11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

THE TECH SET

Ellyssa Kroski, Series Editor

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

Aaron Schmidt and Amanda Etches

www.neal-schuman.com LIBRARY AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ASSOCIATION

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

THE TECH SET

Ellyssa Kroski, Series Editor

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

Aaron Schmidt and Amanda Etches

AL A TechSource
An imprint of the American Library Association Chicago 2012
www.neal-schuman.com

 2012 by the American Library Association. Any claim of copyright is subject to applicable limitations and exceptions, such as rights of fair use and library copying pursuant to Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Act. No copyright is claimed for content in the public domain, such as works of the U.S. government. Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Schmidt, Aaron, 1978 User experience (UX) design for libraries / Aaron Schmidt, Amanda Etches. p. cm. - (The tech set ; #18) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-55570-781-1 (alk. paper) 1. Library Web sitesDesign. 2. User-centered system design. I. Etches, Amanda, 1975 II. Title. Z674.75.W67S43 2012 006.701'9dc23 2012007200 This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper).
www.neal-schuman.com

CONTENTS
Foreword by Ellyssa Kroski . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2. Types of Solutions Available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3. Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4. Social Mechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5. Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6. Marketing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7. Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8. Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9. Developing Trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Recommended Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii xi 1 7 15 23 31 73 79 89 95 99

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Dont miss this books companion website! Turn the page for details.
www.neal-schuman.com

THE TECH SET Volumes 1120 is more than just the book youre holding! These 10 titles, along with the 10 titles that preceded them, in THE TECH SET series feature three components: 1. This book 2. Companion web content that provides more details on the topic and keeps you current 3. Author podcasts that will extend your knowledge and give you insight into the authors experience The companion webpages and podcasts can be found at: www.alatechsource.org/techset/ On the website, youll go far beyond the printed pages youre holding and: Access author updates that are packed with new advice and recommended resources Use the website comments section to interact, ask questions, and share advice with the authors and your LIS peers Hear these pros in screencasts, podcasts, and other videos providing great instruction on getting the most out of the latest library technologies For more information on THE TECH SET series and the individual titles, visit www.neal-schuman.com/techset-11-to-20.

www.neal-schuman.com

PREFACE
By picking up User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries you have already acknowledged the importance of improving your librarys website. We couldnt be happier! As user experience (UX) designers, we firmly believe that making all your web design and functionality decisions with the user as your primary focus will result in a better design, a more intuitive interface, and a more enjoyable experience for your users. User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries shows you how to get there by providing hands-on, practical steps, tips, advice, and best practices for using UX design principles, practices, and tools to engage your users online and build the best, most user-centered web presence for your library.

ORGANIZATION AND AUDIENCE

This concise guide in nine chapters covers everything you need to jump in to using UX practices to improve your librarys website. In Chapter 1, we introduce you to the field of UX design, why its important, and what we think library websites should do. We also deal with some central tenets that guide our thinking on library website design. In Chapter 2, we get into the types of solutions available, including hardware and software options for UX designers. In this chapter, we also introduce the UX design techniques that we will explore in greater detail in Chapter 5. Chapter 3 deals with planning for web projects, starting with the important issue of whether you should redesign your website at all (as opposed to iteratively designing it), as well as how to perform a needs assessment of your website. Chapter 4 is all about social mechanicsyou will learn about the roles and responsibilities of a web team and how to get buy-in for your web projects from everyone from library administration to your
www.neal-schuman.com

