myth-busting! customer & program analysis
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One of the presentations shared during the 2010 ALA Annual meeting. The program hosted by LLAMA - MAES was called " Myth Busting: Using Data to Challenge Assumptions". Speaker: Marlena Boggs, MidContinent Public Library, Independence, MO, Adult Services Manage Presentation: Myth-busting! Customer & Program Analysis Program abstract: What services are actually valued by your users? Which online resources are good investments? Is texting the best way to reach your young adults? Libraries often hold false assumptions or beliefs which have not been challenged with actual data. Find out how different libraries have used data to challenge their assumptions and long-held beliefs.TRANSCRIPT
Myth-busting! Customer & Program Analysis
Marlena BoggsMarlena Boggs
June 2010June 2010
Mid-Continent Public Library System
Program Selection
Discovery– Trends
Branch Placement– Instinct– Feeling– Enjoyment of program
Geo-Demographics to Pinpointthe Right Program for the Right Branch
GOAL: Every contact made with a library customer
informing him or her of a program at a particular branch will be done with the assurance that the program will appeal to his or her wants and needs.
Branch Program Placement or Consumer Trend Analysis: WHO are they?
What are our patrons doing?
What are they feeling?
What are they reading, watching, listening to?
What do they do with their families?
How do they use the library; the programs?
Geo-Demographic Data: Segmentation
Middleburg Managers
Age Ranges: 55+
Median Household Income: $47,331
Family types: Singles/couples
Employment levels: Prof./White Collar
Lifestyle Traits:
-Play musical instruments
-Go bird watching
-Read Mature market magazines
-Watch U.S. Senior Open (golf)
-Drive a Toyota Camry/Solara
Up-and-Comers
Age ranges: <35
Median Household income: $47,004
Family Types: Mix
Employment levels: Professional
Lifestyle Traits:
-Job searching (often via Internet)
-Read Shape
-Watch MTV
-Drive a Mitsubishi Eclipse
Total population: 28,541
Benchmarking Work: Groups
AN, SI (Middleburg Managers)
LJ, CP, RS (Greenbelt Sports)
DE, BU, ES, WE (Mayberry-Ville)
OG, KE, GN (Fast Track Families )
NI, NO, PC, SM (New Homesteaders)
LI, LS, GV, PV (Country Squires)
CR, BN, BW (Upward Bound & Kids & Cul-de-Sacs)
BS, CL (White Picket Fences)
BR, GE, RT, RB (Suburban Sprawl)
Outcome
• Disbelief“That’s not who we see in
our branches.”
Even More Tailored: Branch Patron Study
Who is HereGrandview contains one of the most diverse populations in the MCPL system. Hispanic and
African-American populations are both significant and continue to increase. Most cardholders are blue collar families and singles.
Income – The population served by Grandview tends to be lower-middle class. Most families with two adults have at least two full-time workers and sometimes more.
Age – Cardholders span the range of adult ages. There are a significant number of children present with each age segment indexing above the system average. The elderly are a population that is in decline in the Grandview area. This is somewhat surprising given the predominance of seniors at the nearby Red Bridge Branch.
Lifestyles – The blue collar lifestyles of this group are often centered around children and busy work schedules. Fast food and video rentals are popular. Video game systems and team sports are also prevalent. Discount shopping establishments are frequented by this population.
High Readership Rates – Parenting Magazines, Weekend Newspapers, Style Magazines, More Parenting Magazines.
Radio Listenership Rates – Alternative Rock Radio, Soft Contemporary Radio, Rock Radio.
TV Viewership Rates – Children’s Channels, Pay-per-view Sports, VH1 Classic.
Branch Patron Study (continued)
In the Community and Underrepresented as Cardholders
There is an upscale population within the area that does not hold cards at the library. This group is likely located at the edges of the area and using Red Bridge or Lee’s Summit.
Underrepresented in the Community
Seniors are in surprisingly low numbers in this community.
Age 0-4 5-9 10-19 20-34 35-44 45-64 65+ Total
Pop. 3015 3087 5956 7517 6396 8132 3213 37,316
% 8.08% 8.27% 15.96% 20.14% 17.14% 21.79% 8.61% 100.00%
Index 114 114 110 114 114 110 100 101 97 74 74 100
Branch Patron Study
Who is HereIncome – Excelsior Springs cardholders are primarily middle to upper-middle class.
Age – Age within the Excelsior group is distributed very similarly to the system as a whole. The only group that stands out at all is 10-19 year olds. Excelsior indexes highly among middle school to high school students.
Lifestyles – Primarily, Excelsior cardholders live rural lifestyles. They index highly for outdoor recreation and boat ownership. They also tend to be heavy television and video game consumers. Most families have two working parents.
High Readership Rates – Outdoor magazines, country living magazines, sports magazines.
Radio Listener Rates – Country Music Radio, Oldies Radio, Sports
TV Viewership Rates – Outdoor Life Network, Country Music TV, Movie Channels
In the Community and Underrepresented as Cardholders
One group whose cardholder numbers are not indicative of their presence in the community are early retirees. This group makes up 12% of the community but only account for 6% of cardholders. This group tends to be very active and is prone to travel.
Underrepresented in the Community
Excelsior Springs is divided up pretty evenly by age, but almost not at all by race.
Measurement:Track Response, Identify Results and Refine Strategies—Looking for that Best Customer
Track Response: EVALUATIONS! Note whether or not the program was ‘successful’
– Remember two methods of success: One is quantitative and deals with number of attendees Other is qualitative and deals with the satisfaction of those who
attended a program (i.e. majority in Beginning Knitting had never knitted before and left knowing how to knit)
Look for zip codes and verify geo-demographic data to program topic.
Program selection becomes more exact and precise when you pay attention to customer profiles and ‘match’ them with the appropriate program selections.