NJIT Mobile Project Final Report

August 2012

Ann Hoang Kate Wiggins Robert W. Van Houten Library New Jersey Institute of Technology

Table of Contents
Background ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Approach ......................................................................................................................................... 3 Budget and Staff ............................................................................................................................. 4 Budget ......................................................................................................................................... 4 A. B. C. LibraryLinkNJ Subsidy Contribution ........................................................................... 4 Local (NJIT) Funding Contribution ............................................................................. 4 Total Cost for the Mobile-On-The-Go Project ............................................................. 4

Staff ............................................................................................................................................. 5 Implementation Timeline ................................................................................................................ 5 Mobile Library Services ............................................................................................................. 6 Accessing NJIT Library Mobile Website ................................................................................... 6 Marketing and Public Relations ...................................................................................................... 6 Evaluation ....................................................................................................................................... 7 Outcome Objectives .................................................................................................................... 7 Objectives Rubric........................................................................................................................ 7 Outcome Evaluation Measurement ............................................................................................. 8 Usage Statistics ........................................................................................................................... 8 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 10 Quote ......................................................................................................................................... 12 References ..................................................................................................................................... 12 Appendix A Marketing Example ............................................................................................... 14 Appendix B Testing Log ............................................................................................................ 15

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Background
In March 2012, LibraryLinkNJ funded the LibraryLinkNJ Pilot Project FY2012: New Jersey Libraries-On-The-Go project. The pilot project timeline was from March 2012 to August 2012. The aim of the project was to ensure that member libraries have a mobile presence useful to, and used by, their customers. The objectives were: To provide a selection of mobile options for multi-type libraries; To assist libraries in deciding which option best suits their mobile strategy goals and needs; To facilitate implementing mobile services across the state quickly; and , To subsidize selected libraries implementation, marketing and/or evaluation costs 1. LibraryLinkNJ awarded 23 contracts, with NJIT as a recipient of the subsidized request in the amount of $5,000, to create and implement a mobile website for the Robert W. Van Houten Library. This report summarizes NJITs implementation of LibraryAnywhere software for a library mobile website.

Approach
The mission of the Robert W. Van Houten Library at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) is to satisfy the NJIT communitys scholarly information needs in a timely fashion; increase productivity and effectiveness through customization and personalization of services; and increase scholarly access to NJITs digital resources in pursuit of their educational and research programs in a cost-effective, timely manner, and provide a high-quality academic learning environment2. NJIT strives to continuously anticipate and meet the information needs of our community in our collective search for knowledge. We will do this anytime and anyplace. We will use our staff and our technology, resources and services in creating a model information-literate community. By 2015, US mobile internet users are expected to surpass desktop internet users3. With mobile devices, smartphones and tablets becoming increasingly popular, it is imperative for NJIT library to provide a much greater user experience for our students, faculty and staff no matter what mobile device they are using. Now is the time to develop a responsive, mobile-friendly website. This mobile version of key resources and services: Leverages emerging virtual discovery tools to provide alternate paths to serendipitous discovery; Provides users with more effective, efficient, and higher-quality, and access to the librarys catalog and select databases through the use of new technologies; Provides seamless access to library services, including interlibrary loan and virtual reference; Improves users satisfaction with library services.

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LibraryAnywhere software provides both mobile web access for any mobile device as well as native apps for use on mobile devices including iPhone, iPad, Android, Blackberry and universal devices. LibraryAnywhere has the features and functionalities NJIT students, faculty and staff desire, including: The ability to search the catalog, check book availability, place holds, renew items, and review fines while on-the-go; Full compliance with Section 508 and other accessibility standards; Seamless access to a range of our key electronic databases and e-books; Seamless access to library hours and services, such as contacting subject liaison librarians for further assistance; A barcode scanner that reads QR codes or ISBNs to quickly check if a book is available at the NJIT libraries or other libraries nearby. LibraryAnywhere has the features and functionalities our library staff is looking for to administer the project: Easy set-up, no installation or uploads, and minimum maintenance; New items are added to the LibraryAnywhere mobile site immediately upon entry into NJITs catalog; QR codes in the NJIT librarys website will link to the mobile version of the website (in addition to the automatic redirect); Comprehensive statistics track usage, peak traffic times, devices used and more. By leveraging one of many emerging virtual discovery tools (i.e. LibraryAnywhere software) to provide alternate paths to serendipitous discovery for students, faculty and staff, the Van Houten Library will have successfully anticipated and met the information needs of our NJIT community in the continuous search for knowledge. We will do this anytime and anyplace as we work toward redefining NJITs academic library by managing the migration and transition from traditional to digital library services.