xi

xii

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

systems department, the rest of your staff, and, most importantly, your community. Chapter 5 is about implementation. This is where we delve into the details about how to conduct a usability test, how to perform a card sort, how to develop personas to inform your web design decisions, how to perform a heuristic evaluation of your website, and how to write a content strategy. In Chapter 6, we get into marketing, starting with some ideas around how thinking about your library website as a virtual branch can help you with your marketing efforts. This chapter also covers traditional marketing opportunities, search engine optimization, social media marketing, how to communicate and market your website redesign (which is arguably one of the biggest web projects that youll undertake!), some ideas to promote transparency in your web development activities, and, finally, how to market internally. In Chapter 7, we discuss some best practices that we have observed in library web design and highlight some of our favorite library websites that are doing things specifically well in the areas of search, navigation, authenticity, orientation, the mobile web, visual design, community engagement, and web writing. Chapter 8 gets into the difficult topic of usability and user experience metrics, and we discuss the utility of tools such as website analytics, A/B tests, surveys, and five-second tests. Chapter 9 rounds out the discussion with some commentary on what we see as developing trends in library website design, specifically around discovery and access to library resources and the issues around developing websites that are optimized for mobile devices. In the final section, Recommended Reading, we leave you with an annotated list of some of our favorite print and web resources for UX design. Well be the first to acknowledge that there are literally hundreds of books out there on UX design. So, we are both thrilled and humbled that you chose User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries. We think you made the right decision because our experience as librarians and UX designers gives us a unique perspective on the needs of libraries, librarians, and, most important, library users. Weve tried to distill this perspective in a way that can help you go out there and build better experiences for your librarys users. We hope you find it useful.

www.neal-schuman.com

1
INTRODUCTION
What Is User Experience (UX) for the Web and Why Is It Important? Why Should Libraries Care about UX? The Larger Scope of UX and How It Relates to Web UX What a Library Website Should Do The Catalog Problem Central Tenets
WHAT IS USER EXPERIENCE (UX) FOR THE WEB AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
User experience for the web is all about how users feel when interacting with a website or interface. As you might imagine, web UX is a small subset of a larger discipline that deals with how users feel about interacting with anything: a system, product, service, or space. For the purposes of this book, when we talk about UX, were really referring to web UX, which, as a discipline, is a coming together of the fields of information architecture, interaction design, interface design, and usability. However, at the heart of it, UX is so much more. If you have ever experienced sheer delight when using a website that is simple, easy, understands what you are trying to accomplish, and helps you get there, then you know that a good user experience is also about how a well-designed website makes you feel (important, delighted, competent, and any number of other positive adjectives). At the same time, if youve had the misfortune of using a website that is confusing, one that puts up roadblocks at every turn and doesnt help you accomplish what you set out to, you know that a bad user experience is also about how a poorly designed website makes you feel (frustrated, annoyed, incompetent, and many other negative adjectives)!
www.neal-schuman.com

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

This is exactly why UX matters. Its not difficult to come up with a clean, streamlined information architecture for your site; its also fairly easy to work through all the interactions on a site to create a functional interaction design; and, as you will see, usability testing your site isnt rocket scienceit takes some time and planning, but its a fairly straightforward pursuit. But all of these practices rolled up together is what ensures that positive experience for your users.

WHY SHOULD LIBRARIES CARE ABOUT UX?

Youve already made it to Chapter 1, so were guessing you dont need a lot of convincing about why libraries should care about UX. However, we feel its important to reiterate that the principles of good web UX should matter a great deal to libraries, because we are already fighting an uphill battle when it comes to our users attention. Content and information are no longer scarce commodities that require the mediation of the librarythanks to the web, both are plentiful, which has changed the value proposition of libraries. As we continue to retool to respond to the changes in the information marketplace and meet the needs of our users, it is more imperative than ever that we are attentive to our web presences, providing online experiences that are simple, intuitive, and delightful.

THE LARGER SCOPE OF UX AND HOW IT RELATES TO WEB UX

As we mentioned previously, the website designs and interfaces you expose your users to are only part of the whole user experience picture. Ideally, all of your librarys touch pointsthe places where your users come into contact with your librarywill be aligned and well designed. This means that creating a holistic and positive user experience includes designing great print materials, signs, customer service, facilities, reference work flows, programs, collections, and services. This might seem daunting. It is indeed a lot of work and sometimes difficult. But it is crucial for the success of your library. The experience you try to facilitate through your website is an important component of the total user experience you provide. It is often the first touch point with which people come into contact. Patrons use it frequently as the gateway to your catalog and other online resources and services. It is also a challenging piece of the UX puzzle. While you likely have different physical spaces for different
www.neal-schuman.com

Introduction

types of library users, creating distinct digital spaces isnt necessarily desirable. However, with adequate user research you can create a website that will meet the needs of your most important audiences.

