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Tripping over reference -pla 2012
- 1. Tripping Over Reference The importance of link placement (for getting really boffo stats!) Bill Pardue (bpardue@ahml.info) Arlington Heights Memorial Library
- 2. Placement=promotion! • Handouts, etc. > spike usage (still OK, but not enough) • Placement = point of service • The “Contact Us” or “Help” pages are not enough! • Don’t make people find out where your chat is. Source: Elaina Norlin, “Creating a Purple Cow, VRD 2005.
- 3. Not just a “QuestionPoint thing” • Promotes: – Chat – Email – SMS – Even phone
- 4. Links everywhere! (Think Header)
- 8. Impact of placement changes 2010 site
- 11. Where are the chats coming from? • Feb 2012: 619 Sessions • Homepage: 135 • User accounts: 133 • Catalog pages (items/searches): 124 • 63% of total
- 12. More sources (the long tail…) • old contact pages: 28 • “Can't log in” page: 8 • Contact page: 26 • “Attend” pages: 5 • Old catalog : 21 • Database sessions: 5 (inside • Research section: 12 products like ebsco, etc.) • Community site: 12 • Teen site: 4 • borrow pages: 11
- 13. Placement tips
- 14. Think about your vendors
- 15. Do you maintain any other sites? • E.G., Community information directories. (make it clear it’s coming from your library!)
- 16. Links on other community sites? • Town/village site • Chamber of Commerce • Social service agencies
- 17. We’re after the “long tail!” • Most of these won’t contribute large numbers • You’re doing this to increase referrals incrementally. • 1 or 2 per month from multiple sources begins to add up!
- 18. Checking your referrals: Start at the My QuestionPoint page, click on View Service History
- 19. Checking referrals, cont’d: • Then click Reports/Form Fields. Select “View Excel file,” then “Submit.”
Editor's Notes
- Through 2010, until 1/11: prominent “contact us” link (qwidget on contact us page and select other pages) Regular growth over SMLY: 37% (range of 8%-75%) Average QP sessions for our patrons: 388
- To save space, “Contact Us” relegated to lower right side (footer). Still prominent on other pages (actual qwidget replaced by expanding graphic) Monthly VR use over SMLY decreased an average of 10% Average QP sessions for our patrons: 341
- Increased visibility of chat in the homepage header. SOPAC catalog: Chat on catalog results and patron login/account pages Jan: up 62% over SMLY (649 contacts) Feb: up 91% (654 contacts)
- Be part of the header/above the fold Graphic w/brief text is best Branding=good, but make it clear what it is! Qwidget or graphic is better than a text link.
- Your catalog Many subscription databases have branding options Gale, Ebsco, Proquest, etc. Branded links can include VR service. They might even support a chat widget (some Ebsco) Contact your vendor for details. We’ve had relatively few sessions from these, but why not catch what you can?
- Be ready to answer questions relevant to these sites or to arrange referrals! There’s a political element to this.