QuestionPoint: 24/7 reference services

Quality Tip: Summer Reading Programs? Check the Policy Page

Summer’s here and it’s time for summer reading programs at the library!  Public librarians please note:  we have a field in the policy pages just for this purpose; the field name is: Summer Reading programs/lists.  Use this field to link to your library’s summer reading program or, if there is no dedicated site, provide information on dates, program information, etc.  If your library has a summer reading program, then fill out this field.

For example, Harris County public library in Texas has a lively summer reading program with excellent information in their policy page.  Take a look at the HCPL policy page:  there is a link to their summer reading site followed by a brief description of the programs available for a summer of reading at Harris County.  HCPL’s list approach within the policy page field presents a lot of information clearly: you can see at a glance that there are actually 4 programs at HCPL this summer, categorized by age (babies, kids, teens and adults).  The brief description in the policy page tells us the kids program is for children aged 18 months to 12 years, and there’s a link to that specific program.  This really helps the chatting librarian focus the reference conversation in order to send information on the specific appropriate program. 

Thanks Harris County, and to all of you who’ve made it easier to handle questions about your summer reading program!

Quality Tip: Scripts vs Policy pages? Use both!

QP scripted messages provide an opportunity for libraries to send direct messages to their patrons – even when the chatting librarian is from another library.  For example, NYPL has a scripted message for how to cancel a hold.  Ask Here PA has a script for class visits.  There are many other examples, but various libraries have created scripted messages for use with their patrons, which you can find in the chat monitor:

 

Of course the library’s policy page is the main source of information about your library, and all Coop librarians should consult the library’s policy page when answering questions about the library’s resources or policies.  All libraries in the 24/7 Reference Cooperative are required to maintain a policy page, but scripted messages are left to individual library discretion – some may have a few scripted messages, some may have many, and some may have none.   As a result, many chatting librarians do not check the scripted messages when dealing with a non-local patron.

If you’d like to highlight any of your scripted messages, do mention your scripts in the appropriate section of your policy page.  A great example of this is Fort Vancouver Regional Library in Washington (state).  There’s a nice statement in the eBook section of the FVRL policy page that:

FVRL does have downloadable eBooks available to patrons through OverDrive and Axis360 platforms and downloadable audiobooks from OneClickDigital at http://bit.ly/FVRLeBooks.

Please note we have scripts for questions about eBooks, eReaders, and Kindle. Look for e.eBook Response, e.eReader Response, or e.Kindle Response.

Why we love this:

• The note that scripted messages are available on the topic of eBooks is included with the policy page information on eBooks (i.e. in the eBooks field of the policy page field) as well as in the alerts.  This is much better than just a general message in the Alerts section to “check our scripted messages”
• FVRL provides clues on how to find the appropriate script by providing the script title, making it easier to scroll through the scripted messages to find the appropriate scripts
• The note about scripts is in red typeface, making it stand out.

If you have scripted messages that you’d like the Coop librarians to use, follow the lead of Fort Vancouver Regional Library and provide information about any pertinent scripts, in the policy page field where librarians would likely be seeking that information.  And include the name of your script(s), especially if you have several.

Thanks to Fort Vancouver for this innovative approach to scripts and policy pages!

Quality Tip: “Reject” when you need to say “Look at this!”

Have you ever inadvertently coded a session with an incorrect Resolution Code when staffing the Cooperative?  The resolution code you select has consequences, as follows:

Answered:  session will appear in the patron library Active question list

Follow Up by Patron Library:  session will appear with a ? (red question mark), in both the patron library’s New and Active list

Lost Call:  session will appear in the Closed list (and not in the Active question list)

Most libraries tend to look at the New list first, because that list contains all sessions that need following up.  This includes any chat sessions coded Follow Up by Patron Library as well as new email questions and sessions where a patron has sent a reply to a previous librarian response.  Then, if there is time, the library will look at the Active list.  Very often, no one looks at the Closed list.

If you intend to code a chat session for follow up, but accidently code it as Answered or Lost Call, then the Patron library may not realize that their patron is expecting more information.  Unfortunately, you can’t change the Resolution Code of a session after the fact, but you can bring a session to the Patron Library’s attention by using the Reject feature.  Reject will change the status of the question to New, so that it will now appear in the Patron Library’s New list, with a red question mark.  

Only use Reject if follow up is needed and you did not use the Follow Up resolution code.  You do not need to use Reject if you *did* use the Follow Up resolution code, or if no follow up is needed (in other words, if you meant to code a session as answered and you accidently used Lost Call, there is no need to Reject the session).  You may, however, wish to add a Librarian Note, from the chat monitor.

