Interactive Librarianship

Recently, I was reading an article on the new and innovative ways small libraries are maintaining their presence in the digital world. One of the ways was through blogging. Instead of having a Website, some small and rural libraries have started posting blogs for their patrons. It's not only much easier for them to maintain but less expensive as well. One article in particular titled "Technology in Practice: Our Website is a Blog," by Meredith Farkas states "Keeping a Website current and engaging can be a challenge for a library without tech savvy staff members." (Farkas, 2008) Therefore a blog is a much easier alternative for libraries that don't have tech savvy staff or don't have a budget for a tech staff. The article goes on to explain that many blogs nowadays require very little technology skills and can be maintained by any staff member who knows how to create a word processing document. Aside from the cost benefits of blogs, blogs are also more interactive. They allow patrons to have some input and opinion about their library.Patrons can comment on upcoming events, suggest readings to other patrons, suggest improvements, etc. The possibilities are endless. Personally, I find this interactive technology a step forward for libraries. Blogs are a great way to further engross libraries into the surrounding community. It's also a great way to learn how to better serve their community because blogs form a conversation between the institution and its user. Hopefully more libraries, regardless of their size, will consider using blogs as a more cost efficient alternative to a website. 

Farkas, M. (2008). Technology in practice: Our new website is a blog. American Libraries, 39(9), 45-45. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.queens.ezproxy.cuny.edu:2048/stable/25650091