WHAT A LIBRARY WEBSITE SHOULD DO

Most website behavior is task oriented: people have an information need or need to accomplish something and they use the web as a tool to meet that need. There are a few websites that people browse for fun and entertainment, but your librarys website probably isnt one of them. Library websites should differ as much as the communities they serve differ. Conversely, library websites will share many characteristics because of the similarities of people everywhere. Libraries responses to these similarities should make up the basic functionality of every library websitethings like library hours, locations, services, loan period information and catalog searching should be included. Getting these basic things rightsomething that few libraries dois the first step to creating interesting and thriving library websites. It doesnt make sense to build on a shaky foundation, but many libraries do because it is relatively easy. As additional functionality gets tacked on, websites quickly become complicated, and information that patrons want becomes increasingly difficult to find. This book encourages you to get the basics right first before you consider taking your website to the next level.

THE CATALOG PROBLEM

Your website is not as important as your catalog. This is a fact. Weve asked many nonlibrarians about what they do on library websites, and the usual response is Place reserves on books. This is subtly different from how we think of our websites and catalogs (i.e., as distinct things). So, either our users see the two as the same thing, or they ignore our websites and just use our catalogs. Looking at website analytics suggests the latter. The primacy of the catalog is understandable and unfortunate. It is understandable because people want to accomplish things by using websites. In the case of libraries, the number one critical task is access to content. For public libraries this means books, movies, and music. For academic libraries, add in journal articles. It is unfortunate, because we have very little control over the visual and interaction
www.neal-schuman.com

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

design of our catalogs. This is worth repeating: we have very little control over the look and behavior of the number one thing people want to do on our websites. The solution to this problem isnt within the scope of this book, but it is a problem that we want to acknowledge. Having well-designed library websites will get us only so far. To provide the ability to find library items, some libraries will still subject their users to an interface that is not only different from the rest of their website but also one that is poor. This lack of control over the catalog is the number one problem for library websites.

CENTRAL TENETS
The techniques in this book will help you create a user-centered website. Here are some things we believe about library websites that inform our designs and will help you create the better websites.

Less Is Less (and Thats a Good Thing)

Your goal is to make your librarys site as small as it can be while still meeting the needs of your users. This will result in patrons finding stuff with greater ease and less ongoing maintenance for your web team.

Patrons Dont Read Library Websites, They Scan Them

Nothing against your library website, really. People dont do much reading on the web period. Instead, people hope to learn bits of knowledge or accomplish tasks. Knowing this fact should impact the way we write for library websites. Information should be presented in easy-to-skim chunks.

Good UX for One Is Good UX for All

Accessibility is an extremely important issue for websites. So much so that web accessibility is often legally mandated for public organizations (depending on what country/state/province youre in), and, because most libraries are public organizations, compliance with web accessibility guidelines is a pressing matter for most of us. While this book does not specifically aim to make your website compliant with whatever accessibility legislation you operate under, we believe that adhering to web accessibility standards is not a limitation but an opportunity. Much like universal design is all about improving design and usability
www.neal-schuman.com

Introduction

to the benefit of everyone, making your website accessible will improve the experience of your site for all your users, not just the ones who use adaptive technology for their browsing needs.

A Library Website Isnt a Portal to the Web

With near ubiquitous and constant web connectivity via computers and mobile devices, the entire notion of a starting place on the web is a bit dated. Even if it wasnt, patrons wouldnt start their web experiences on your librarys website. They dont visit your librarys site for links to their e-mail or to find out the weather or to find search engines. If your site has them, remove these extraneous bits.