User Group meeting at ALA Annual, 2013

If you are attending ALA in Chicago, please join us for the QuestionPoint user group meeting! The meeting will be held:

Saturday, June 29, 10:30 a.m.- 11:30 a.m.

Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, Regency Ballroom C

We will provide a QuestionPoint update from the QP product team, with plenty of time for questions, discussion, and learning about tips and tricks from QuestionPoint colleagues. If you have specific topics you would like us to discuss, you may send them to me at [email protected]

If you are planning to attend, please register here:

https://www.oclc.org/forms/ala-annual.en.html

Hope to see you in Chicago!

Webinars: Best Practices in Virtual Reference, Spring/Summer 2013

Please join us for these upcoming webinars in our popular series on Best Practices in Virtual Reference. All webinars are free, and they’ll be recorded and posted on the QuestionPoint website for future viewing. Each webinar begins at Noon Eastern Time (-4 UTC) and lasts approximately one hour.

- Register for the meeting

- You will get a confirmation email with instructions for joining the meeting

1. Engaging with Patrons Online: June 14

What makes a chat session good and what makes a chat session exceptional? How do you know you’re truly helping a patron? Sometimes it’s not always clear from working with a patron in a virtual setting to know when you have satisfied their request. There has been a large amount of research done on how to reach and engage with patrons in that online environment. Carla Pfahl, Coordinator of AskMN (Minnesota’s statewide virtual reference service), and Merrie Davidson, Social Sciences Librarian and fellow AskMN librarian at the University of St. Thomas, will look at how to conduct a reference interview and what makes an exceptional reference transaction.

Date: June 14 at Noon, Eastern Time (UTC –4)

To register for this meeting:

- Go to

https://oclc.webex.com/oclc/j.php?ED=200677787&RG=1&UID=0&RT=MTgjMTE%3D

- Register for the meeting

- You will get a confirmation email with instructions for joining the meeting

2. Chasing the Sun: a 24/7 chat service by medical librarians for health professionals: July 2

The Chasing the Sun service enables health professionals to contact a medical librarian whenever help is required in using information resources after normal library hours. Although most hospital-based health professionals have 24/7 online access to a collection of bibliographic databases and full text products via their library services, but sometimes expert help is needed to use the resources or to perform a search outside of normal business hours. Chasing the Sun was started by medical librarians in Australia and England to take advantage of global time differences and offer out-of-hours librarian support for health professionals, in a cost-effective way. Join Mary Peterson, SA (South Australia) Health Library Network Knowledge Manager to find out more ... and, if you are a medical librarian, how your library can join this global cooperative group!

Date: July 2 at Noon, Eastern Time (UTC –4)

To register for this meeting:

- Go to

https://oclc.webex.com/oclc/j.php?ED=200678197&UID=481807147&RT=MTgjMTE%3D

- Register for the meeting

- You will get a confirmation email with instructions for joining the meeting

Stay tuned for additional webinars in the series!

Quality Tip: Harvard Referencing? Look at the Policy Page!

Academic students often have questions related to citing their sources, and it’s important to ascertain which citation style the students need.  In the U.S. the most common citation styles are APA, MLA and Chicago Style.  In the UK, a popular style is Harvard referencing.  The chief distinction with Harvard referencing is there are no footnotes.  Instead, partial citations— for example (Smith 2010, p. 1)—are enclosed within parentheses and embedded in the text, either within or after a sentence.  The list of full citations, or “references”, appear in an end section, in alphabetical order.  

While you can find style guides for Harvard referencing on the web, be cautious!  There are two main styles of Harvard referencing:  author-date and author-title, with variations.  Several UK universities use a modified version of Harvard which varies by school.  Students must use the version of Harvard approved by their school.   So, when helping a student with formatting citations, be sure to determine the citation format required.  If the student says “Harvard”, please consult the library’s policy page!  The University of the West of England, for example, has a nice web page (linked from their policy page) specifically designed to help students format their citations based on UWE-specific citation principles.  Open University also has a link to their specific Harvard reference guidelines – which are different from UWE – in the Alerts section of their policy page.

Following the correct referencing guidelines is important:  UWE had a formal complaint this year because a student failed coursework having been given incorrect referencing information.  If in doubt, be sure to code the session for Follow Up, so the patron library can provide the correct information.   This is preferable to the chatting librarian sending an incorrect guide, and having the student rely on this to their detriment.

