collections, Acquisitions, Technical
  Services 32.
• Ochola, J.N. (2002). Use of circulation
  statistics and interlibrary loan data in
  collection management. Collection Management 27,
  no. 1.
• Stambaugh, E. (2005). Analytical skills for
  collection development and journal management.
  Against the Grain, Nov. 2005.

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Why do the math?

• You can't manage
• what you can't measure

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About Saint Michaels

• Residential Catholic liberal arts college in
  Vermont
• 2000 undergraduates
• 30 majors
• 200 graduate students
• 4 graduate programs

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Who goes there

• 90 of Saint Michaels students said they used
  the library
• Each year, the average Saint Michaels student
• Comes to the library about 70 times
• Visits the library web site 50 times
• Does 70 database searches
• Downloads 60 online journal articles
• Checks out 10 books and five DVDs

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Materials BudgetSaint Michaels College
LibraryFY 2009 630,800
ACRL Percentage Distribution of Materials
Academic Library Trends Statistics
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Percentage-based allocation formula

• Subject area book purchases
• 50 divided based on circulation
• 50 divided among academic subject areas
• Fixed amount for
• Major
• Graduate program
• Interdisciplinary Minor

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Collection analysis of circulating monographs

• Shows high and low use areas
• Provides guidance for allocating budget in
  subject areas
• Illustrates whether subject holdings are adequate
  to meet user needs
• Project modeled after University of Colorado
  Boulder study by Heather Wicht, Jennifer Knievel
  and OCLC http//www.cal-webs.org/handouts04/Colle
  ctionAnalysis.ppt

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Greatest Number of Circulation Transactions Per
item by subject
Circulating books 5 year period
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Least number of transactions per item by
subject(LC class areas with holdings above 500
items)
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Interpretation of a low use area

• Scenario 1
• holdings are old and need to be weeded/updated
• refer to interlibrary loan borrowing
• Scenario 2
• book format less desirable
• not a research-intensive subject

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Collection Analysis What next?

• Share the information
• Review titles with higher circulation
• Syllabi pull out readings
• College Bookstore
• Resources for College Libraries retrospective
  collection building

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Evaluating cost per use

• Develop a culture of regular assessment
• of serials in all formats
• with input from faculty and liaisons
• Emily Stambaugh (2005)

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Identify high-cost / low-use databases
FY08
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Establishing a Benchmark for Cost per Article
Square Root of average cost Benchmark for
cost per use by discipline
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American Chemical Society Web Editions FY09 usage
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Using Data to Fill the Gaps

• EBSCOhost title usage report
• abstract requests

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2 year Abstract data from EBSCOhost title usage
report -- PsycINFO
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Using data for cancellations and new
subscriptions

• Recent cancellation
• Linacre Quarterly (from the Catholic Medical
  Association)
• 1 use in print periodical use study. 80
• New subscription
• National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly23
  abstract requests (2 yrs) in Catholic Periodical
  and Literature Index177

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Keys to Content Decisions

• Allocate more money in high circulation subject
  areas
• Culture of regular assessment
• Retain subscriptions according to cost-per-use
• Review gaps and unmet needs

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Enduring issues

• Just in case?
• The role of selection
• Do shoulds still exist in maintaining a basic
  collection?
• Is there a limit to allowing student and faculty
  use patterns to drive purchasing decisions?
• How do we measure success?