Strategies for Digital Libraries to Thrive in the Social Media Era

Extract

[...] Thus, users can "forage" and then "pollinate" information among other internet users." Finally, if we consider that the use of smartphones is becoming increasingly prevalent in the daily lives of Internet users, it is also necessary to develop applications that will facilitate navigation and access to content, new releases or cultural events offered, all the more so since often, the use of smartphones to potentially surf on websites or social networks dedicated to cultural institutions concerns people who were previously reluctant or not very inclined to use computers or the Internet and who are drawn into the game by using this very practical, miniature computer connected to the rest of the world. Such an evolution logically goes hand in hand with a strong commitment from agents working for these cultural institutions. It is also necessary to put in place new modes of operation within these structures. [...]

[...] It became clear that the visibility of a digital library depended on its ability to establish itself where internet users were. By joining the sphere of social networks, libraries therefore sought to occupy a space that would allow them to build links with users while developing new places for exchange and meeting. Thus, in order to value a library, it is essential to make it visible on the web, to work on its image on sharing sites, and above all to interact. [...]

[...] The late 2000s saw a growing awareness that led cultural institutions to consider, among other things, the creation of digital libraries - a sort of 'second libraries' that would extend and complement the first ones - but also to rethink the way they communicated with users in order to dust off and revitalize the overall image of these cultural mediators. This awareness stemmed from the following observation: libraries and museums could no longer be content with simply having a website, even if it was often supplemented by a blog and an electronic newsletter. It became clear that the visibility of a digital library depended on its ability to establish itself where internet users were. [...]

[...] The emergence of other features allowing users to create their own network within a site (such as on Youtube or Netvibes) has also led to the use of the term 'social media' rather than network, with media being defined as a set of services that enable the development of conversations and social interactions on the Internet. The library has long been associated with a dark and dusty place and the character of the librarian often assimilated to someone austere not always in line with the expectations of users. [...]

[...] Interaction also passes through the valorization of the discoveries of users, to whom one can confer the status of 'ambassador' system that has ensured the success of Gallica, the digital library of the Bibliothèque nationale de France). This interaction also involves having a team that manages the presence of a digital library on Facebook, by answering, among other things, the questions of Internet users, but the interaction can and should also be done with other cultural institutions present on social networks, the goal being to eliminate the spirit of competition or rivalry in order to make use of the strengths of each other, and to open up to other communities of users. [...]