Library Websites Are for Library Users, Not Librarians

Sometimes portions of library websites are designed for librarians to use on the job. When librarians are accustomed to using the library website daily it can be difficult to redesign the site for patrons. If you face resistance when removing librarian-centered content from your website, put the content in question on your staff intranet. If you dont already have one, consider creating one. You can adapt the techniques in this book to design a website for library staff, too.

When in Doubt, Leave It Out

You should be able to strongly articulate reasons for including every single thing thats on your librarys site. If youre not sure why something is on your site and cant find a reason, remove it. The same thing goes for content that is considered nice to have on the site. Everything on the site should be essential. If it is not essential, it shouldnt be there.

www.neal-schuman.com

INDEX
Page numbers followed by the letter f indicate figures.

A/B testing analyzing, 4445 change and, 91 decision making, 2829 instruction for testers, 43 metrics, 9091 sorting, 4244 See also Card sorting Accessibility, 65 Accuracy, 64 Acorn, 10 Administrator, web, 24 Adobe, 10 Amazon.com, 1617 Analytics, 8993 See also Metrics Analyzing card sort data, 4445 companion website, 44, 56 content audit, 6167 research, 4748 statistics, 32, 37 website usefulness, 6264, 8993 worksheet, 4445 Apple.com, 16 Assessing user needs, 2022 website, 6165 Audio file, 61 recording, 36

Audit analyzing, 6567 conducting, 6165 content, 1213, 6165, 61f Web Content Leads, 25, 70

B
Basecamp, 11 Best practices authenticity, 80, 83 clarity, 87, 88f community engagement, 87, 87f mobile web, 8485, 84f navigation, 80, 81f, 82f orientation, 83, 85, 83f, 84f search engine optimization (SEO), 7476, 79, 80f usability, 3537 visual design, 85, 85f, 86f BiblioCommons, 79, 95 Blogs, 27, 7677 Bloomstein, Margot, 60 Brainstorming, 20, 32, 38, 45, 48, 5156, 90 Branding, 2122, 76, 93 Breadcrumbs, 58 BrowserLab, 10 Browsers, 10, 74, 90 Buy-in, 2528

C
Camtasia, 11, 37

www.neal-schuman.com

103

104

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

publishers, 25, 70 requesters, 25, 69 reviewing, 59, 65 roles, 6871 strategy, 6061 team, 2325 triangle of needs, 19f unused and unnecessary, 6566 work flow arrangement, 6770 writing, 5960, 64 Content audit accuracy, 64 analyzing, 6667 cataloging, 6162 conducting, 6165, 61f links, 64 measuring, 6265 usefulness, 1213, 6364 user-friendly, 6465 Content Editors, 25, 6970 Content management system (CMS), 7475 Content Publishers, 25, 70 Conversion rate, 89 Creator, 25, 62, 66, 6970

Captivate, 37 Card sorting analyzing, 4445 closed, 41 defined, 41 design, 24 instructions, sample, 4344 needs, determining, 21 opened, 41 performing, 3944 recruiting, 4142 steps, 4244 test, 1112 usability, 4445 worksheet, 4445 Catalog (OPAC) gateway, 23 homepage, 58 integrated, 79, 80f, 9596 integrated library system (ILS), 9596 interface and, 34, 8, 9596 problem, 34, 95 searching, 79, 80f visual design, 9596 Cataloging, content audit, 6165, 61f Change, 2, 1619, 22, 2829, 3840, 75, 7778, 91 Chunking, 87 Clip art, 59 Clueapp.com, 93 CMS. See Content management system (CMS) Community, 2728 engagement, 87, 87f Composite character sketches. See Persona Computers and peripherals, 78 Content approvers, 25, 70 change testing, 3944 creator, 25, 62, 66, 6970 editor, 25, 6970 images, 4, 10, 5859, 58f inaccurate, 6566 information architecture, 12, 4041, 6667 leads, 2425, 6971 life cycle, 6768, 68f popular and unpopular, 6566

