Community in the Blogosphere

Community is easily created through social networking now-a-days. One blogger can link to other blogs through hyperlinks inside of posts or by displaying lists of fellow bloggers on their own site's toolbar. Proper linking of blogs should be done because the poster thinks the content is legitimately of interest to readers and not simply to boost readership for a friend or colleague. I can attest to the fact that searching for blogs via google or other search engine is not as simple as one might expect.

There is something refreshing about people visiting others on their own turf. For example, it would be perfectly normal for my LIBR 246 classmates and me to post and respond to posts via Angel as is the way of SLIS, but instead, we have each created our own territory in which  we naviagate to each other's blog to read and comment on posts. Each page has been created and designed by that student, and in the process, we each have the opportunity to peer into the lives of our classmates and connect in a different forum than Angel which in turn creates a different kind of community outside of class.

Exercise: Mod Cloth

One of my most frequently visited sites is Modcloth.com. I visit just about every day and compile a favorites list based on the 'new arrivals,' and sometimes (actually quite rarely) my efforts result in a purchase such as this one:

[My dear husband bought this lovely dress for me for my birthday last week :) I haven't had the opportunity to wear it yet...saving it for a special occasion]

As a customer and appreciator of Modcloth, I have noticed ways in which the company is actively involved in utilizing all kinds of social networking tools. In fact, further research has revealed to me even more ways in which they are involved than I originally thought.

Here's an example of how Modcloth interacts with negative reviews to their products through the website. (I love these shoes!)
View the reviews at the bottom; the first of the two reviews mentions a problem with shipping, and Modcloth responded directly. Instead of ignoring the issue, letting the customer deal with the damaged product through the routine return process, or messaging them privately, Modcloth made their apology about the issue public so that other shoppers would see it and have positive feelings about the company's customer service despite there being a complaint about the product.

In addition to responding to customers on their well-developed site, Modcloth proactively interacts through a blog, a twitter account, and a facebook account. Their blog is very extensive and contains postings about all kinds of things including contests, products, fashion trends, employees and interns, and fashion bloggers and companies. Their twitter account has similar content but in short spurts for those on-the-go. The facebook account combines all of these topics by offering just about everything a fan would want to know about the company and the fashion world.

I used Backtype to analyze their twitter trends for the past few months. They have had a total of 32,323 tweets and are ranked as 3,644 as compared to all other twitter account holders. I believe these numbers to be solid considering the company's recent start and the fact that their presence is only known in e-commerce and not in physical stores. The tweets are overwhelmingly positive usually linking to a piece of clothing the tweeter likes.

When I searched Google with keyword 'modcloth,' the first two pages were links to sites related to the company as well as some business articles discussing their success as a business. The response to their business model and brand is overwhelmingly positive; I struggled to find even one negative response or anything they would need to deal with in order to maintain their reputation. The Modcloth browser and shopper knows how expensive their merchandise is but somehow fans seem to understand that they are paying the price for desirable and quality-built clothes and accessories.

Overall, I find Modcloth to be doing a fantastic job at maintaining their reputation and making themselves known in every popular social networking venue out there today. Good job, guys!

Branding: Business and Personal

I did something today that I swore I would never do. I created a twitter account. I never had any particular (or I suppose good) reason not to connect to twitter except that the anti-conformist bone in me simply told me not to join since twitter is so darn popular. Now you can follow me @ChrissyLJohnson. Oh, library school, how could you do this to me? How could you have shown me how important online branding is to an individual and a business?

As I read this week's articles on branding, I realized just how pervasive social networking is for businesses and organizations right now. Ten years ago, if you didn't have a website, you had nothing; now if you don't have a twitter account and blog, your business is likely not in business, and I can attest to feeling that way toward companies as a consumer.
What? Your restaurant doesn't have a website where I can access the menu? Forget it. No one has reviewed you on yelp? I'll take my business elsewhere.

Now-a-days, a company must be proactive in guarding against their brand being slammed by way of tweets and blogs. I realized that a non-profit organization, such as a library, does not face as strict of consequences as do the for-profit companies, but if libraries want to continue to serve patrons' needs, complaints and all, the library must place itself in the realm of communication, which right now is the blogosphere and twitter.

As a library student and future library professional, I realized it is likely that I will be asked to communicate about my employer to the public and that I better be well versed in blogging, tweeting, and the like. To enter a job in which I am unfamiliar with how twitter works simply will not cut it.

Furthermore, I also need to put myself out there as a prospective employee of any number of libraries by which I hope to be employed. There is nothing on facebook that I would be ashamed of an employer knowing, but who knows what kinds of things exist on old lifejournal or xanga accounts? High school Chrissy was an unpredictable force, and I must guard against anyone developing an unrealistic view of my work ethic and personality.

Week 1 Reflection: What I Have Learned This Week

This week, we learned about the concept of Web 2.0 as well as what is meant in reference to Library 2.0 (or L2). I did not become familiar with the term Web 2.0 until I entered the SLIS program two years ago. I had heard it thrown around but had never heard an explanation of the term that meant anything to me. Over time and through various classes, the picture of what Web 2.0 really meant formed in my mind. Before the class readings from this past week, I had never heard of Library 2.0, but once I completed the readings, I had a good understanding of what it means.

Web 2.0 is the current Internet phase in which interaction, customization, and social networking play a huge part. I recall the first few years I spent on the Internet about 12 years ago. I impatiently waited for our dial-up to connect to AOL (America Online), and once there, I was extremely limited to the number of things I could access. To my knowledge, there was no outlet for acquiring news, creating an Internet space, and connecting with friends the way I would have liked to. Once social networking sites started popping up, it was one of those 'ah ha' moments that technology has in which a person thinks, "Why hasn't it always been this way?"
As I read about L2, I was struck with a similar thought, but in reverse. Instead of thinking, "Of course libraries have become involved in social networking. Why shouldn't they have?", I began thinking, "Why hasn't my library become more involved in social networking?"

The Multnomah County Library system is fairly advanced in the ways it handles patrons, materials, and the community, but social software is an area of lack for the library. Simply put, if a 19 branch library system has yet to reach patrons on the Internet outside of their own website, how must other less advanced libraries be faring? Is there a way to educate librarians about the benefits of social software and how we can use it to better serve our patrons? I believe there are those doing so and that it's only a matter of time before there is widespread recognition on the subject of L2.

About Me

Hello! My name is Chrissy. The purpose of this blog is to communicate with my professor and classmates in LIBR 246-06 this Fall 2010 semester. The class is 'Web 2.0,' and I will be learning and writing about the ways to integrate social networking software into the everyday life of the library world.

I am getting toward the end of my SLIS degree with my expected graduation falling somewhere around Fall or Winter of 2011 depending on how each semester/life goes. I live in Portland, Oregon, with my fantastic husband of two years, Brandon. I grew up in Minnesota, we met at school in Missouri, and we moved here to the Pacific Northwest for his school. My only experience thus far in libraries is a volunteer at the Multnomah County Library system here in Portland, but I'm anxious to get on my way and get into the library field.

When I'm not working retail or doing school work, my interest include baking (bread in particular), reading (kind of a given at this point), and learning German with my husband (ich bin eine Frau).

[Rosetta Stone. But not the one from which I am learning German.]

I look forward to learning how social software can influence how the library interacts with patrons at their level. As more people turn to social networking to communicate, the library must not only be an online presence but a social networking presence as well. In the future, I know there will be opportunities for me to educate fellow librarians about the benefits of social networking and social software as well as other Web 2.0 elements. Knowing as much as I can about various options to connect with patrons and advertise library services will help me to better serve patrons.