QuestionPoint: 24/7 reference services

Maintenance Install November 1, 2012 6:OO GMT (2:00 A.M. EDST)

The QuestionPoint service will be unavailable for the following time period for scheduled maintenance and service: 6:00 GMT (2:00 A.M. EDST) to approximately 6:15 GMT  (2:15 EDST) Thursday November 1, 2012.  It is imperative that you end any in-progress chat sessions at least two minutes prior to the scheduled service interruption to avoid sudden communication interruptions to your patrons and potential "hung" sessions. (You will be unable to click on any in-progress sessions to get information to communicate with the patron.)

When service is restored, please check your “New” questions lists for any interrupted chat sessions or unanswered email questions.

If you experience any outage after the projected service period, please contact your Customer Service Provider for further assistance.

We regret any inconvenience.

Quality Tip: Class assignment? Consult the Policy Page!

An often overlooked field in the policy pages is “Assignments”: this is where librarians can provide tips or links to popular or recurring assignments. 

For example, Highline Community College in Seattle has provided these tips under Assignments:

Current English assignment questions. You can copy and paste these to respond, as needed:

·  Famous librarians: you can use a search engine for this, like Google, Yahoo or Bing. I suggest searching on the phrase “most famous librarian”.

·  For Individual Quiet Study: The whole fourth floor is designated as a quiet study area.

·  For Study Rooms: Study rooms [Note which floor has these rooms.]

·  Opposing Sources: we have two databases that feature controversial issues, please see our Search Databases page. Look at the list of most-used databases in the middle of the page. You can use Opposing Viewpoints and CQ Researcher, in that order.

·  If you are having trouble finding something or using computers where should you go to ask for help? Reference

·  If an instructor has something on hold for students to view or use, where should students go within the library to get it? Here's a hint: Course Reserves.

Bryant & Stratton’s online campus has this information in their Assignments field:

Recurring assignments ("I need information on my career...") have institutional scripts you may use to answer them.
Here is info on the Career Assignment:
In addition to information in the Occupational Outlook handbook (http://www.bls.gov/oco/) and the Career Guide to Industries (http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg/home.htm), useful career information can be found in the Bryant & Stratton Virtual Library. After logging onto the Virtual Library, and select the menu item 'Career Planning'--the item 'Helpful Tools' contains links to useful web resources. The menu item ‘Program resources’ also contains useful material. The menu item ‘Research Databases' contains a link to the EbscoHost database 'Vocational & Career Information.' Another good source is the document "Career Resources Guide" available at http://vl.bryantstratton.edu/Portals/0/al_Careerwebsites_2010[1].pdf or on the Albany Campus VL page. State career information can be found at careeronestop at http://acinet.org Select "Occupation Information" then select "Occupation Profile" Locate your career & select your state. Also, try O*NET Online at http://online.onetcenter.org/

When students seem to be asking the same questions over and over, it may be based on an assignment – so head right over to the Assignments section of the policy page, and see what the Patron library suggests.  And, if your students have recurring assignments, do provide tips for the chatting librarians, to help them better respond and provide more effective assistance. 

Questions about Quality? Email me at [email protected] or post a comment to this blog.

QuestionPoint Service Install, October 14, 2012, 2:00 A.M. ET (06:00 GM)

We will be installing a QuestionPoint features upgrade this Sunday, October 14, 2012.

Release Notes can be viewed here on the Blog.  Please be advised that the QuestionPoint service will be unavailable for the following time period: from 6:00 UTC (2:00 a.m. EST) to approximately 7:00 UTC (3:00 a.m. EST). It is imperative that you end any in-progress chat sessions at least one minute prior to the scheduled service interruption to avoid sudden communication interruptions to your patrons and potential "hung" sessions. (You will be unable to click on any in-progress sessions to get information to communicate with the patron.)

 If you experience any outage after the projected service period, please contact your Customer Service Provider for further assistance.

 

Notes d'Installation prévue pour 14 octobre, 2012

Nouvelles fonctionnalités et améliorations

1        Qwidget

1.1       Avis aux bibliothécaires du Chat concernant l’adresse électronique des utilisateurs.

Deux nouveaux avis ont été ajoutés à l’interface de dialogue en ligne (Chat) du bibliothécaire pour l’avertir que l’utilisateur en ligne a fourni une adresse électronique.   

