[Publib] Library website incorporated into City website

Tue Sep 2 13:04:08 EDT 2008

Sheryl - I can completely sympathize with your situation.  I've worked for
two county libraries and one city library, and the same issue comes up every
time.  The best thing you can do is to explain how the library is a
completely unique department within the city, unlike the other departments
in every way.  The website for the library is probably 10 times the size of
any other department, the resources you offer online top anything any other
department offers, your site probably gets 20 times the use any other
department's site does, and your users come to the library for library
services - not for other city services.

You are absolutely right that your users will be confused by a city menu at
the top of the website.  The best thing that you could do, if you HAVE to
have that banner (try to argue your way out of it though!) would be to have
a banner with as small a city presence as possible.  Navigation, search
functions, and content all have to be library focused or your users will be
confused.

WHAT NOT TO DO: An example of a city library with a city banner at the top
can be seen at the San Mateo Public Library:
http://www.cityofsanmateo.org/index.asp?NID=507
<http://www.cityofsanmateo.org/index.asp?NID=507> .  The banner is huge and
takes up tons of real estate, the primary menu is the city menu and the
library's menu is smaller and almost invisible compared to the city's
prominent content.  The search box, "return to home" icon, and RSS links all
falsely lead users to think that they will get library content through those
links, and they don't.

WHAT TO DO: An example of a way to fold in a city presence into the
library's website can be seen at the Mill Valley Public Library:
http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/index.aspx?page=10
<http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/index.aspx?page=10> .  A small link at the
top to the city's website is it - everything else is library content.

It boils down to your users.  If your users can't get easy access to the
library's content, you're in BIG trouble.  I suggest doing a mock-up of your
page as it is and doing some user testing, asking people what they'd click
on to get to certain content you offer.  They do a mock-up of your page as
it would be with a city banner and their content, and do user testing and
see what happens with the same questions.  You could do this all on paper
with literally copy-and-pasted mock-ups.  No need for anything fancy.  Do it
quickly, then show those results to your city.  They won't be able to argue
with data.  Offer a compromise of the small city link instead.  Worse case
and you have to implement it the way they want it, do user testing after the
implementation - a survey and some walk-throughs of tasks as described above
and see if users are confused and angry.  They probably will be.  Show that
to the city and see if you can change back.

I also recommend taking a look at an article I wrote after going through the
same thing you're going through now: "I've Been Framed: Designing a Library
Web Site Within a Government Frame" in Computers in Libraries (2005).

Good luck!
Sarah Houghton-Jan
Digital Futures Manager, San Jose Public Library
Author of LIbrarianInBlack.net

  _____  

From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org on behalf of Sheryl Eldridge
Sent: Fri 8/29/2008 2:21 PM
To: publib at webjunction.org
Subject: [Publib] Library website incorporated into City website

Our city administrators have asked the IT staff to come up with a design to
standardize all city departments' web pages. They also want a common menu at
the top of all city pages.

I am our library's webmaster and am on the committee, so I've been looking
at other city websites to get ideas about how they fold the library into
their design, and how the library site functions as part of the city's
website.

So far, mostly looking at small towns in Oregon, it appears that most cities
provide a link to their library's website, but the library's site is
independent (as we are now).  I've found a few library websites that share a
common header with other city departments, and a few that have a discreet
link to their city or county, and made share a layout scheme, but are
otherwise independent.

Can anyone recommend city website's that do an admirable job of linking to
departments and having departments link back to them?  I'm concerned that
too many city links on the library's website will confuse our users, yet I
understand the wish of the city administration to provide a consistent look
to all the websites.

Thanks for any ideas you may share!

Sheryl Eldridge, Senior Librarian

Newport Public Library

Newport, OR 97365

http://www.newportlibrary.org <http://www.newportlibrary.org/> 