Competition for

Library Services
For the Inspiration, Innovation, and
Celebration Conference for Librarians
Dr. Larry Nash White
East Carolina University

Learning Walkabout
Is there competition for
library services
Examples of competitors
and their impacts
How do we respond?

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Is there competition for library

services?

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A Networked World

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Its a flat World

High tech, High touch,

Individualization

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The publics perception of

libraries

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We offer quality services

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The latest technology

applications

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We are change agents and

proactive responders to
challenges and problems

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Time for a reality

from
a customers
viewpoint
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 You are not the ONLY provider of library

and information services in your area.
You may not even be the BEST provider of
library and
information services in your area.
You may not even be the FIRST provider
that your customers think of when obtaining
library and information services.
Someone would take YOUR customers from
you in a
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New York minute if YOU let them! And THEY

The Competitors
We have seen the enemy and it
is us
What we can see coming the
tangible competitors
What we cant see that is already
here the intangible
competitors
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Libraries compete with other

libraries and government
agencies
Libraries compete for:
Staffing Resources Collaborators
Partners
Opportunities Appreciation
Support
Technology Market Share Existing
Customers
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New Customers Finances ???

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The Tangibles

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New book technologies

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Social networking

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The 800 hundred pound gorilla in

the room
What if Articles
and book chapters
as 99 downloads /
Google Docs and Spreadsheets rentals?
Google Calendar - Google Base Google Maps - Google Wallet
/Cart - G-Mail GTalk Google
Scholar Google Phone IGoogle -

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Search Engines galore

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A few more library service

competitors

Abrams, Steven. Social Libraries and Librarians: Collaboration,

Cooperation, Sharing, Storytelling, and Networking. SLIS
Johannesburg: August 24, 2007.

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Did I say there were a few

more?

Abrams, Steven. Social Libraries and Librarians: Collaboration,

Cooperation, Sharing, Storytelling, and Networking. SLIS
Johannesburg: August 24, 2007.

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There are more than a few

Abrams, Steven. Social Libraries and Librarians: Collaboration,

Cooperation, Sharing, Storytelling, and Networking. SLIS
Johannesburg: August 24, 2007.

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More detailed information and

access

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Flexibility of access

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Books-by-demand printing

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The Potentials

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The Hidden Competitors

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A dome scratcher

What is the most valuable

thing in this room?

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A dome scratcher

What is the most valuable

thing in this room?
Well,

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A dome scratcher

What is the most valuable

thing in this room?
Well,
Imagine if
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The Hidden In your town

After-school
programs

???

Bookstores

???

Compact Disc Retail

???

Internet Products /
Services

???

Libraries

???

Reading
Programs/Support

???

Schools (All types)

???

Video Retailers

???

Youth Programs

???

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Library Closures
2008 Public Library Closure Study (Koontz,
et.al)
Study of library closures 2003 - 2007 years
Over 500 closures noted
4 types of closures
Temporary (Short term)
Temporary (Long term)
Swaps
Permanent closures

Approximately 125 permanent closures

Of the permanent closures....

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Academic libraries are not

immune
Academic
Academic librarians answer 72.8 million reference questions
each yearalmost twice the attendance at college football
games. (down from 97 million in 2002)
College libraries receive less than two cents of every dollar
spent on higher education.
The number of librarians per 1,000 students enrolled in 2
and 4-year colleges and universities in the US dropped from
2.4 in 2000 to less than .5 in 2004.
72% of college student respondents said the search engine
would be their first choice the next time they need a source
for information. College students rank the library a distant
second with 14%...

Sources: ALA Office for Research & Statistics, OCLC Reports

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Competitor facts
Reference questions answered by public libraries:
7,000,000 / week (1 million / day). Google
searches: approximately 1.28 billion / day.
Second Lifes library gets 5,000 registered visitors
a day in the library
Unique pages added to the web per day: 7.3
million
SirsiDynix purchase: $1 billion +
$226,182,000 for the Library Services and
Technology Act (LSTA)2008
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So how do we compete?

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Stop being comfortable

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And do something!

We librarians must
learn that when we
study something to
death, Death was not
our original goal.

Steven Abram, Vice President, Innovation, Sirsi Dynix

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Be proactive!

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Competitive Responses
Respond like a business!
Expand your performance
assessment scope and
effectiveness
Include competitive scanning /
intelligence with your performance
assessment
Use research to your advantage!
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Competitive Responses
Develop new strategic competitive
responses:
Know your service environment
Innovate your librarys services
and service delivery methods
Increase access, accountability
and alignment to the service
environment
Delivery service impact, cost
effectiveness
value,
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A Flat World Library

Biblioteca
de
Santiago

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Pending research on competition

Pending study of library administrators
perceptions of competition and their actual
competitive practices
Competitive resources and activities inventory
Library as a whole / Library leaders
Resources committed to competing in library service
environment

Where are our most competitive libraries?

What are they doing?
How are they doing it?
What difference is it making?
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Being a librarian in a
competitive economy is not too
bad

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The end of the walkabout

I am happy to take your questions!

Thank you for coming today!
Available to speak / work with your
libraries
To contact Dr. White:
whitel@ecu.edu
252-328-2315
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