Don’t just give the students a guide – give them the correct guide, and to do that, consult the library’s policy page. 

Quality Tip: Transfer Tips

Last week’s Quality Tip discussed using the importance of sending an IM message FIRST, as part of the transfer process.  This week we’ll look in more detail at who you can transfer to, and when it’s appropriate to do so.

The general rule is when you pick up a patron, stick with him.  Thanks to our Policy Pages, most questions – even local ones – can be handled by any librarian in the Cooperative.  But there are times when transferring will result in better service to the patron, such as the following scenarios:

1. You (the chatting librarian) suddenly have an emergency and must end the session.  Rather than leave the patron in the lurch, find another librarian monitoring the Cooperative queues who is not already busy and send an IM requesting permission to transfer.  If you don’t have time for that, or the Coop librarian doesn’t respond to your IM, then transfer the session to the After Hours queue.  Note:  Be sure a librarian is monitoring the Cooperative before transferring a Coop question!  If the librarian is monitoring less than 50 queues, she probably isn’t monitoring the Cooperative (she may just be monitoring her local service).
2. End of shift:  generally you should try to finish the session or offer the patron the option of a follow-up from the local library.  However, if the session is not at a good stopping point and you must leave, transfer to a librarian monitoring the Cooperative.  Note:  if you are ending your shift, chances are many of the other Coop librarians are too.  Try to pick someone who is (1) monitoring the Coop queues and (2) hasn’t been logged in for long – a good indication that person has just started their shift, rather than just ending it.
3. Patron does need very local information (and you can find nothing on the policy page or via a web search) and you see the local librarian online, then send that local librarian an IM message and see if they are available for transfer. 
4. Academic librarian with a public patron/public librarian with an academic patron: Transfer is possible to any librarian monitoring the same queues that you are.  Some Coop groups do cross-sector monitoring, in other words academic librarians monitor for their state’s public queues, and vice versa. For example, an easy way for an academic librarian to see if any public librarians are available for transfer:
1. Go to the Librarians Tab
2. Click the Queue column header to sort by queue.  This will sort all public librarians at the top and all academic libraries following
3. Send an IM to the librarian you’ve selected, to get permission for the transfer.

For more detail on IM and Transfer policies, see the 24/7 Policies, section 5.3.  If you’d like more information on how the QP IM and Transfer works, see the QP Tutorials on our Training page.

Quality Tip: Jumping in/out of chat sessions

Sometimes chatting librarians are so eager to end their shift that they transfer their current session to another librarian without bothering to send a preliminary IM message to their “target” librarian.  We call this a blind transfer and it can be disruptive, as the target librarian is taken by surprise.  On the other hand, there are librarians so anxious to help their own patrons that they jump into on-going sessions with their patron – without warning the original chatting librarian.  While at first glance these two situations seem diametrically opposed (in the first case the librarian is anxious to leave, in the other case anxious to join in), both reveal a lack of courtesy to the chatting librarian – and the patron.

QuestionPoint has a backchannel IM, available to each QP librarian. Click on the IM tab in your chat monitor and you can send (and receive) chat messages to or from any librarian who is monitoring the same chat queues.  Consider these best practices if you must leave your current session, or are ready to join a session currently in progress with another librarian:

If you are with a patron but need to leave, you can transfer that patron to another librarian -  but ask the librarian recipient first, via IM.   You can send the IM message as part of the transfer process:  there is a link to IM once you click the Transfer tab.   See Section 5.3 of the Policies for best practices regarding transferring sessions.

If, on the other hand, you are tempted to jump into a session currently in progress with another librarian, be sure to first check with the chatting librarian who is currently handling the session, via IM.  Usually the chatting librarian will be happy to transfer the session to you, and this will free him or her up to pick up another patron.  We’ve added a new policy to cover “jumping in”: Section 5.4: http://wiki.questionpoint.org/w/page/13839422/247-Policies#54nbspJumpingintoSessions

For more information on the mechanics of IM and Transfer, please view our tutorial: http://www.oclc.org/support/training/portfolios/discovery/questionpoint/tutorials/using-im-and-xfr.en.html , and take a look at our blog posting from March 12 as well.

Quality Tip: Saying Goodbye in all the right ways

Telling the patron “Goodbye” at the end of a chat session is important:  it provides an indication to the patron that the librarian has concluded the session and, equally important, it is a mark of politeness to the patron. Compare an interaction where the librarian ends with a friendly goodbye message (e.g., “Goodbye, and thanks for using our service!”) to a librarian who simply disconnects.  Ending the session without saying goodbye is like hanging up on someone, abruptly, on the telephone (or closing a door in their face).