D
D.H. Hill Library (NC State), 83, 84f Darien (CT) Public Library, 79, 80f Databases, 21, 33, 91 Debrief, 17, 3840, 43 Decision making, 2930 Design lead, 24 Designing positive user experience, 13 See also Website design Destination, 46, 7375 Development lead, 24 web, 2325, 36, 39, 49, 9596 Discovery layer overlays, 9596 District of Columbia Public Library, 87, 88f Drupal, 74

E
E-book format, 96 Editing, 10

www.neal-schuman.com

Index
EDS, 95 Evaluations analyzing, 6567 content audit, 6165, 61f heuristic, 56, 60 life cycle, content, 6768, 68f usefulness to library, 6264 of website, 5660 See also Surveys; Testing Events calendar, 90 Evergreen King County (WA) Library System, 96 Evolving websites, 16 Excel, 65 visual design, 5657, 57f writing, 59 Homepage, 16, 58, 79, 93 HTML, 59

105

I
Icon, 37, 93 iGooMap, 61 Illustrator, 10 ILS. See Integrated library system (ILS) Images, 10, 16, 75, 85, 93 visual design, 5659, 57f, 58f, 61 Implementation. See Methods and practices Infomaki, 8 Information architecture, 12 website, 4041, 6667 Instructions for testing, 3944 Integrated library system (ILS), 9596 Interactive design, 13, 15, 1719, 24, 96 Interface, 8, 1011, 16, 31, 36, 38, 40 integrated library system (ILS), 9596 website and, 12, 4 Internet Explorer, 10 Interviews, user, 2021, 24, 4650 iStockphoto.com, 48 IT department, 2627

F
Facebook, 1617, 75 Facilitator, 3537, 4243 Feedback, 7, 20, 27, 32, 36, 58 Firefox, 10 Five-second test, 8, 93 Flickr, 48 Flip charts, 38 Focus groups, 2021, 36 Friends of the Library, 28, 34, 37

G
Guerrillas in the library, 39 Gimp.com, 10 Goals, 17 Google, 1617, 29, 74 Google Analytics, 62, 9091 Google Website Optimizer, 91 GroupFinder, 83

J
JavaScript, 91 Jing, 11 Joomla, 74 Journal articles, 95

H
Hardware, 78 Harvard College Library, 85, 86f Harvard Library Innovation Laboratory, 77 Header hierarchies, 75 Hennepin County (MN) Library BookSpace, 87, 87f Heuristic evaluation, 56, 60 examples, 5960 images, 5859, 58f navigation, 5758 reviewing content, 59

K
King County (WA) Library System, 96

L
Library administration, 24, 26 change, 2, 1619, 22, 2829, 3840, 75, 7778, 91 Friends group, 28, 34, 37 IT systems department, 2627 mission statement, 19 needs, 1822 organizational capacity, 2122

www.neal-schuman.com

106

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

Meta tags, 75 Methods and practices analyzing audit, 6567 audit, 6155 brainstorming, 20, 32, 38, 45, 48, 5156, 90 card sort, 11, 4045 content audit, 1213, 6165, 61f content strategy, 6061 creator, 62, 66, 6970 debrief, 3840 facilitator, 3537, 4243 heuristic evaluation, 5657, 60 ideas, 5153 interviews, users, 2021, 4647 life cycle, content, 6768, 68f navigation, 5758 parameters, 29, 3334 responsibility, 62 search engine optimization (SEO), 7476, 79 statistics, 32, 37 usability test, 18, 3135 usefulness, 6264, 8993 user-friendly, 6465 visual design, 5657, 57f, 58f work flow, 6771 See also Persona; Testing Metrics A/B tests, 2829, 9091 analytics, 8990 content audit, 6265 five-second tests, 93 Google Analytics, 62, 9091 library needs, 1922 surveys, 9193 tips, 92 user experience, 8990 Miami University Libraries, 79, 81f Microphone, 8, 35 Mission, 1820 Mission statement, 19 Mobile website creating, 76, 8485, 9697 Ryerson University Library and Archives (Toronto), 85, 85f Skokie (IL) Public Library, 84, 84f usability test, 9697

