Liveblogging the WebWise 2009 Social Media Conference

I am attending a couple of sessions at the IMLS Webwise Conference in DC.
I'll summarize the sessions as they are underway for systemthis users.

The first session is "Making Web 2.0 work for your institution (for free)"

First panelist is Aaron Schmidt, of the DC public libraries, discussing how library websites obstruct usability.

Multiple hierarchies of click-through content, with a high presumption of familiarity with web-language, and a low value on user experience and visual design.

"Brochureware" and "Unintentional Design" are common problems. Other library resources are migrated to the web as pages without being re-written or re-designed.

His example of bad design is his own institutions Lincoln bicentennial webpage. He recommends that the webpage be migrated entirely to a blog platform- which allows really nice looking websites to be created without any web-programming skills. Also showed the Ford Motor Company website, which is a highly customized Wordpress blog, that looks nothing like a blog.

The core writing skill for web writing is "friendliness"! Don't overwrite, be approachable, and respond to comments.

Aaron talks about Twitter for a while. That might be effective in DC or another major metropolitan area where Twitter users are talking about their libraries- question is whether there are users in DE who are Twittering about our libraries. Recommends a light-hearted approach to using Twitter, rather than using it to push out resources, links, and announcements.

Finally talking about using Flickr in libraries. Examples on the Lincoln theme are having users submit pictures of themselves dressed as Lincoln to a library Flickr account, or tag their own photos with a group tag. Another participation from users could be to have them upload short videos to YouTube talking about their lives or their use of the library.

Covers the need to determine guidelines for participation- administration of comments from users, approving or disallowing submissions.

In all cases, providing new avenues for users to participate and interact with the library enhances their connection with the institution and their sense of ownership and support.

That's the first presentation.