Le premier avis « L’utilisateur a ajouté une adresse électronique » apparaîtra dans le moniteur de Chat dans le cadre d’une session en cours avec un utilisateur du Qwidget qui a ajouté son adresse électronique après le début de la session. Ce message informera le bibliothécaire qu’il n’a pas à demander à l’utilisateur son adresse électronique pour assurer le suivi de sa question s’il y a lieu.

Exemple :

Le deuxième avis  « L’utilisateur a choisi de rester anonyme (aucune adresse électronique pour suivi)» servira à confirmer que, même si l’utilisateur a fourni une adresse électronique afin de recevoir une transcription de sa session, il a également choisi de ne PAS révéler cette adresse à QuestionPoint.

        

Par conséquent, la bibliothèque n’aura pas l’adresse électronique dans le dossier à des fins de suivi.  Ce message informe le bibliothécaire qu’il ne pourra pas assurer le suivi de la question si la case « anonyme » reste cochée. La case « anonyme » peut toutefois être cochée ou décochée au cours de session. Le bibliothécaire peut donc suggérer à l’utilisateur de modifier cette option s’il y a lieu durant la session. L’adresse électronique de l’utilisateur restera invisible au bibliothécaire dans le moniteur de Chat, mais sera disponible dans l’historique de la session.

1.2      Confirmation personnalisable de courriel envoyé à partir du Qwidget « fermé ».

Après l’envoi de leur question, les utilisateurs qui envoient un message par courriel à partir du Qwidget « fermé » (service non disponible) verront le message de confirmation par défaut suivant pendant environ 10 secondes : Merci. Votre question a été soumise.   Ce message peut être personnalisé dans le module  Administration de QuestionPoint.

 

1.3    Plusieurs Qwidgets permis sur une même page Web.

La version 3 du populaire « Qwidget » pour le Chat est maintenant disponible. En mettant à niveau la version 2 du Qwidget ou en téléchargeant la version 3, vous pourrez maintenant héberger jusqu’à 5 Qwidgets sur une page Web. Voici quelques exemples où cette possibilité est avantageuse :    

•  les bibliothèques qui ont plusieurs Profils de services (SUP) peuvent avoir plusieurs Qwidgets différents sur la même page Web;
• les Qwidgets « bannières » peuvent être affichés sur toutes les pages de votre site, si désiré, sans affecter l’affichage de vos autres « Widgets »;
• des Qwidgets en diverses langues peuvent être affichés dans une même page Web.

 Plusieurs Qwidgets  sur une même page Web

2        Plus de participants au projet pilot.

Nous avons terminé avec succès la première phase du récent projet pilote « QuestionPoint via email service » (QuestionPoint par courriel), et sommes heureux d’annoncer que plus de bibliothèques seront invitées à offrir cette fonctionnalité. Si vous êtes intéressé à ce que votre bibliothèque permette aux utilisateurs de soumettre des questions en utilisant une simple adresse électronique, en plus de votre formulaire de question Web, veuillez contacter Carol Bonnefil ([email protected]) pour plus de détails.

 

3        Recherches/Rapports/Révisions

3.1       Modification du libellé sous Réviser les transcriptions/ Zones du formulaire.

Dans le module Référence, sous Réviser les transactions / Données des formulaires Web d’utilisateur,  dans la liste déroulante « Par type de transaction », l’option « Formulaire de question » a été changée pour « Formulaire/Courriel » afin de mieux décrire tous les types de questions inclus dans le rapport. En choisissant « Formulaire/Courriel », la liste contiendra toutes les questions soumises via le « formulaire de courriel » de QuestionPoint  de même que celles soumises via l’adresse électronique QuestionPoint pour votre bibliothèque (nouveau service en phase pilote.  Voir la section 1.2)

3.2        Modification du libellé sous Questions/recherche avancée.

Dans le module Référence, sous l’onglet Questions, cliquez sur le lien Recherche avancée. Dans l’écran Recherche avancée, dans la liste déroulante « Type de transaction », l’option « Formulaire de question uniquement » a été changée pour « Courriel/Formulaire/Sur place (Ajouter question) » afin de refléter cette limite de recherche.

