Dr. Suess + Twitter = Fun

I have begun compiling - or gathering - a variety of Twitter resources, curating on Pinterest and using our session hashtag #tweetalao, for a presentation / workshop at the ALAO Conference later this fall. I found this fun infographic, from Hootsuite via the Daily Genius. What fun!

"Dr. Seuss, the writer and illustrator behind children’s classics The Cat in the Hat, How the Grinch Stole Christmas! and The Lorax, would have turned 110 on March 2nd. We think that if he were alive today, he would have been a social media master. So to honor his wit and wisdom, here’s our interpretation of the Seuss guide to Twitter." - Evan LePage

A Dr. Seuss-Inspired Guide to Twitter from Hootsuite

More about #IRCshelfies

Marketing the IRC is an ongoing project; planning a semester long marketing and collection awareness strategy in late summer allows me to do a 'beta test' of sorts prior to the start of the fall term.  That said, this is the second week of my #IRCshelfie project.

#IRCshelfie Tweets

All of the supporting pieces are in place. I took 'shelfies' of twenty four different collection areas in the IRC, library second floor; enough for weekly tweets from July 8th to December 16th - end of the fall term. Using the online photo editor PicMonkey, I applied a Polaroid style frame to each image (oh, the irony), detailed the collection type, and added the #IRCshelfie label. After finishing the images, I used TweetDeck to schedule weekly Tuesday tweets.

Why Tuesday? We have a number of Monday holidays during the term; Tuesday generally means students will be on campus and/or in class. I also scheduled them during the afternoon.  If classes are using Twitter for back-channel conversations, there is an increased chance for viewing.

Why not Instagram?  I considered the popular platform to use instead of a photo editor. At this point, featuring Twitter and Pinterest in conjunction with the IRC news and information blog works. Developing relevant content for Instagram beyond the shelfies is something to consider at a later date.

The IRC Pinterest site now includes an #IRCshelfie board. Each Wednesday after the tweet, #IRCshelfie images are uploaded to Pinterest. Mock Caldecott panels and IRC scavenger hunts are traditionally scheduled at the start of each term; both activities feature the IRC Pinterest site during the activity and on corresponding LibGuides. This will help me to promote collections as well.

Follow IRC's board #IRCshelfie on Pinterest.

The final step is crafting a blog post marketing the endeavor. It is simple enough to describe the process, but I hope to create a video to make it more engaging.  I've successfully used Animoto and Tellagami for marketing and information. Yesterday a tweet from Heather Moorefield shared an animated video created using Explee.

And, there are always the button makers I have on order to consider.

TweetDeck newbie

I use Twitter regularly for professional development and particularly enjoy weekly #libchat and #inaljchat sessions,  webinar and conference back channel conversations, and connecting with other Pittsburgh sports fans. More often than not, I use the mobile app for convenience as it allows me to multitask online viewing with tweeting on another device.  Oddly enough, Twitter has become part of my daily social media routine and helped me connect to a wide variety of educators and information professionals. It is not the result I imagined when signing up for an account prior to presenting at the 2011 ACRL conference.

I started using Twitter for the Instructional Resource Center in November 2011, revisited the idea in early 2012, and again later that spring. It remained a bit of a struggle remembering to post relevant content. Last fall I started using IFTTT in conjunction with IRC's Twitter account to tweet blog posts and Pinterest updates to generate interest. The IRC Pinterest site continues to be a vital resource, hence my willingness to use it to appeal to Twitter users. My strategy has been marginally successful; the number of followers consistently hovers in the vicinity of 100, tweets are often re-tweeted on campus, and stat notifications emailed by Twitter to users show a slight increase in connections. Cognizant of the fact what's missing is the conversational flow of user interaction, and understanding it may never have that capability, it is time to revisit how to best utilize the tool for marketing the IRC.  I am using the IRC Twitter account to feature available collections, highlight news and information about the library and IRC, and connect followers to other IRC social media resources. To some extent, it is working.  Are my expectations too high?

Consider this tweet sent out from an ALA session earlier in the week.

