Social Discovery - A leading role for libraries online

by Beth Jefferson and Gail Richardson

In March, the OLA Board approved funding for a province-wide research initiative to assess risks and opportunities for Public Libraries in the Age of the Social Web. The research will build upon a pilot phase that was conducted by BiblioCommons and Oakville Public Library earlier this year. In this article, Beth Jefferson, the founder of BiblioCommons and Gail Richardson, Web Service Manager for OPL discuss findings that emerged from this first phase of research, potential implications and outline further areas for exploration and study.

Many public libraries are reporting that virtual visits to the library are now actually exceeding in-person visits. There are many challenges and possibilities for public libraries in this new era of service delivery, but for the purposes of this article we’d like to focus on those that relate to the issue of discovery.