4        Explications sur le formatage dans l’écran Modification des politiques.

 

Dans l’écran Modification des politiques (disponible pour les administrateurs de QuestionPoint et administrateurs de référence dans le module Profil), des explications ont été ajoutées pour créer des hyperliens vers des URL à l’intérieur des zones : 

 « Ajouter des parenthèses en chevron (< et >) à toute URL pour la convertir en hyperlien sauf indication contraire pour certaines zones. »

Ces explications sont un rappel que les étiquettes HTML compliquées ne sont pas nécessaires pour convertir des URL en hyperliens. Sauf indications contraires, l’ajout d’un chevron au début et à la fin d’une URL, c’est-à-dire < >, convertira l’URL en hyperlien dans la Page de politiques de la bibliothèque.

5        Exportation des transcriptions.

Une nouvelle fonctionnalité personnalisable est disponible pour les bibliothèques qui veulent exporter de façon continue leurs transcriptions vers leurs propres systèmes hébergés. En utilisant S-FTP, les transcriptions peuvent être exportées vers un environnement externe. Tous les incidents causant la modification du contenu ou du statut d’une transcription engendreront l’exportation de la transcription, permettant la duplication presque synchrone des informations des transactions sur votre système hébergé et permettant l’exploration des données, les rapports statistiques personnalisés et d’autres opérations liées à vos transactions dans QuestionPoint. Pour plus d’informations sur ce service personnalisé, veuillez contacter Carol Bonnefil ([email protected]) 

Corrections

1        Corrections apportées au Qwidget.

1.1       L’affichage des URL dans l’historique du Chat dans le Qwidget n’était pas consistant.

Auparavant, les URL très longues n’étaient pas toujours bouclées (affichées sur la ligne suivante) ce qui causait un mauvais affichage des Qwidgets sur la page Web.

         Les URL apparaissent maintenant à l’intérieur du cadre, peu importe leur longueur.    

                                                                                           

1.2       L’adresse électronique de l’utilisateur est effacée après l’envoi de la question à partir du Qwidget « fermé ».

Après qu’un utilisateur a inscrit son adresse électronique et sa question, et utilise le bouton « Soumettre », son adresse est maintenant immédiatement effacée de l’écran (il n’est plus nécessaire de rafraîchir l’écran) afin de mieux protéger les renseignements sur l’utilisateur dans un environnement public.

2         Le rapport iSoft « Service de Chat- Rapport quotidien » pour le 8 juillet 2012 a été récupéré.

Des bibliothèques ont rapporté que les statistiques quotidiennes sur les sessions de Chat du 8 juillet 2012 n’étaient pas affichées correctement dans le module Rapports.  Ce problème a été corrigé et toutes les statistiques pour le 8 juillet 2012 ont été mises à jour. Les totaux mensuels pour juillet 2012 ne peuvent pas être rétroactivement corrigés pour inclure les statistiques du 8 juillet. Pour obtenir le bon total pour un rapport mensuel, trimestriel ou annuel pour 2012, le total pour le rapport quotidien du 8 juillet 2012 devra être ajouté manuellement au rapport mensuel, trimestriel ou annuel. Une note a été ajoutée dans l’écran Rapports en guise de rappel.

3        Les données des formulaires Web d’utilisateur correspondent maintenant aux rapports hors ligne.

Les colonnes de données dans les rapports Excel sur les Données des formulaires Web d’utilisateur correspondent maintenant aux données des rapports hors-ligne dans le module Référence, sous l’onglet Réviser les transcriptions.

4        Listes de questions dans le compte des abonnés.

Les sessions dans le compte des abonnés sont maintenant triées en ordre chronologique par défaut.

Release Notes for October 14, 2012 install

New Features/Improvements

1.     Qwidget

    1.1       Notifications to chatting librarian regarding patron email addresses.

Two new incident notifications have been added to the Librarian chat interface to help alert chatting librarians to the fact that Patrons have entered an email address.   

The first notification:  “Patron has added an email address” will appear in the librarian’s chat monitor as part of an in-progress chat session with a Qwidget patron who has added their email address after the session has begun. This will alert the chatting librarian that he or she doesn’t have to request an email address from a patron in order to allow the possibility of the patron’s library follow-up with that patron.