Library (contd.) strategic plan, 20, 22, 70 triangle of needs, 19f Library website catalog interface, 34, 9596 change and, 1619, 22, 2829, 3840, 75 characteristics of, 3 design, 12 evolving, 16 importance, 2 information architecture, 12, 4041, 6667 library use and, 23, 18, 6263 linking, 75 mobile website, 76, 8485 navigation, 80, 81f82f orientation, 83, 85, 83f84f redesign, 1516, 3944 retooling, 2 reviewing content, 59 tenets, 45 touch point, 23 usability, 12, 45 usefulness analyzed, 6264, 8993 viability, webpages, 7475 Life cycle, content, 6768, 68f Linking, 5, 9, 60, 64, 75 Logo, 93 LovelyCharts.com, 9

M
Marketing blogging, 7677 changes, 75, 7778 content management system (CMS), 7475 destination, 46, 7375 internal, 7778 libraries and, 2 linking, 75 redesign, website, 3944, 75 search engine optimization (SEO), 7476, 79 social media, 7576 traditional, 74 transparent practices, 77 virtual branch, 7374, 77

www.neal-schuman.com

Index
Mockingbird, 9 Mocksup.com, 911 Mockups, 910 Morae, 8

107

N
Navigation, 5758 Needs assessment card sorting, 21 catalog and, 34 focus groups, 20 interviews, 2021, 4647 organizational capacity, 2122 performing, 1822 statistics, 32 surveys, 2021, 9193 triangle of needs, 19f Netflix, 16 Nestls Global Corporate Website Orienting Users, 58f New York Public Library, 80, 82f North Carolina State University Library D.H. Hill Library, 83, 84f Notes from the Redesign Team, 76 Notess, Greg R., 11 Numbers, 61

O
Oakville Public Library (Ontario), 79, 81f Ohio State University Library Labs, 77 OmniGraffle.com, 9 OPAC customizing, 95 integrated library system (ILS), 9596 searching, 79 See also Catalog (OPAC) Open source, 96 Operating system, 7, 2627, 90 OptimalSort, 11 Organizational capacity, 2122 Orientation, 80 Overlays, 95

Paper Prototyping (Snyder), 40 Parameters, 29 tester, 3334

Patrons needs, 5759, 9596 surveying, 32, 3940, 46 website use, 24, 6366, 79, 8993 PDF, 59, 61 Penn Library (labs.library), 77 Persona brainstorming, 5156 creating, 31, 4546 defined, 45 design, 5051 development, 4650 document, 12, 4851, 51f, 52f goals, 4950 how to use, 5154 ideas, 5153 interviews, 4647 overview, 5154, 51f, 52f planning, 53 photograph, 48, 51f questions about, 5456 shoestring budget, 4748 use of, 4546, 5152, 6364 user research, 4651 Personnel, 21 Pixelmator.com, 10 Planning brainstorming, 20, 32, 38, 45, 48, 5156, 90 change and, 2, 1619, 22, 2829, 3840 interactive design, 13, 15, 1719, 24, 96 needs assessment,1822, 19f organizational capacity, 2122 purpose of, 22 redesign, 1516 transition, 1718 See also Persona; Project management Photoshop, 10, 40 Platforms, 10, 96 Project management A/B tests, 2829, 4345 administrator, web, 24 blog, 27 buy-in, 2528 capacity, organizational, 2122 card sorting, 1112, 21, 4142

www.neal-schuman.com

108

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

Screen recording, 37 Screencasting, 1011, 37, 76 Screencasting in Libraries (Notess), 11 ScreenFlow 2, 11 Script writing, 3536 Search engine optimization (SEO), 7475, 79 Search engines, 5, 7475 Searching, 95 Silverback, 8 Skitch.com, 10 Skokie (IL) Public Library, 84, 84f Snyder, Carolyn, 40 Social mechanics. See Project management Social media, 75 blog, 27, 7677 Software project management, 1112 screen recording, 37 usability testing, 89 wireframes and mockups, 911, 40, 93 Solutions and tools. See Website design SOPAC, 95 Sorting. See Card sorting South by Southwest (SXSW), 60 Staff intranet, 5 Stakeholders, 2526 Statistics, web, 32, 37 See also Analyzing Strategic plan, 22 Summon, 95 SurveyMonkey, 12, 92 Surveys A/B tests, 2829, 9091 analytics, 8990 five-second tests, 93 offering, 9192 staff, 19 SurveyMonkey, 12, 92 tips, 92 use, 12, 91 users and, 2021, 9193 Systems department, 2627

