Creating Great User Experiences: Taking Libraries beyond Customer Service

Is user experience at the center of your library's thinking? User experience (UX) characterizes how a person feels about a product, system, or service. The “touchpoints” of user experience are in your building, on your website, or in social media. When you create a handout, write content for your website, decide how to shelve a collection, or develop a new program, you are making design decisions that result in experiences for your patrons.

In this course, you will learn how to provide better user experiences by exploring:

• The relationship between user experience, user experience design, and innovation
• Touchpoints and “pain points” in your library buildings
• Customer journey maps and other techniques for improving physical touchpoints
• The user experience elements of your website
• Usability techniques and website improvements
• UX for the future of libraries

With an awareness of user experience, you’ll be able to make more informed design choices. You’ll understand that good design, in your building and online, requires learning about your community and meeting its needs. You'll gain a toolbox of UX techniques, including user interviews, personas, customer journey maps, and contextual inquiries.

When improving existing services and developing new ones, taking the time to think about users will move your library beyond good customer service to great user experiences.

This course is being repeated because of continued interest in the topic. Those who took the first offering of the course commented that it: "...broadened my definition of customer service," and "...reminded me to pay attention to how customers navigate the library and how we can make this process easier."

Course Description: This four-week online course provides a broad overview of UX that is beneficial to any libraries exploring how to improve in-person or online user experience. The course includes readings, resources, and opportunities for discussion with each other and with the instructor. You will learn about the concepts of user experience (UX) and touchpoints, as well as a variety of UX techniques, including user interviews, personas, customer journey maps, and contextual inquiry. Depending on your level of work responsibility, you’ll have opportunities to apply UX tools and techniques to developing or improving your library’s website, programs, or services. You will be able to explore and comment on innovative, user-centered library programs and services.

Preliminary Course Outline: Using an Internet connection and web browser, you will log in to the Infopeople online learning site and complete the following learning modules:

• Week 1: Introduction to User Experience (UX)
  • Concept of touchpoints
  • UX terminology
  • UX as a service philosophy that everyone needs to share
  • Overcoming roadblocks
  • The UX toolbox
  • Five Steps of Innovation
  • How UX can optimize or create
• Week 2: Library Online User Experience
  • Introduction to website usability
  • Writing for the web
  • Website usability techniques
  • What library websites need to do
  • The library’s social media presence
• Week 3: UX in Library Buildings
  • Library touchpoints—what they are, why they are important, and why they must add up.
  • Tools for analyzing touchpoints
  • Applying UX design techniques
  • Tools for learning about users
• Week 4: Beyond Optimization: UX for the Future of Libraries
  • How user experience and design thinking help libraries evolve
  • Applying Five Steps of Innovation to user-centered library programs and services
  • Future users
  • Library UX as advocacy
  • Examples of innovative user-centered library programs and services
  • Resources for future awareness

Time Required: To complete this course, you can expect to spend 2½ hours per week, for a total of ten course hours. Each week's module contains readings and various options for assignments and discussions. You can choose the options most relevant to your work and interests. Although you can work on each module at your own pace, at any hour of the day or night, it is recommended that you complete each week's work within that week to stay in sync with other learners.

Who Should Take This Course: Library staff who want to understand how user experience and user experience design can be applied to improving current services and creating new services. Please note: Some elements of this course will be more applicable to library managers or IT staff in decision-making positions.

Online Learning Details and System Requirements may be found at: infopeople.org/training/online_learning_details.

Payment: Your invoice will be emailed to the email address of the person who completed the registration. If that is not the person paying the invoice please forward invoice to the appropriate person. Payment is due within 30 days. If you have any questions about your invoice or payment please contact Gini Ambrosino at [email protected].

Course Start: This online learning course starts on Tuesday, August 13, 2013.

After the official end date for the course, the instructor will be available for limited consultation and support for two more weeks, and the course material will stay up for an additional two weeks after that. These extra weeks give those who have fallen behind time to work independently to complete the course.