[Publib] Re: Focused on the pie

[Anita Barney]

Every one of us in LibraryLand should read Paco Underhill's Why We 
Buy.  Although his focus is on the retail world, much of what he says is 
applicable to libraries -- especially the chapter(s) about signage.   Many 
of us have been guilty of taping program announcements to our front doors 
and to entryways.  Paco says that patrons focus on the door handle, not on 
the area around the door, and if you watch people coming in from the 
parking lot, you'll see he's right.

When we closed the library for recarpeting, we made a four-foot-tall by 
two-foot-wide sign that said "CLOSED for carpeting" and taped it to the 
glass door at eye level.  That didn't stop folks from pulling on the door 
handle.  Nothing worked until I made a hot pink sign and taped it directly 
on the two sets of handles.


>Mary Donley, seeking chocolate pie at Luby's, wrote:
>
>"I asked the teen behind the counter what was the difference.  She
>patiently told me that one was sugar-free.  After looking at the rows
>again, I saw there was a HUGE sign that said sugar free, but I was
>focused on the pie, not the signage.

Anita R. Barney
Library Director
The Brookfield Library
182 Whisconier Road
Brookfield, CT  06804
203-775-6241  /  Fax 203-740-7723