Many (but not all) libraries in the Cooperative have provided a Goodbye script for chatting librarians to use with their patrons.  You can find these scripted messages in the lower left of the librarian chat monitor, under the “scripts” tab.  Libraries take different approaches with their Goodbye scripts.  Here are a few examples:

1. Generic friendly

This simple approach is taken by the AskWA service (state of Washington).  This script does not include the name of the service, so it can be used by both WA librarians helping Coop patrons as well as Coop librarians helping WA patrons.  Note this script references the possibility of a survey (it’s only a possibility since this script is designed to conclude sessions regardless of the library, which means the chatting librarian won’t know if a survey link has been set up or not).

03_Goodbye:

Bye! I hope the session was helpful and that you'll use us again soon! If you provided an email, you will receive a transcript of this session shortly. You may also see a link to a survey, which you may use to rate this service. Thanks!

2.  Service name included

Many libraries use the Goodbye script as a way to promote the service by including the service’s name in the closing message.  This has the advantage of reminding the patron of the service’s name, which makes it more likely patrons will remember that name when next they need assistance.  This is most common among statewide services that have a separate portal page or statewide name.  Ask Here PA (Pennsylvania statewide service) is a good example:

PA Goodbye:

Thank you for using Ask Here PA. It has been a pleasure assisting you and I hope you will use Ask Here PA again.

Note the script name is “PA Goodbye”, to be used only with patrons entering via a PA chat queue.  Since this script does mention the service name, PA has a non-service specific script for PA librarians to use with Coop patrons:

24/7 Goodbye (use w/ non-PA patrons):

Thank you for using our service. If you need further assistance, please contact us again. Goodbye for now...

3.  Service name plus more information (marketing; transcript access)

Maryland AskUsNow! has 2 goodbye scripts, one for chat via the usual chat form and one for the Qwidget.  The shorter Qwidget message is in response to the (generally) smaller Qwidget space. 

02.5_Qwidget_Thanks_Goodbye:

Thanks for using Maryland AskUsNow! If you have any further questions, please contact us again. You can end the session by clicking on the "x" at the top right of the widget box. If you provided an e-mail address, you should receive a full transcript from "[email protected]" in a few minutes. Bye for now - and please take a moment to fill out the survey!

The ending for non-Qwidget chats refers to the service’s Facebook page:

02_Thanks_Goodbye:

Thank you for using Maryland AskUsNow! If you have any further questions, please contact us again. You will have an opportunity to send the transcript with links to yourself but if you already provided an e-mail address, you should receive a full transcript from "[email protected]" in a few minutes. You can go ahead and click Exit to end your session. Bye for now - and please take a moment to fill out the survey!

"LIKE" us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/askusnow or find us on twitter @askusnow

Note the instructions to patrons for how to end the session differ, depending on whether it’s a Qwidget patron or a chat form patron.

Tips for Goodbye Scripts: Patron Library

A Goodbye script can accomplish several things:  marketing the service by repeating the name, soliciting feedback about the service by referencing the survey link, providing useful information such as how to access the transcript, and pointing to additional engagement options such as Facebook and other social media.

Script Placement:  if you choose to present a Goodbye script to the chatting librarians, be sure it is clearly labelled and that it is high enough in your script list so that chatting librarians can readily find it at the conclusion of the session.  If the chatting librarian has to scroll through many scripts, this reduces the chances of your Goodbye script being used.  The Goodbye script is the most commonly used script, so it should be at the top (either first or just after the greeting in your list of scripts).

Tips for Goodbye Scripts: Chatting Librarians

Ending the session with a friendly word is a mark of politeness and respect to the patron: it’s essential to providing good customer service. It is not required that you use a Goodbye script but it is highly recommended, since the patron library’s Goodbye script may contain information that the patron library wants their patrons to have.  The 24/7 Best Practices state: send the appropriate Goodbye script provided by the patron’s library. If no Goodbye script is available, thank the patron for using the service and encourage the patron to return.

But, if you use a Goodbye script, be sure you use the script of the patron library!  It is very confusing for a PA patron to see a message that says “Thanks for using Maryland AskUsNow!”

Top 10 Quality Comments of 2012

It’s time again for the annual list of the most commonly reported comments sent to our Quality Team. In 2012, Quality received comments 528 transcripts: 319 (60%) related to sessions handled by librarians from Coop libraries and 209 (40%) related to sessions handled by QP Backup librarians. In addition to these 528 sessions, we received an additional 89 sessions sent to compliment the outstanding work of the chatting librarian.  To put this in perspective, the Cooperative (including QP Backup librarians) handled 367,128 chat sessions in 2012, so 528 represents 0.14% of the total.

