King: Building the Digital Branch Handout 3

1. 1
Experience Brief for Digital Branch Redesign
Don’s Story
Hi. I’m Don. I LOVE my library! Let me tell you why. I needed to build a deck. I’m pretty good with tools, but have never done this before. So I hopped online (I pay way too much for high-speed internet, but my teenage kids need it for school) and visited the library. Boy, has it changed!
I wanted a book with deck designs ... easy enough - right up at the top of the page was a big hairy “find Books Here” button - so I clicked it. And put in “deck construction” and found a book! Checking it out was easy too - just a click and I was done.
Then I thought, “I wonder if they have any Custom Home magazines? They might have deck plans, too...” And right there, on the main page again, was this - “Find magazine Articles Here” - wow! This is easy! And I’m finding stuff, too!
So I started poking around the library a bit more. And found an evening class on building decks! They apparently worked a deal with Home Depot, ‘cause they’re teaching the class ... but AT the library. Nice. And sign-up is easy - just click “sign up” right there on the page!
Hmm … look at this - they have a gaming tournament coming up next moth. I gotta remember to tell my 14-year old Nintendo freak of a son about this - he’ll love it. And it’s the same time as my deck class, after work and school. Nice.
Oh - and on the event page, there’s a link to a list of other books the library has about deck building and other simple weekend projects, plus some how-to videos about it, too. And I can reserve them and pick them up when I’m in town tomorrow. Nice.
I love my library - they had the info I needed, right when I needed it!

2. Mariana’s Story
Mariana is a 35 year old mom. She has 3 kids, ages 1 1/2, 3, and 5. They LOVE Kyler! And see him every time he plays at the library.
Mariana’s up nights with her toddler, who has trouble sleeping. So she spends those evenings on Facebook. She chats with friends, keeps up with acquaintances, and plays Farm Town.
She just discovered the library’s there, too! And she loves it. She found out about a book group for moms of toddlers! It coincides with her kid’s weekly play group time, so she can attend. [Click] ... she registers, right then, in Facebook.
And look at this - a discussion group, in Facebook, about the book she’s currently reading! So she adds her thoughts about Bo, the man in the novel - he seems sorta smarmy, and she says so ... and starts a discussion with 3 other people for 15 minutes.
Then she adds two friends who use the library to her Facebook friends list (one’s a librarian!), checks out what they’re reading (and favorites one of the books to check out later), then actually clicks through to the library’s website to add a comment to the book group event (she thinks it’s a great idea, and wants to say so).
Mariana LOVES her library. She gets the stories she wants and the connections she’s seeking - at the library.

3. 3
What’s going on here?
Don:
 there’s a target - Green Acres
 Don’s having fun - he’s not thinking about a website’s functionality - he’s thinking about his deck and his kids. The website doesn’t get in his way
 link buttons and terms are in his language, and worded to help him succeed
 The look of the site is pretty neutral - just attractive enough to blend in with “his life” - like going to Starbucks. It’s modern in an understated way, comfortable, informal, with just enough functionality to help him enjoy his stuff (Starbucks = table and chairs for coffee) - but it isn’t automatically noticed. It doesn’t get in the way.
 The site is simple as a lightswitch to use - Don’s able to think about his stuff, and not how to make the website work
 There are links in just the right places for him to continue “his job” - ie., find a class, register for it, find more books about the topic and easily check them out, etc).
 Stuff is just cluttered enough to find more than one thing, but not too cluttered that you can’t find anything
Mariana:
 there’s a target - 35 year old moms/Southwestern Families/Aspiring Young Families/etc
 She’s connecting through Facebook - we’re meeting her in her favorite hangout
 She’s accessing targeted events there (and is able to register for them there)
 She’s getting links to the library through Facebook (and is visiting us)
 She’s friending us, and friending library staff
 She’s participating in a book discussion group created with Facebook discussion groups
 And she’s clicking through to our website to leave comments and thoughts, too.