Driving Decisions with Data

How can you ensure your library’s goals and initiatives support households in your community? This past July we sat down with Jason Kucsma, deputy director at Toledo Lucas County (Ohio) Public Library and 2017 Library Journal Mover and Shaker, to provide his thoughts on libraries measuring up. Grab some coffee and listen as Jason discusses … Read more

Empowering Newsmakers

| By Brian Risse, Vice President, Public Library, Wholesale, and Large Print Sales | As I think about the impact that libraries have on the community, it’s hard not to reflect on the 2018 federal budget that proposed to eliminate the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the advocacy efforts needed to defend … Read more

Register Today! Driving Decisions with Data Webinar

Is Your Library Measuring Up? How can you ensure your library’s goals and initiatives support households in your community? It can be tricky, but with Analytics On Demand, you can add value to your library’s existing data and unlock key insights about your community. Join us, and American Libraries, July 24th for a free episode … Read more

So a Non-Librarian Walks into a Library Full of Librarians…

By Kelly Torpey 

As I walked into the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library to attend Library Journal’s Transformative Power of Community Engagement workshop, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew where I was, and what I was attending, but I wasn’t entirely sure what I (a non-librarian) would glean from the experience.

I joined Gale as a marketing team member just over six months ago. I’m new to the world of libraries, and in truth, I was hoping to listen. To listen to what libraries and librarians go through on a daily basis; their conversations, struggles, and triumphs. I was also hoping to add some type of value to the conversations I was a part of, even though I knew (or, at least I thought) my own professional and personal experiences may not be 100% relatable.

Read moreSo a Non-Librarian Walks into a Library Full of Librarians…

New Patron info added to Patron Profiles in Analytics On Demand

Analytics On Demand Public Library

Curious whether households in your community would read a library mailing? Individuals with a history of mail-order buying are twice as likely to respond to a promotion as someone who has never purchased by mail. Now the Analytics on Demand Patron Profiles app contains more details around households who have purchased merchandise, magazines or services by mail or have responded with contributions to charitable and nonprofit appeals.

New Buyer Data
Fifteen categories were added to the existing multi-category buyer information. This additional Mail Order Responder (MOR)-Bank data including:

Read moreNew Patron info added to Patron Profiles in Analytics On Demand

Data-Driven Decision Making Ideally Locates New Library Construction

Posted on May 9, 2016

When Dedham Public Library realized the time had come to replace both its 19th century main library and early 20th century branch, the primary question was, where is the best place to construct a new library to meet the needs of our 21st century patrons?

A professional librarian with more than four decades of experience in public and academic libraries was called upon to help answer the question. Mary Ann Tricarico, BA, MLS, MA, DA, began researching, tabulating and analyzing information to create a strategic planning document to optimally locate the new construction. “All my career I’ve been involved in answering complex questions about communities, patron populations, borrowing patterns and usage data – all hand- calculated and hand-tabulated,” she says, noting that it’s an expensive and time- consuming activity.

Read moreData-Driven Decision Making Ideally Locates New Library Construction

Gale Products Named Finalists for 2016 SIIA CODiE Awards

Posted April 25, 2016

by: Meghan C. Olivier

The 2016 CODiE Awards, presented by the Software & Information Industry Associations (SIIA), have recognized three products from Gale, a part of Cengage Learning:

Read moreGale Products Named Finalists for 2016 SIIA CODiE Awards

Upcoming Analytics On Demand Maintenance

Analytics On Demand Public Library

On Wednesday, December 23, Analytics On Demand will be upgraded to the Alteryx 10.1 Gallery. Analytics On Demand will be unavailable from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. EST for this maintenance, which will result in:

  • Improved performance: Reports run faster.
  • New look and feel: Improved user interface.
  • Mobile accessible: New scrolling workflow works better on tablets.
  • Easy access to collaboration: We have added the Collaboration App to its own district for easy access.
  • 30-day report storage: “App Results” will be renamed “Workflow Results” and reports will be saved to the gallery for a rolling 30 days.

Read moreUpcoming Analytics On Demand Maintenance

Strategic Planning Takes a Leap Forward with Data Analytics

Analytics On Demand

Posted 12/3/2015

By Jackie Sullivan and Sarah Withers

Mastering data analytics for public library administrators and their board of trustees is a critical success factor for planning and community engagement. The South Carolina State Library wanted to optimize the strategic planning resources that public libraries currently have available including collection strategy, materials investment, outreach, and programming to drive more value to the communities they serve.

Read moreStrategic Planning Takes a Leap Forward with Data Analytics

State Libraries Gain an Enthusiastic New Partner

Posted on September 9, 2015

“To initiate, maintain and support cooperative action for the improvement of library services.”  Who could resist a mission statement like that?  With our history and culture of library advocacy, certainly not Gale.  That mission statement, by the way, belongs to the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA).

Read moreState Libraries Gain an Enthusiastic New Partner