The list below reflects the most commonly reported issues in these 528 sessions (some sessions had multiple issues), listed in order of frequency:

1. Policy Page

Librarian does not check the policy page. This inference arises when the information provided in session by the librarian either ignores or contradicts the information provided on the patron library’s policy page. This was also the most often reported issue in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

2. Resolution Code

Incorrect resolution code is assigned. Examples: incorrect use of the “Lost Call” code; librarian coding a session as “Answered” when telling the patron that another librarian will follow up; librarian coding a session for “Follow Up” when patron did not leave an email address.

3. Reference Conversation

Librarian does not properly clarify the question or otherwise engage in the “reference interview”, thus risking miscommunication with the patron.

4. Incorrect information was provided in the session.

In addition to factual errors, this issue refers to any type of "incorrect" piece of information provided during the chat. This issue is often used in conjunction with other issues, for instance if the librarian provides incorrect information regarding a library policy (many times, this happens when the chatting librarian provides an answer based on his own library policies rather than those of the patron’s library: we may code this issue as both “policy page” and “incorrect info”). It also applies if the librarian says "Your librarians have not given me the ability to access your databases, so I cannot help you" but the library did provide a barcode number on the policy page. Or, if a librarian told the patron to use the Academic Search Premier database but the library doesn't subscribe to any EBSCO databases.

5. Contact/Followup Option (tie with No Searching)

With questions of a local nature, the Cooperative librarian may be unable to provide a complete answer to the patron. This is almost always the case when patrons have circulation issues, problems with their library card, etc. Unfortunately, some librarians tell the patron to “contact your library” rather than giving the patron the option to call the library (in which case the chatting librarian should provide the correct phone number, as per the policy page) or offering to code the session for Follow Up.

5. No Searching (tie with Contact/Followup Option) 

The librarian sent a question to Followup or ended the call without attempting a specific search for the information.  Examples include: patron queries whether the library owns a known item and the librarian tells patron to contact the library rather than searching the library catalog and/or databases.

-- Compliments!! --

6. Patron Info (tie with Source Choice)

Librarian should have checked the patron information section to find out the patron's location. For example, the librarian may have asked the patron, "What library do you use?" when the patron already indicated his preferred branch. It is better to ask, "Is ___ your library?"

This code is also used when the librarian does not review the Patron Info tab in the chat monitor and thus fails to note the patron’s library. Example: librarian assumes a New York customer is a patron of New York Public Library although the Patron Info tab reveals that patron is affiliated with another library in New York State.

6. Source Choice (tie with Patron Info)

This issue arises when librarian could have sent better sources (i.e. more authoritative, more current, more appropriate to the patron's level). For example: Librarian does a Google search or sends a wikipedia article for queries that could better be handled by reference to the library’s online databases or catalog.

7.  Tone/Phrasing

The chatting tone of the librarian affected the quality of the session, or, the librarian used negative phrasing .

8. Abrupt Ending

Ended session abruptly without a natural closure to the conversation or when the patron still seemed to need help.

9. Goodbye (tie with Transfer/IM)

The wrong goodbye message was sent (chatting librarian sent their own library's goodbye message rather than patron library goodbye message).

9. Transfer/IM (tie with Goodbye)

When librarian either (1) incorrectly transferred a chat; (2) transferred a chat without using IM first; or (3) the librarian should have offered the transfer option but did not. 

10.  Hello

Librarian did not use a hello message that conforms to guidelines listed in the Best Practices.

A plea to the Cooperative: Help us with Quality!

Thanks to all for using the 24/7 Reference quality process! By sending sessions to Quality, you not only help us provide guidance when needed to the Coop librarians, but you also help us track issues both for individual libraries and the Cooperative as a whole. And, if you think a Cooperative librarian has done a nice job with one of your patrons’ questions, please send the compliment to Quality. We will pass the compliment along to the chatting librarian, and this helps us keep track of our star libraries. So, don’t hesitate to send a compliment – we love passing those along!

How to send a session to Quality:

In the Ask a Librarian (Ask) module, click the Review Transcripts tab. When viewing the full text of the session, click the “Send to Quality Control” button. Type in any concerns or compliments in the text box, and click submit. The Quality Team will receive your comment with the full transcript, and will respond.

If you have questions about quality, don’t hesitate to email me at [email protected]