Project management (contd.) community, 2728 consultation, 2829 content, 2425, 5862 design, 24 development, 24 IT department, 2627 library administration, 26 mission and vision statement, 19 needs assessment, 1821, 19f personas, 12 progress, 2829 roles and responsibility, 2325 software, 1112 staff, 27 stakeholder, 2526 surveys, 12 systems, 2627 techniques, 1112 users, 29 web team, 2325

R
Redesign, website A/B test, 9091 library users and, 5, 22 marketing, 7577 planning, 1518 testing for, 3944 transition, 1718 Research analyzed, 4648 methods, 92 personas, 45, 53, 55 techniques, 1112, 53 User Research Team, 70 User Researcher, 3, 24, 2627, 75, 77 Responsibility, 62 Retooling, 2 Ryerson University Library and Archives (Toronto), 85, 85f

S
Safari, 10 Salt Lake City (UT) Public Library, 85, 86f San Jos (CA) Public Library, 83, 83f Scenarios, 3233 Scope of website, 1213

T
Target audience. See Persona Technology, 21, 53, 77

www.neal-schuman.com

Index
Template for visual design, 5657, 57f Tenets, 45 Testing best practices, 3538 card sort, 4045 debrief, 3840 facilitator, 3537, 4243 instructions, 43 observers, 37 parameters, 3334 recording, 3637 scenarios, 3233 site, 3940 software usability, 89 testers, 3436 usability, 3132, 3941 website usability, 29 Topeka and Shawnee County (KS) Public Library, 80, 82f Touch point for library user, 23 Transition, easing, 1718 Transparent practices, 2728, 77 Trends in access to library resources, 9596 integrated library system (ILS), 9596 layer overlays, 9596 mobile website, 9697 open source, 96 overlays, 9596 Trial run, 17 Triangle of needs, 19f Tweets, 75

109

U
University of Windsor Library, Leddy By Design, 76 Updating website, 25, 62, 65, 67, 6970 URL, 61, 7475 marketing, 74 Usability A/B testing, 29 best practices, 3537 card sorting data, 4445 catalog and, 34 conducting tests, 3133 debrief, 3840 design, 24

five-second test, 93 marketing, 76 mobile website, 9697 parameters, tester, 3334 recruiting testers, 3435 reviewing content, 59 search engine optimization (SEO), 7476, 79 social media testing, 7577 software, 89, 12 testing, 79, 12, 26, 3943, 76 user experience (UX), 12, 45 website and, 2, 18, 6263 Usabilla.com, 9 User experience (UX) library website analytics, 8993 blog, 27, 7677 catalog interface, 34, 9596 change, 1619, 22, 2829, 3840, 75, 7778, 91 characteristics of, 3 defined, 12 design, 12, 19f, 24 friendly, 6465 importance, 12 integrated experience, 9696 measuring, 8993 mobile, 9697 open source, 96 positive experience, 23 relationship to library use, 23 retooling, 2 tenets, 45 touch point, 23 usability, 14, 18, 6263 User interviews, 2021, 24, 4650 User Research Team, 70 User Researcher, 24 Userfly.com, 9 UX. See User experience (UX) library website

