Quick summary:
- Books are the heart of the library, making readers' advisory essential to outstanding patron service.
- Library staff may lack confidence in readers' advisory due to limited training.
- Training and tools will empower staff and transform reader experiences.
During my time in public libraries, I worked in a small rural library, both small and mid-size suburban libraries, and a large city system. I worked in adult reference, teen programming and reference, and as the manager of a circulation department. No matter where I worked, or what role I had, I loved to talk about books and always found a way to be involved in readers' advisory.
While libraries provide plenty of services to communities, books and reading remain at the heart of library services. My passion for books and recommendations fits right into this central part of library work. But not every staff member has the same passion or comfort with readers' advisory.
To support your team so they can provide memorable service to readers, it's important to embrace training. No one starts off an expert, and even seasoned pros can learn new information — embrace the mindset of continual learning. How do you know if your library needs more help with readers’ advisory? Here are three signs it’s time for backup.
Sign #1: Readers’ advisory only happens face-to-face.
For years, recommending books in libraries was all about that personal conversation between staff and patrons.
That's absolutely still a major way that recommendations are made in libraries. But it's not the only way any more.
Just think of the different types of people who use the library: Some love to come in for a chat with staff, making them prime candidates for a conversation about book recommendations. Others prefer to browse independently, which means displays, reading maps, or other types of indirect book recommendations are likely to work best. Certain users may come mainly for programming, so having recommendations of books they can check out related to your programs is a great way to provide them with options. There are some who mainly use the library at home or on the go, from their phones — for this group the best method of readers' advisory could be virtual displays, book lists on your site, forms they can fill out to get book suggestions from staff, or newsletters which include book recommendations.
Ultimately, you want to make sure that readers' advisory is a service that's available to every user, no matter how they use the library.
Ask yourself:
- Can readers find recommendations from your library whether they’re in the building or online?
- Do you have book displays throughout the library that are frequently updated?
- Is readers' advisory incorporated into your programming?
One tip to consider: Think of readers' advisory as something you want every user to have access to, whether they're in the library or not. Think of the different ways people use your library and have a way to incorporate recommendations into various areas.
Sign #2: Staff only feel confident recommending books in their comfort zones
Have you ever had the moment when someone asks you to recommend a book and suddenly your brain seems to forget what a book even looks like? If the person is asking for a recommendation for a book in a genre you don't read, the feeling is even worse. Almost everyone who works with readers has experienced this at least once. But it’s not something that should happen regularly. When staff struggle, patrons miss out on personalized recommendations that keep them coming back to the library.
I have heard from many people that they just don't feel confident recommending books they haven't read or are in a genre they don't read. They feel like they don't know enough about the book to make a good recommendation, and often they just don't want to disappoint a reader.
Staff can overcome this lack of confidence with training on how to recommend books they've never read, where to find books to offer, and how to use information about a book to match it with what a reader wants. I like to remind library staff that being asked to recommend a book is like being asked any other reference question. You don't need to know the answer (or the book) off the top of your head; you just need to know where to find the information you need.
Ask yourself:
- Are there tools to help staff recommend books that they're unfamiliar with?
- Do staff know how to stay up to date with new, popular, or award-winning books?
- Are staff encouraged to talk about books with each other?
One tip to consider: Create a list of go-to tools and resources (including fellow staff) for learning about and recommending books from any genre.
Sign #3: Reader’s advisory is limited to certain staff
It's normal in a lot of libraries for there to be certain people or departments that are expected to provide readers' advisory. It could be the children, teen, adult librarians, reference librarians, or even staff who are specifically part of a readers' advisory team. It's wonderful to have dedicated team members who can provide readers' advisory.
However, users will ask whoever is available for help. Which means anyone working at the library should be able to help with some level of readers' advisory. If books and reading are the heart of library service, then every member of a library team should be able to contribute.
This doesn't mean that each staff member is expected to perform in-depth reader conversations, but that they have core knowledge to contribute in some way to readers' advisory services. You can reach this goal by providing readers' advisory training to every staff member. With the right training, everyone can feel prepared to help connect readers with books.
Ask yourself:
- Do all staff feel able to take part in readers' advisory?
- Do individual staff members know how their strengths can support readers' advisory services?
- Is everyone on the team offered readers' advisory training?
One tip to consider: Create a list of training that every staff member completes to be ready to help with readers' advisory. Offer ongoing training to keep staff up-to-date and engaged.
Libraries don’t have to accept less-than-stellar readers' advisory services. Investing in professional development like Learn with NoveList Plus gives your staff the training and confidence they need to provide effective readers' advisory to create positive patron relationships and keep people coming back. These interactive courses provide real-world tools and proven tactics that help libraries like yours get actual results.
Yaika Sabat is the Manager of Reader Services at NoveList. She is reading Our Shadows Have Claws: 15 Latin American Monster Stories edited by Yamile Saied Mendez and Amparo Ortiz.