Think of marketing as awareness building. You're not always going to see Direct ROI. #alaac14
— Andrea Snyder (@alsnyder02) June 30, 2014

I agree; much of what I do via Twitter for the IRC is 'awareness building.'  I have built lists of authors and campus accounts, I follow (and am followed) by a number of campus twitter accounts, and use the library's digital sign to feature the IRC's most recent tweet.  However social media, whether for building awareness or connecting with users, remains a full time job in and of itself; time management is key.  It takes time to craft well written blog posts, time to curate interesting boards on Pinterest, and time to schedule tweets of interest to followers.

To some extent, I have 'automated' tweets connected to Pinterest and the IRC and library news blogs using IFTTT. Why haven't I been using TweetDeck?  It is easy to point out the number of articles discussing its demise and the recent hacking incident. Still, after further review, the web version fits nicely with a project to highlight IRC collections posting #IRCshelfies via Twitter.

Collections were photographed, shelfies created with a simple online editor, and tweets scheduled in TweetDeck to post each Tuesday beginning July 1st and continuing throughout the fall 2014 term. I personalized the web layout to display scheduled tweets, the #IRCshelfie hash tag, the general IRC feed, and a list of campus twitter accounts for east of re-tweeting events. The option to schedule tweets with images appears to be a new functionality, making my TweetDeck procrastination a bit ... timely. I will follow up #IRCshelfie tweets with a board on Pinterest and publish a blog post introducing shelfie tweets scheduled for the first week of classes in August. As to return on this particular investment, I hope to see an increase in followers for the IRC twitter. But more importantly, I hope it plays a role in increased awareness and use of the IRC and its collections.

Pew Internet: Twitter 2012

A new report was issued by the Pew Internet & American Life Project:  Twitter 2012. Twitter use on a typical day? I'm guilty (if that's appropriate) of daily use more often reading than tweeting.  I agree with their supposition that smartphones  may 'account for the uptick in usage,' I rarely (if ever) access Twitter via the web.

"As of February 2012, some 15% of online adults use Twitter, and 8% do so on a typical day. Overall Twitter adoption reamins steady, as the 15% of online adults who use Twitter is similar to the 13% of such adults who did so in May 2011. At the same time, the proportion of online adults who use Twitter on a typical day has doubled since May 2011 and has quadrupled since late 2010—at that point just 2% of online adults used Twitter on a typical day. The rise of smartphones might account for some of the uptick in usage because smartphone users are particularly likely to be using Twitter". - Aaron Smith & Joanna Brenner, Twitter 2012, 5/31/12

Read the overview and full report on the Pew web site.

More Twitter, iPhone app

The IRC Twitter account (@IRCaulibrary) is almost six months old..A quick general overview shows 325+ tweets, 20+ followers, and the IRC follows for 80 - 100 other education accounts. Some implementations of Twitter have proven very useful for marketing and disbursing information, most specifically our most recent Tweet posted on the campus digital signage network. Twitter widgets are embedded on the IRC blog and have been added to several education LibGuides (here, here, and here for example). A list of frequently used hashtags makes it easy to 'tag' content, URL shorteners (goo.gl and bitly) help feature blog posts and stay within the prescribed character limit, and re-tweet from lists and follows to keep content updated with regularity. While not as quickly popular as the IRC Pinterest page, usage is generally steady.

Previous frustration regarding Twitter's web platform, seeing the whale, have lessened thanks to tweeting during non-peak hours … and the Twitter iPhone app. It presents an uncluttered and image-free view of the account page, facilitates use of more than one account, highlights new content and connections, and in some ways makes it easier to monitor and report the seemingly inevitable Twitter spam. Recent app updates (4.1.3) have made the screen significantly more readable, a welcome improvement though it came with inclusion of promoted tweets. That said, the iPhone app is not without drawback.



When logged in to more than one Twitter account, the user 'name' is not visible when reading content or when working with created lists (image, left). This lack of visual cue is problematic when working with distinctly different accounts; be careful what you tweet or re-tweet. The same issue is noticeable when working with an account list; however since lists are accessed from the main page there is an immediate profile picture as a reminder.  Images are tweetable from the library (camera roll) and by taking photos or video using the camera.  This is a nice perk for immediacy when tweeting campus photos or other saved images. However, I often include images featured on the digital sign, created with PowerPoint and saved as a jpeg, to accompany tweets. To do so via the app, it's necessary to plan ahead (email image, save to camera).  In those instances, uploading to the web version from a computer is more efficient.