Ex 1:

The second notification: “Patron has chosen to remain anonymous (no email address available for follow-up)” will serve as confirmation that although the patron may have entered an email address in order to receive a transcript at the conclusion of a Qwidget session, they have also chosen NOT to reveal that email address to QuestionPoint.

Ex 2:

 This means that the library will not have an email address as part of the record, to use for any follow-up purposes.  The incident is displayed to the chatting librarian so that he or she will be aware that follow-up will not be possible if that anonymous check box stays checked. The “anonymous” check box can be changed while the session is in progress however, so the incident may also serve as a point of conversation between the librarian and patron, to help the patron decide whether he or she wants to change the option and include the email address without anonymity in order to allow follow-up if necessary.

The email address is still not visible to the chatting librarian in the patron information area of the chat monitor, but the new notifications in the chat history will serve as an alert that the email address is at least in play for the session follow-up capability.

1.2    Customizable confirmation of email sent from “closed” Qwidget

Patrons who send an email message from the Closed Qwidget screen will now see a confirmation message for approximately 10 seconds after their question has been submitted:

The default message is: “Thank you. Your question has been submitted”.  This message can be customized from within theQuestionPoint Admin module.

1.3    Multiple Qwidgets allowed on the same webpage.

Version 3 of our popular “Qwidget” chat widget is now available. By upgrading your Version 2 Qwidget or downloading the newly-revised Version 3 Qwidget code, you can now host up to 5 Qwidgets on one webpage.  Some examples of why this was a highly desired feature:    

• libraries with multiple SUPs can have several different Subject Qwidgets co-exist on the same webpage;
• “Banner” Qwidgets can  display across all of the pages on your site if desired and not impact your embedded  LibGuides Qwidgets;
• Multiple language Qwidgets can simultaneously display on one page, if you have bi-lingual WebPages.

    

 

2      Email pilot expanded

We have successfully concluded the first phase of the recent “QuestionPoint via email service” pilot, and are happy to announce that more libraries will be invited to participate in offering this feature. If your library is interested allowing patrons to submit reference questions to your library using a simple email address in addition to your web-based “email form”, please contact Carol Bonnefil ([email protected]) for more details.

3      Searches/Reports/Reviews

3.1      Label change on Review Transcripts: Form Field Reports

On the Form Field Reports selection page, the item of “Question Form link”  in the drop-down box of types of reports available has been changed to “Webform/Email” to better describe all of the types of questions included in that report.  Choosing “Webform/Email” will produce a list of all of the questions submitted using the QuestionPoint “email form” as well as questions submitted to your library’s QuestionPoint email address (a new service currently in Pilot phase.  See section 1.2 )

 

3.2      Label change on Search Transcripts, Transaction Type Limiter:

On the Advanced Search screen of Search Transcripts in the Ask Module, the Transaction Type limiter “Email Transaction Only” has been changed to reflect the actual search function limiter of “Email/Webform/Walk-up (Add Question) only”.

4    Policy Page formatting explanation added

 On the Policy Page edit field (available to Admins and Ask Admins in the Profile Module), and explanation of how to create hot-links to URLs within the fields has been added: 

“Add angle brackets to any URL to convert to a hyperlink, except where noted in specific field instructions.”

This will remind librarians that html complicated html tags are not necessary to convert URLs to hotlinks. Except for where noted in a particular field, the addition of left and right angle brackets at the beginning and end of a URL, respectively, < >,  will convert it to a hotlink on the actual Policy Page display.

5      Transcript exports

A new custom feature is available for libraries that wish to continuously export their transcripts into their own hosted environments. Using S-FTP, transcripts can be exported to a remote self-hosted environment. All incidents that cause a change in transcript content or status will trigger an export of the transcript, permitting nearly-synchronous duplicate transaction information on your locally hosted machine and allowing for data mining, reports capabilities customized to your own liking, and further activity upon all of your QuestionPoint transactions. For more information on this custom service, please contact Carol Bonnefil ([email protected]) 

Fixes

1        Qwidget fixes.

1.1       Display of URLS in chat history in Qwidget was inconsistent.

Prior to this install, lengthy URLs could fail to “wrap” in the frame, thereby causing Qwidgets to display improperly on the webpage.