V
Vancouver Public Library (British Columbia), 80, 83f Vanderbilt University Library, 77 Test Pilot, 77 Viability, webpages, 7475

www.neal-schuman.com

110

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries

interface, 8, 1011, 16, 31, 36, 38, 40 interviews, user, 2021, 24, 4650 linking, 75 mission of, 1820 mobile, 85, 9697 persona, 12, 4550 project management, 1112, 24 purpose of, 22 scope, 1213 screencasting, 1011 software, 89 solutions, 1822 surveys, 12 team, 2325 techniques, 1112 tips, 92 triangle of needs, 19f updating, 25, 62, 65, 67, 6970 users, 5, 31 viability on webpages, 7475 visual, 5657, 57f, 58f, 66, 85, 85f, 86f, 95 wireframes and mockups, 911, 40, 93 See also Planning; Project management Website redesign A/B test, 9091 library users and, 5, 22 marketing, 7577 planning, 1518 testing for, 3944 WebSort.net, 11 Whiteboards, 38 Wireframes and mockups, 911, 40, 93 WordPress, 74 Work flow, 6771 Worksheet, 4445 Writing, 5960, 64

Video audit, 61, 63 camera, 8 file, 61 recording, 25, 3637, 69 testing, 9 Virtual branch, 7374, 77 Vision, 1820 Vision statement, 19 Visual design, 5657, 57f, 58f, 66, 85, 85f, 86f, 95 Visually simple, 85, 85f, 86f VuFind, 95

W
Web administrator, 24 Web Content Leads, 2425, 7071 Web projects planning. See Planning; Project management Web team. See Project management Web Team Leads, 70 Web writing, 59, 64 Webcam, 8, 37 Website, companion, 44, 56 Website design browsers, 10, 74, 90 card sorting, 1112, 21, 4142 clarity, 87, 88f content audit,1213, 6165, 61f database, 21, 33, 91 designer, 24 five-second test, 93 hardware, 78 image creation and editing, 4, 10, 58f information architecture, 12, 4041, 6667 integrated library system (ILS), 9596 interactive, 13, 15, 1719, 24, 96

www.neal-schuman.com

This is the series to acquire and share in any institution over the next year. I think of it as a cost-effective way to attend the equivalent of ten excellent technology management courses led by a dream faculty! TECH SET #1120 will help librarians stay relevant, thrive, and survive. It is a must-read for all library leaders and planners. Stephen Abram, MLS, Vice President, Strategic Relations and Markets, Cengage Learning

User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries is part of THE TECH SET VOLUMES 1120, a series of concise guides edited by Ellyssa Kroski and offering practical instruction from the fields hottest tech gurus. Each title in the series is a one-stop passport to an emerging technology. If youre ready to start creating, collaborating, connecting, and communicating through cutting-edge tools and techniques, youll want to get primed by all the books in THE TECH SET. New tech skills for you spell new services for your patrons: Learn the latest, cutting-edge technologies. Plan new library services for these popular applications. Navigate the social mechanics involved with gaining buy-in for these forward-thinking initiatives. Utilize the social marketing techniques used by info pros. Assess the benefits of these new technologies to maintain your success. Follow best practices already established by innovators and libraries using these technologies. Find out more about each topic in THE TECH SET VOLUMES 1120 and preview the Tables of Contents online at www.alatechsource.org/techset/. 11. Cloud Computing for Libraries, by Marshall Breeding 12. Building Mobile Library Applications, by Jason A. Clark 13. Location-Aware Services and QR Codes for Libraries, by Joe Murphy 14. Drupal in Libraries, by Kenneth J. Varnum 15. Strategic Planning for Social Media in Libraries, by Sarah K. Steiner 16. Next-Gen Library Redesign, by Michael Lascarides 17. Screencasting for Libraries, by Greg R. Notess 18. User Experience (UX) Design for Libraries, by Aaron Schmidt and Amanda Etches 19. IM and SMS Reference Services for Libraries, by Amanda Bielskas and Kathleen M. Dreyer 20. Semantic Web Technologies and Social Searching for Librarians, by Robin M. Fay and Michael P. Sauers

Each multimedia title features a book, a companion website, and a podcast to fully cover the topic and then keep you up-to-date.

American Library Association 50 E. Huron Street Chicago, IL 60611 1 (866) SHOPALA (866) 746-7252 www.neal-schuman.com