Budget and Staff

Budget
A. LibraryLinkNJ Subsidy Contribution LibraryAnywhere software Funds to purchase equipment for development Salary for student assistant B. Local (NJIT) Funding Contribution Projected salary for Ann Hoang Projected salary for Kate Wiggins C. Total Cost for the Mobile-On-The-Go Project NJIT Library Mobile Project Final Report $5,000.00 $2,000.00 $1,500.00 $1,500.00 $2,650.00 $1,000.00 $1,650.00 $7,650.00 Page 4

Staff
The project team consisted of two permanent staff - the Assistant University Librarian and a Technical Reference Librarian - with additional support from a student assistant to work on the NJIT mobile website project. Both staff members have managerial and technological expertise to successfully implement a responsive, mobile-friendly and mobile-optimized library website. The scheduled project timeline ran from March 15 to August, 2012 with the final report due to LibraryLinkNJ on August 15, 2012. The total hours spent on the project during the project timeline were as follow: Ann Hoang 16 hours Kate Wiggins 48 hours Student Assistant 150 hours Total hours spent on project 214 hours

Implementation Timeline
Date Feb 2012 To March 2012 Activities Research best possible methodology to develop an NJIT library mobile website and complete an environmental scan of existing academic mobile websites Create a detailed project management timeline to properly schedule work and utilize resources for creation of the NJIT library mobile website Begin development of the NJIT library mobile website using LibraryAnywhere software Continue development of the NJIT library mobile website using LibraryAnywhere software Use iPads to test drive (e.g. functionality, usability, and flexibility of) the NJIT library mobile website Deploy the NJIT library mobile website to all students, faculty and staff Evaluate effectiveness of the NJIT library mobile website project (e.g. measure the outcome objectives) Use iPads to conduct one-on-one interviews with students, faculty and staff to measure outcome objectives Analyze data from outcome objectives measurement and produce draft of NJIT mobile website project final report Submit NJIT mobile website project report to LibraryLinkNJ Continued and enhanced marketing and promotion of NJIT library mobile offerings Update mobile site as needed to respond to the evergrowing and eternally-evolving mobile needs of the NJIT community Completion Mar 2012

Apr 2012 to May 2012 Jun 2012 to August 2012 Aug 2012 Sep 2012 and future

May 2012

Jun 2012 to Present

Aug 2012 n/a

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Mobile Library Services

In April 2012, the project team started to develop the NJIT library mobile website using LibraryAnywhere software. The site was completed and deployed to students, faculty and staff in May 2012. With careful planning, it took us a bit of time to finally determine that it was best to develop a separate page for both the main and branch libraries.

Accessing NJIT Library Mobile Website

Main URL: http://www.libanywhere.com/m/673 Universal URL: http://www.libanywhere.com/la/673 Scan QR code to with smartphone to access mobile website

Android app from Google Play http://play.google.com/store Apple app from iTunes store http://www.itunes.com/appstore/ Search for LibraryAnywhere app

Marketing and Public Relations

The project team promoted the NJIT library mobile website project in an organized, timely manner while fulfilling the mission of the library. Promotional activities included: Creating publicity in the form of print flyers and posters, and posted announcements on the librarys blog, library research guides, and webpages [see Appendix A]; Utilizing social networking tools such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google+; Contacting faculty through their respective library subject liaison; Speaking directly with students, faculty and staff; Taking advantage of all opportunities to promote the NJIT library mobile website, including interactions at the reference desk, circulation desk, and classroom instruction.

Promotional efforts will continue and will be escalated with the beginning of the fall semester. As part of information literacy instruction, students will learn how to best access library resources remotely through the use of the mobile app. We are currently exploring the level of interest in offering an information literacy to-go session, encouraging students to do research whenever and wherever they may need to, which we expect will well-exceed the number of iPads we currently have available. As such, students who own tablet computers and/or iPads will be encouraged to bring these devices to their library and information literacy instruction sessions. Librarians will also continue to utilize the Van Houten Librarys presence in social media to NJIT Library Mobile Project Final Report Page 6

continue to reach students that we will not have the ability to meet with face-to-face. Signage (with QR codes pointing to the mobile site) will be placed in highly-visible, high-traffic areas within the library as well as in the Campus Center. Bookmarks advertising our complete mobile presence (including the mobile site and social media connections) will be made available at the circulation and reference desks.

Evaluation
The NJIT mobile website project team, in collaboration with NJITs librarians and staff, has developed a list of outcome objectives to measure the effectiveness and usefulness of the NJIT library mobile website project implementation. The outcome-based evaluation assessed the efficacy and utility of the project by collecting and analyzing data from in-person interviews, online questionnaires, and comprehensive usage statistics of the NJIT library mobile website implementation.