         URLs are now contained in the frame, regardless of length.

                                                      

1.2       Patron’s email address is removed from view after email question is   submitted from Closed Qwidget.

After a patron enters their email address and question, and uses the “Submit” button, the patron’s email address is now immediately removed from the screen, rather than upon page refresh, in order to better protect the patron’s privacy in a public venue.

2         ISoft Daily Chat Stats report for July 8, 2012 have been recovered.

It was reported that the daily stats for chat sessions which occurred on 7/8/12 were not correctly displaying in the Reports module.  This has been corrected and all statistics for 7/8/12 have been updated.  Monthly totals for July 2012 cannot be retroactively corrected to include the statistics for July 8^th activity.  To achieve a correct total for a Monthly, Quarterly or Annual report  for 2012, the total from the Daily report for 7/8/2012 will have be manually added to the respective Mnth/Qtr/Yr end report.  A note has been added to the Reports page to remind users of this.

3        Online Patron Form Field Reports now match Offline Reports.

Data columns in Online Patron Form Field Excel reports now match same data in the offline reports in Ask Module>Review Transcripts.

4        Patron Account Question Lists

Patron’s sessions in their QuestionPoint Patron account are now default sorted in chronological order.

Quality Tip: check the “Info” tab for Patron Information

You can find out a lot about your patron, even before you click on the “Policies” link, by just looking at the “Info” tab – located in the lower left of the librarian chat monitor.

Some of the information available will depend on the form used by the patron to enter the service.  For example, Qwidget patrons may have less information captured because they do not need to fill out a form before chatting.  For those who enter via the library’s chat form, the “info” tab presents all the information provided by the patron, which may help you determine the library, and even the branch, with which the patron is affiliated.  IMPORTANT: be sure and scroll down, as all information from the library form fields, as well as Oregon patron email information, is located at the bottom of the patron info tab!

Information from library chat forms is especially useful when patrons access the service via a portal site not affiliated with a specific library, which is often the case for groups where multiple libraries link to the same chat form.  For example, Enquire – the UK national service, comprised of many different libraries – has one main site, which links to the generic Enquire policy page. But, Enquire patrons are requested to submit the first 3 digits of their postcode, which will appear in the “info” tab (if patrons don’t opt to be anonymous).

Our newest group, Oregon, doesn’t use standard QuestionPoint forms, so be sure and check the “info” tab for important information about Oregon patrons, including whether or not the patron left an email (you won’t see the email itself, but you will see an indication as to whether patron left an email on the Oregon form).  CAVEAT: with Oregon forms, all patrons will appear to QP as anonymous (so in the first part of the Info tab you will see “Library Patron (No e-mail provided)”. But, be sure and scroll down to the “note” field, which is the true determinant of whether patron has left an email. You won’t see the email address itself, but you will be able to see whether an email was submitted. If in doubt, it’s ok to ask the patron to verify their email address before coding Follow Up!

Questions about the 24/7 Reference Cooperative policies? Email Susan at [email protected]

Quality tip: Rude patrons? Follow the Rude Patron policy

Just in time for the start of the school year, we’ve revised the Rude Patrons policy to provide more guidance when dealing with the pranksters, the rude, the obscene and the abusive. The new policy is available in the 24/7 Policies section 4.5.1,  Rude Patrons policy.

The revised rude patron policy takes a look at 4 types of “rude” behavior: 

• Pranksters/goofing
• Impatience
• Rude behavior/obscene language
• Abuse/personal attacks

For each of the 4 behaviors, we provide guidelines and examples. In addition, we’ve added a Policy of Mutual Respect, which you can reference in those cases where the patron’s library does not have its own policy.

Do the policies work?  Here’s an example where the patron made a lewd suggestion to the chatting librarian at the beginning of the session.   According to the policy for “rude behavior/obscene language: Obscenity is never okay. Librarian should: set boundaries

Guidelines:

• First warn the patron that the behavior is unacceptable and that the session will be ended if that behavior continues.
• If patron’s bad behavior continues, then disconnect.