Overall, the Twitter iPhone app has made it convenient to keep content on the IRC Twitter account updated. I'll definitely use it in conjunction with the web platform moving forward.

Revisiting Twitter

I've been working with the IRC Twitter account since early November; it's time to revisit and evaluate early implementation. Web services added a Twitter link to the IRC web site providing access to the account, widgets have been successfully added to the IRC blog, and 'follows' added a variety of links to other university accounts.  It has been easier than anticipated to find tweetable topics to routinely promote the IRC and keep the account active, in part due to accounts chosen to follow that relate to IRC mission and vision. Two options recently investigated for account support are embedded tweets and lists.
Twitter updated their platform in December making the embed option more viable to users. It's a relatively simple process; choose a tweet to embed > select open to view additional options >  click on embed this tweet > choose an embed code. It's possible to preselect tweet position or "control position and text wrapping on the page" by using the alignment option. I embedded and IRC tweet to the IRC blog for holiday hours using the  html code provided in conjunction with Bloggers html option (see below):

The IRC will be closed 12/17/11 through 1/5/12 for winter break. goo.gl/lYCby #IRChours #IRCblog twitter.com/IRCaulibrary/s…
— IRC at AULibrary (@IRCaulibrary) December 14, 2011

The link works as advertised, users read the embedded tweet and can easily access the original  Twitter account. At this point, I am more apt to promote a blog post on Twitter than a tweet on a blog so its use is somewhat limited. On the plus side, this feature promotes proper citing of Twitter. Authors are able to quote tweets, highlight specific topics for readers, and work to expand readership to Twitter from a number of platforms. For more about embedding Twitter:

• WebMonkey: Getting Started with Twitters Embedded Tweets Feature
• Twitter: Embedded Tweets
• SocialMedia Today: How to Use New Twitter Embed

I've started to explore and use Twitter lists and must confess it warms my librarian's heart to be able to organize lists. Beyond the simple task of categorizing, lists provide me with the option to follow someone without actually following them:

"If you want to read a user's Tweets but not see their messages in your main timeline every day, lists allow you to do that. Similarly, following someone else's list does not mean you follow all users in that list. Rather, you follow the list itself." - Twitter Help Center, How to Use Twitter Lists

I've recently created a public list for @IRCaulibrary, Ashland University. The list features university accounts. I am able to easily promote tweets from the list and provide options for others to subscribe if interested.  More public lists will be developed as current follows lend themselves to several distinct categories (books, educational technology, etc.). In a few months I'll check in again to discuss/update use of the IRC Twitter account. 

The Future of Publishing

Voya Magazine, more specifically @voyamagazine on Twitter, shared this video earlier today. Posted by Penguin Group USA, it's a creative look at the publishing industry - backwards and forward.




An interview with the video's creator is available on the Penguin USA blog post, The Future of Publishing.

working with Twitter

The decision to go with Twitter (verses Facebook or Google+) for the Instructional Resource Center was not quick or easy.  A consistent web presence exists; the IRC web site was one of the first things I developed when starting as a curriculum librarian at AU and in recent months I have been rebuilding it in Drupal. I've used a blog for the IRC since 2005; it features news, information, and new book updates for the IRC and juvenile collections. We've been lucky to have LibGuides for several years, and resources for Education students and general IRC pages are part of the collection.Taking steps to add another resource required careful consideration:

• How will the proposed addition work with existing resources?
• The library has a Facebook page, is it necessary to have two?
• Do students want the IRC on Facebook?
• Students have AU Gmail accounts, but are they using Google+?
• Are students willing to use Google+?
• How popular is Twitter with college students?
• Will Twitter character constraints help or hinder use?

A final question, one of significance, how much time am I willing /able to expend on maintaining the project?  Regardless of the social media choice, time and effort will be needed to make the resource viable.  Periodic discussions with my student workers and students using the IRC helped me with the decide to use Twitter for the IRC. Why Twitter? It's will provide opportunity for quick, simple, short, and timely updates that will supplement the web site, blog, and LibGuides. 