Outcome Objectives
Performance Speedy download time Navigation choices are clear, logical, consistent and available in relevant areas Information is organized logically and meaningfully Graphic files are small enough to download quickly Usability and Design Effectiveness Use of graphic images effectively without adding distraction Sizes and resolutions display to conform to browsers standards Typefaces and font sizes easily legible Reflective of NJITs library image / branding

Outcome Objectives Rubric

Features of library mobile sites 1. Mobile library catalog (OPAC) 2. Mobile library catalog (OPAC) and my account services 3. Information about hours 4. Directions to the library 5. Information on how to contact the library via multiple channels (chat/phone/email) Ask a Librarian Performance Meets standard Meets standard Meets standard Exceeds standard Meets standard Usability and Design Effectiveness Meets standard Needs work Meets standard Needs work Meets standard

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6. Library to mobile-enabled databases 7. News and announcement of library events 8. Access to full website

Meets standard Needs work, slow to load Exceeds standard

Meets standard Exceeds standard Exceeds standard

Outcome Evaluation Measurement

The project team used and continues to use the iPads to conduct one-on-one interviews with students, faculty and staff at the reference desk to obtain and measure the utility of the project. In order to regularly monitor the full impact of implementation, the project team will post evaluation questionnaires on the web for students, faculty and staff to respond at their leisure, anytime and anywhere. The team will also monitor, harvest, and analyze comprehensive statistics such as usage, traffic, and information access provided by LibraryAnywhere to evaluate and validate each outcome objective. Initial QA testing was completed on an ad hoc basis by the project team. Once most of the kinks were ironed out, a formal evaluation spreadsheet was developed [see Appendix B]. Evaluations were completed across various releases of several operating systems (including iOS, Android, BlackBerry OS, and Windows). While most users had success in navigating the mobile site, we did find that some older versions of iOS had inconsistent results; these inconsistencies were eliminated as soon as the users updated to the latest release of iTunes.

Usage Statistics
LibraryAnywhere software provides three types of interfaces for use by a variety of smartphone devices, tablet computers, and desktop computers. They are a native app developed specifically for Apple and Android devices; a mobile app developed for use on the web without needing to download the native app; and a universal version developed for older phones. All three interfaces meet 508 compliance as well as other accessibility standards. The usage statistics are collected in four distinct areas: how many times the site was visited, how well the site performs, the type of uses, and the type of devices used to access the site. Usage by Month (Traffic)
Pages per Visit 1 3.85 2.48 1.61 1.35 2.17 Average Visit (seconds) 0 0 25.1 2.2 4.1 3.2

Date March 2012 April 2012 May 2012 June 2012 July 2012 August 1-14, 2012

Pages 2 127 754 45 31 26

Users 2 33 71 18 16 8

Visits 2 33 304 28 23 12

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Types of Use The percentage of use from the apps is as follow: 52% of library patrons prefer to use mobile web app, 30% of library patrons prefer to use native app and 18% of library patrons use the universal version.
Mobile Web 0 5 455 27 7 10 Native Universal App Version 0 2 0 122 243 56 16 2 24 0 19 0

Date March 2012 April 2012 May 2012 June 2012 July 2012 August 2012

Performance The performance statistics provide a list tasks performed and how responsive are the results lists is as follow:

Task Performed Following most links Loading pages or following some links Displaying the mobile home page Location pages Event pages Searching the OPAC Logging into the OPAC Scanning a barcode within native app

Count 602 286 284 236 71 70 23 1

Average Time (seconds) 0.38 2.22 0.45 3.3 11.85 1.92 0.91 1.98

Devices The percentage of usage from all type of devices (smartphones, tablet computers, and desktop computers) is as follows: 9% of use is from the Android, 22% of use is from iPad/iPhone, 4% of

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use is from the Blackberry, 2% of use is from the Mac, 12% of use is from other and 50% of use is from Windows. a) Devices Use of Native App: the percentage of native app usage from various devices is as follow: 28% of use is from Android, 71% of use is from Apple iOS. b) Devices Use of Mobile App: the percentage of mobile app usage from various devices is as follow: 1% of use is from Android, 4% of use is from Blackberry, 3% of use is from MAC and 92% of use is from Windows. c) Devices Use of Universal Version: the percentage of the universal version usage from various devices is as follow: 13% of use is from Blackberry, 1% of use is from iPad, 65% of use is from others and 21% of use is from Windows.