Here is what happened when the librarian followed this policy:

Patron: i need help with my library card
Librarian: Hello, <patron’s name> !
Librarian: My name is Pat. I am a librarian who is helping to answer questions for your library. I am reading what you wrote to see how I can help you...what seems to be the matter?
Patron: i need someone to [patron makes lewd suggestion]
Librarian: At this time I must warn you that if you would like to continue in this chat session, that type of language is considered unacceptable. Would you like to continue without using that type of language?
Patron: sure
Patron: hi
Librarian: Hi, how may I help you with your library card?
Patron: i need to activate it but when can i come
Librarian: Let me see what I can find...
Patron: ok
Librarian: Do you mean when can you visit the library during business hours?
Patron: yea like when can i activate it? can i do it online
[Librarian sends information from policy page regarding activating library cards, as well as branch location and hours]
Librarian: Can I help you with anything else?
Patron: no thank you so much
Patron: bye
Librarian: Thanks for using our service! If you need help with anything else, just contact us again. Goodbye for now.

When your patrons send messages containing obscene language, first warn that this behavior is unacceptable.  The warning may stop the offending behavior and allow you to provide good service, as in the session above.  However if this patron had continued to use obscenities, then end the session.  Librarians have enough to deal with as it is, and we don’t want to condone bad behavior from our patrons!

Questions about the new rude patron policy? Just send me an email at [email protected]

Quality Tip: Helping visually challenged patrons

A few weeks ago, a patron began sessions by asking the chatting librarian to type all responses in capital letters.  Rather than entering a question in the question form, he wrote a variation of: “PUT CAPS ON”, “ I NEED CAPS FROM YOU” or “I NEED CAPS LOCK FROM YOU”.  Apparently, when the chatting librarian types using all capital letters, it is easier for this patron to see the text.  Here is a sample session from this patron:

Patron: I NEED CAPS LOCK FROM YOU

Librarian sends greeting

Librarian: how may I help you

Patron: ITS AT THE TOP

Librarian: you appear to be using caps lock

Librarian: that is why I am asking

Patron: YEP I NEED YOU TO USEUM TO

Librarian: I am sorry but I am working with three of you

Librarian: so cannot switch to caps lock

Librarian: is there anything else that you need

Patron: WHY CAINT YOU USE CAPS?

Librarian: because then I would be using them for all three people

Librarian: and caps is considered shouting

Patron: NO ITS NOT IM VISUALLY IMPAIRED

Librarian continues the session with capital letters

Although it may be uncomfortable to type in all caps with a patron (as the librarian above stated, it is commonly perceived as shouting), it may work better for some patrons.  But, don’t use caps unless specifically requested to by the patron, as for most it really does imply shouting!

The QuestionPoint patron interface does provide some assistance for the visually impaired.  If you suspect a patron may need assistance, direct them to the “Preferences” link, which appears just under their chat entry box. Patrons can use Preferences to do the following:

• Turn off or on the chime that sounds when new messages are received
• Enlarge the font size.
• Change the font face.
• Change the font and background colors

However, some patrons may prefer caps lock to the options available through Preferences.  Either way, you can help make chat more accessible to visually challenged patrons.

Quality Tip: ask patron for library card info? not necessarily!

The 24/7 Reference Cooperative respects the privacy of our patrons, and we don’t want to ask for personal information (which is captured in the transcript) unless this information is required to fulfil the patron’s information need.  One area where patron privacy may conflict with helping the patron is asking the patron to reveal his library card (or barcode) number.  The Cooperative Policy states: "Librarians may ask patrons for patron's library card/barcode number and PIN/password during a chat session if this will assist in providing good service to the patron."  See section 4.6 of the Policies, Patron Privacy: Patron Privacy

However, please be sure this is necessary before taking this step! In the example below, the librarian may not have needed this information.

Patron: Do I have a book in that I placed on hold? The Book Thief by Marcus Zuak
Librarian sends greeting
Librarian:    I would need your library card and PIN number to try to look for you.
Patron provides library card number
Librarian:     I am not able to log in with those numbers.  Can you please verify them?
Librarian:  Your library has that book, but I am unable to place a hold on it with the card number you provided.
Librarian:     Thank you for using our reference chat service. Feel free to check back with us if you have additional questions later. It has been a pleasure to help you. Goodbye.