I posted the first IRC tweet on Tuesday morning @ircaulibrary

It took time to research and determine who the IRC should follow, I selected a mix of children's literature, education, AU accounts, and educational technology to start. Using a library background and university colors allowed me to brand the page. To publicize, I've created Twitter widgets for the IRC blog, requested a link be placed on the main IRC page sidebar with the blog feed, posted to the IRC blog, and utilized the library's digital signage to scan the account rotate the five most recent tweets.

I have a short list of subjects to tweet for the next several weeks.  At this point, the only drawback has been ...

I usually tweet using my iPhone app, and was surprised to see the little "over capacity" whale shortly after making the account live. In the last three days, I've been subject to "over capacity" while posting tweets - and - when showing students the account.  I'm hoping the little whale, cute as he is, does not become problematic (though several of my students indicate he's a regular occurrence).

ALAO 2011: Tweeting @ALAOorg

This is the first of several planned "conference in review" posts reflecting on ALAO 2011. I'm going to start at the end, so to speak, featuring Twitter hash tags created and used for the conference and individual sessions. Tweeting during a presentation is relatively new to me; I remain somewhat uncomfortable typing while the presenter is speaking about his or her topic. Instead of my laptop, I chose to use the Twitter app on my phone as it's less conspicuous and certainly quieter.

ALAO is officially in Twitter as @ALAOorg; the conference hash tag was #alao2011.

Rob Snyder, Bowling Green University, shared a great Twitter widget during his spotlight session Timesaving Templates: Techniques for Quick Creation and Maintenance of LibGuides. Using the Twitter resource page, he developed a series of Twitter Widgets to consistently update a current events LibGuide.

With a Twitter account planned for the IRC, I was immediately intrigued by how easily these widgets could be developed and placed in blog posts, Facebook, web sites, and (of course) LibGuides. I spent a few minutes at lunch creating three Twitter widgets to follow the ALAO 2001 conference:


While a few issues immediately come to mind when incorporating this into a classroom, hash tags are social bookmarking and anyone can use them for any reason, it would be easy to create a set of tags - controlled vocabulary, so to speak - that would serve to connect a variety of library resources for students. I will definitely be exploring this option further.  Enjoy perusing tweets from #alao2011, #alaowebtools, and @ALAOorg!

Cyber Zed Shed!

I'm excited to announce that fellow blogger Sara Klink and I were accepted to present a Cyber Zed Shed session at the 2011 ACRL National Conference in Philadelphia, March 30th - April 1st.

"Congratulations! Your Cyber Zed Shed proposal, "To the Cloud! Exploring Tools to Enhance Teaching and Learning," has been selected for presentation at ACRL 2011 in Philadelphia, March 30 – April 2, 2011."

The Speaker Service Center lists our session, CZS - To the Cloud! Exploring Tools to Enhance Teaching and Learning on Thursday, March 31, 2011 8:25 AM - 8:45 AM (Room 201A):

"For academic libraries, the question is no longer if emerging technologies are necessary, but how to locate, evaluate and integrate quality resources in the most effective way. Working within the cloud, librarians are free to explore a wide range of software and applications easily incorporated into teaching and learning. From Animoto to Voki, this session will present a selection of applications perfect for LibGuides, course management systems, and a variety of other 2.0 applications."

ACRL will be incorporating Twitter for the conference - their official Twitter tag is #acrl2011 - and early this week contacted presenters about selecting a hash tag for their sessions. We pick the tag, a "Twitter moderator will be assigned to our session," and the tag will be published in the program and online. Not a tweeter, it took some time to fully grasp the hash tag concept (though it appears to be similar to cloud tags, blog tags, and other social media tagging). Several fast and furious emails later we decided to submit #LibCloudTools for our session; we hope it incorporates a bit of the session title and what we plan to discuss (and apologize it is a bit long). Of course, it also raises the question, how will I follow any conversation pertaining to our session if I don't have a Twitter account?

As of yesterday, I have a Twitter account @dschrecker.

In no time at all I registered, posted one exciting tweet, and spent my lunch hour contentedly trying out / trying on design templates. Since then I have changed my mind more than once; the most recent time a few minutes ago and, after electing to follow the eTech Ohio Twitter feed, had my first message. It remains to be seen if this is a technology I will adopt or use only for the ACRL session.