Date Android Blackberry March 2012 0 0 April 2012 0 0 May 2012 67 30 June 2012 2 6 July 2012 9 6 August 2012 14 2

iPad 0 0 82 5 1 3

iPhone 0 0 80 9 13 9

iPod Touch 0 0 15 0 1 0

Mac 0 0 5 12 1 0

Other Windows 0 2 118 9 0 475 0 11 0 0 0 1

All Types of Devices Used

a) Native App Used

b) Mobile Web Used

c) Universal Version Used

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Conclusion
The pilot project has yielded useful information about NJITs implementation of a mobile website and the associated issues and needs. Our use of the mobile website is low during implementation period because NJIT is an academic library; our students and faculty are typically not on campus during summer months. To fully understand the utility of the library mobile project, the project team plans to continue to market the library mobile website to the NJIT community during the fall 2012 semester and moving forward. The data we collected also provides a direct correlation between the device of choice and use of the mobile application. Library patrons using mobile devices prefer to use the native app with the Apple products while the library patrons using desktop computers prefer to use the mobile app with Windows products. We also plan to collect feedback, monitor usage statistics, and to regularly modify and improve the mobile website to our meet and exceed users expectations for the fiscal year 2013 and beyond. Promotional activities (deferred until fall 2012 because of the summer months) include: Taking advantage of all opportunities to promote the NJIT library mobile website, including interactions at the reference desk, circulation desk, and classroom instruction; Conducting in-person interviews to measure the effectiveness and usefulness of the library mobile website; Developing online survey/questionnaires to obtain feedback for the usefulness of the mobile website.

With the forthcoming fiscal year we expect that the NJIT library mobile website will be as successful with our students and faculty as we anticipate. With users support for and use of the mobile site, we will have ample justification for additional funding to continue our annual subscription for LibraryAnywhere software. Otherwise we will need to invest in developing and maintaining our own in-house mobile website at no additional cost (aside from additional staff time). We have learned with this pilot project that mobile technology is rapidly altering and extending the ways we communicate, conduct business, teach, learn, entertain ourselves, and make consumer decisions. We have also learned the device of choice. It has brought the internet into the routines of our daily lives, enabling the retrieval and broadcast of information from anywhere at any time. Through mobile connectivity, information is becoming further intertwined with our lives more profoundly than when we sit down at a desktop or even with a laptop computer. NJIT library can better serve our users by embracing the growing capabilities of mobile technologies. We can promote and have expanded our existing services when we offered mobile access to our website and online catalog; by supplying on-the-go-mobile reference services; and by providing mobile access to e-books, journal, and multimedia content. Mobile devices and services provide tremendous flexibility for those who wish to take advantage of library services. NJIT Library Mobile Project Final Report Page 11

We are extremely grateful to LibraryLinkNJ for their generosity in supporting this mobile initiative.

Quote
Library consumers are discovering resources on all sorts of devices now and there just isnt any excuse for not having a good digital experience waiting for them everywhere. Its all about the customers experience. If you have it right, they will come back again and again. Ann Hoang, Assistant University Librarian, NJIT

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References
1. Details of the LibraryLinkNJ Pilot Project FY2012: New Jersey Libraries-On-The-Go can be found at http://librarylinknj.org/content/librarylinknj-mobile-pilot-project-fy2012. 2. NJIT Van Houten Library. (2009). NJIT Library Strategic Plan. Retrieved February 17, 2012, from http://library.njit.edu/aboutus/ 3. IDC. (2011, September 12). IDC: More Mobile Internet Users than Wireline Users in the U.S. by 2015. IDC Analyze the Future. Retrieved February 17, 2012, from http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS23028711

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Appendix A Marketing Example

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Appendix B Testing Log

Main Section Search Catalog Hours and Directions Sub-section Van Houten Library (NJIT) See all locations Phone Email Events View Open Hours Other Information View on Google Maps Littman Architecture Library (NJIT) See all locations Phone Email Events View Open Hours View Open Hours View on Google Maps Chat with us Email us Call reference Call circulation Call Interlibrary Loan Visit Us! View Research HelpDesk open hours Expected Result

View both libraries Make phonecall Send email View blog posts Hours should be posted Hours should be a clickable link View and navigate to destination View both libraries Make phonecall Send email View blog posts Hours should be posted Hours should be a clickable link View and navigate to destination -placeholder- will hold LibraryH3lp soon Send email Make phonecall Make phonecall Make phonecall Open browser window Will allow login if id/last name match Will disallow login if id/last name do NOT match

Hours and Directions

Ask A Librarian Ask A Librarian Ask A Librarian Ask A Librarian Ask A Librarian Ask A Librarian My Account

Log in to your account Using barcode Using Institution Id News & Announcements Littman Architecture Library (NJIT) Van Houten Library (NJIT) Mobile Databases BioOne Mobile EbscoHost Mobile IEEE Xplore Mobile JSTOR Mobile LexisNexis Academic Mobile MEDLINE (via PubMed) Mobile PubGet Mobile SciFinder Scholar Mobile (username required) WorldCat View our full website list of databases

See Arch lib's blog posts See Main lib's blog posts log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info log in, search, access info Open library.njit.edu/databases/

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