The transcript below is a great example of a way to establish rapport through humor. When children access the service just wanting to "chat," it is an opportunity to show them that librarians can find information about whatever topic they randomly mention. Our experience has shown that if they are disconnected, they will keep logging into the service--but if a librarian tries to establish rapport and meet them at their level (while maintaining professionalism!), their sessions will last a normal length (about 15 minutes for an average session) and they are less likely to log in repeatedly. Hopefully, they'll remember their positive experiences when they really do need information in the future.
Patron (19:42): I need help with divition
Librarian (19:44): Hi, <patron’s name>,
Librarian (19:44): Hello! Welcome to our chat service. My name is Jane, and I am a librarian from the XYZ library in <state>. No one from your library is available at the moment, so I will be assisting you now.
Librarian (19:45): Do you mean division as in math homework?
Patron (19:45): are all librariens hot?
Librarian (19:46): if they don't have air conditioning
Patron (19:46): your funny
Librarian (19:46): thanks
Librarian (19:46): What's up with your division?
Patron (19:47): I LIKE CHOCOLATE MILK WITH CHEESE CUBES IN IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Librarian (19:48): interesting! What kind of cheese?
Patron (19:49): SWISS man you are HILARIOUS
Librarian (19:49): http://www.kidsclick.org/cgi-bin/searchkids.pl?searchtype=subject&keywords=math+general&title=Math+General
Librarian (19:50): Here are some links to lots of websites about math
Librarian (19:50): Do you need to know something specific about division?
Librarian (19:50): I "half" to know
Patron (19:50): why arent u funny any more
Librarian (19:50): hey that was funny
Librarian (19:50): I "half" to know--get it?
Patron (19:51): dude you're awesome
Patron (19:52): why aren't u takin
Librarian (19:53): Well, technically I am supposed to help you answer any questions you have
Librarian (19:53): Do you have any questions for me?
Patron (19:54): do you like Charlie the gorilla
Librarian (19:54): Otherwise I'm going to have to "split" (haha) so I can help other people
Patron (19:55): 3.1415926 is pie
Librarian (19:55): yes, pi
Patron (19:56): but do you like Charlie the gorilla?
Librarian (19:56): http://www.exploratorium.edu/pi/history_of_pi/index.html
Librarian (19:56): here's a history of pi
Librarian (19:57): I had not heard of Charlie the gorilla before--but it has to do with the Toronto Zoo?
Librarian (19:58): http://www.torontozoo.com/AboutTheZoo/History.asp
Librarian (19:58): He made a lot of money
Patron (19:58): I guts to splat time for cheese
Librarian (19:59): "Charles" the gorilla raises $37,000 through his artwork.
Librarian (20:00): Okay, thanks for using our service--if you have any questions, librarians are here to help.
Patron (20:00): bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee <librarian’s name> b.t.w. you are AWESOME
Librarian (20:00): Thanks! (grin)
Librarian (20:00): have a good night
Librarian (20:00): Librarian ended chat session.
Questions or comments about this post? Comment below or email Susan McGlamery at mcglames@oclc.org
This was a fantastic example of a friendly and funny librarian who remained professional throughout. Thanks for posting it!
Posted by: Laura Kortz | April 21, 2009 at 05:44 PM