In this case, the librarian didn't really determine if the library card number was useful; there was no reference conversation.  This could have played out in various ways, depending on what the issue really is.  For example:

Scenario #1: Patron doesn't know how to check their online account

Patron: Do I have a book in that I placed on hold? The Book Thief by Marcus Zuak

Librarian: Have you checked your account yet?  Do you know how to do that online?

Patron: How do you do that?

Then the librarian could describe how to do it/what to click on - no need to actually ask for patron’s library card information to do this.

Scenario #2: Patron can't get into the online account

Patron: Do I have a book in that I placed on hold? The Book Thief by Marcus Zuak

Librarian: Have you checked your account yet?  Do you know how to do that online?

Patron: yes, but I can't get in

The librarian can try troubleshooting tips, such as assisting the patron with PIN information (based on the PIN guidelines available through the  library policy page).  There is no need to get the patron's actual library card number.

Scenario #3: Patron is in the online account but is confused

Patron: Do I have a book in that I placed on hold? The Book Thief by Marcus Zuak

Librarian: Have you checked your account yet?  Do you know how to do that online?

Patron: Yes, I am in there but I don't know where to look, can you check for me?

Librarian: I would be happy to look at your account, but you should be aware that there is a very small chance that your card privacy could be compromised if you give your login information to me via chat. For added protection, please change your PIN number after we end the call. Would you like to continue, or would you rather contact the library directly?

Remember to use the reference conversation to ascertain what the patron needs, and what is blocking the patron from achieving his goal.  The reference conversation will guide you in providing more targeted help, while respecting the patron’s online privacy to the extent possible.

Quality Tip: ask “what don’t you like about what I sent?”

Librarians try to find (and send) those sources most likely to meet their patrons’ information needs.  But sometimes a patron isn’t satisfied with the information sent, despite the librarian’s best efforts.  Remember chat is a dialog – a conversation – so use this opportunity to clarify the request.  If you send a site that – to you - seems to satisfy the request, but the patron isn’t happy with it, then just ask the patron to explain why the information isn’t useful.  This question may help the patron to better articulate their information need, so you, the librarian, can send them something more useful.

Example:

Patron: how the television has evolved over time

Librarian: [after greeting the patron] Are you thinking about physical attributes of the set, or the content of what is aired?

Patron: both

Librarian suggests databases

Patron: i checked the data bases but i never found any resources. i need websites to answer this question for my annotation

Librarian: Your instructor is requiring websites off of the general internet instead of information from the online databases?

Patron: yes

Librarian sends a site and asks: Is something like this useful to you?

Patron: no. the web site is not useful for me

Librarian: Okay. Can you tell me more about the type of thing you're trying to find, so I can find better resources for you?

Patron: a sourceful website that i could use for an annotation bibliography

Librarian: You are asking for a resource that shows how television has evolved over time, correct?

Patron: yes

Librarian sends a second site

Librarian: Okay, this page gives links to a variety of resources related to the different eras of television--does this look useful? If not, please let me know...

Patron: no

Librarian: Let me show you a chronology to see if that is more along the lines of what you were thinking... [Librarian sends a third site]

Librarian: Is this information helpful?

Patron: um no, i need a web site with info

Librarian: When you say "a website with info," do you mean a website that includes various years?

Patron: well yea but more information on the years

Librarian: Let's try this...[sends a fourth site]

Patron: this website is not helpful

Librarian: Can you explain why it is not helpful? That will help me to find one that is. Thank you, [patron name]

Patron: because it does not start with the 1920

Librarian: Thanks! But it does cover 1920. It  goes from 1880 to the present time. Do you need something that specifically focuses on television in the year 1920?

Librarian sends fifth site: http://transition.fcc.gov/omd/history/tv/1880-1929.html

Patron: ok this covers it thanks

Librarian: You are very welcome! Is there anything else I can help you with today?

[The session continues, as librarian helps patron with a related question]

The reference conversation is a great way to make sure you are sending information the patron can use.  If the sites you send don’t seem to be working for your patron, just ask why – it can save time and increase user satisfaction with the service.