Incorporation and visibility of reference and social networking tools on ARL member libraries' websites

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to evaluate 125 research libraries in North America to identify whether they incorporate reference and social networking tools in their library's website.Design/methodology/approachA content analysis of 125 library websites is conducted to determine whether libraries who are members of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) incorporate and promote reference and social networking tools in their website. For the purpose of this study, a list of reference and social networking tools was chosen and each library's website was visited to determine first, which reference and social networking tools from this list appear on their library's homepage and, second, which tools appear elsewhere on the library's website.FindingsThe results show that even though most of these reference and social networking tools are incorporated into their library's websites, their presence is lower on their library's homepage.Practical implicationsAcademic and research libraries should incorporate reference and social networking tools on their library's homepage to make these services more visible and more easily accessible to their users.Originality/valueThis study demonstrates the importance of the right placement for reference and social networking tools on ARL websites.