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Designing quality information products -8
Barbie E. Keiser
University of Vilnius
May 2007
The issues
Are you providing the right information products, given your current resources?
Is each provided to the best of your abilities?
Where to begin
Develop products which address strategic needs
Concentrate on providing information your clients need (or think they need)
Provide information which will make a difference– In their ability to function– “Profitability”
Product positioning
Know your competition Make certain that the library’s offerings are
identifiably your work Target products to specific, identified needs Tailor products to your clients Use available technology Facilitate sharing/exchange of information Create strategic alliances
Know what business you are in
Determine what business it would be advantageous to appear to be in
Have you set the library’s priorities in terms of the university’s? Faculties within it?
Are you being flexible, showing your customers a willingness to tailor your products and services to their needs?
Know your competition
Internal External
Direct Indirect Potential
Who is your competition?
Know your competition
What products/services are being offered directly to your clients
Determine why they have been acquired Compare the competition’s products/services
with your own– Can you offer a similar service?– Should you piggyback your services onto theirs?– Can you add value to the products/services of
others?
The opportunity
Understand that information can eliminate the confusion caused by a rapidly changing environment
Find out what kinds of information people want and need, and then deliver it
Turn your competitors into allies View every information need as an
opportunity for your library
Product development issues
Are your products consistent with your customers’ current and future needs?
Are these products strategically significant? Do you have a flow of new products?
New product/service development
Know your products/services Tie new products/services to strategic interests of the
organization Maintain a formal, but flexible, development process Seek multifunctional team members Respect market feedback Promise only what you can deliver Measure quality through customer satisfaction Deliver value
What is an information product?
One that is created by your library, not purchased
Core, formal, augmented, and system products
Importance of isolating a product’s core benefit
13
The information factory
Creating an integrated product line
How do your products relate to one another? Do they make sense to the customer? Do they help you attain economies of scale? Do you have a number of products in the
pipeline? Do you initiate periodic enhancements of
existing products? Discontinue out-dated/out-moded products?
15
Product life cycle
Impact of technological change on the product life cycle
Shorter product life cycle for high-tech products Increased complexity requires an education
component in promotional materials Increased costs mean higher price points, altering
profit margins/strategies Requires increased coordination
– With other products/services you offer– With products/services offered to your user base by others
(competition)
A range of products
Do you have the wherewithal (information, human and financial resources) to create these products?– If not, a strategy to attain them?
Support their production over time? Market them?
Ask yourselves...
Why have we developed this product?– How critical is it?– Could we do without it?
Are there any problems related to its production/delivery that should be addressed?
– Format– Turnaround time– Ease of use
Does the entire staff understand the importance of each product? How it is put together? Used?
How accurate is the information provided? How well have we planned for growth?
Objectives of your product review
Determine new products Determine product enhancements Evaluate existing products for weeding
purposes Define the library in terms of its markets’
needs
A tough competitor learns what its users need
Take a business that you are good at and maximize it by finding new customers for existing products/services
Devise related products and services and market to your existing customer base
Enhance your assets Improve quality Optimize capital Manage risks better
than in the past Control costs
Product/customer matrix
Product line review
What products and services does the library offer? Who uses your products and services? How often?
– Frequency– Timing
How much does it cost to provide them? Are you servicing your most important markets?
Key questions
How effective is the library in targeting current user needs? Strategic information needs of the organization? Which potential customer groups did you identify in the needs
assessment which are not being served adequately? Is there a product to answer each need? What information needs are not being satisfied by the library’s
current product line? Is the library targeting existing products to all potential users? Are new products necessary?
What the product line review will tell you
If you are reaching a variety of user groups If you are reaching those groups of critical
importance to the organization If you are using a variety of media and
formats to provide and distribute your products
Consider product enhancements
Revise “marketing” collateral Use technology to market technology Redesign welcome screens and front-ends Build macros to facilitate end-user searching
and export of data
What does customization entail?
Understand your users and their needs Know the resources you need today, and
those that you will likely need in the future Avoid getting locked into one source or
system Know your information technologies and their
capabilities
Importance of customization
Evaluate output options Customize output Consider alternative methods of delivery Integrate technology into the process
You are responsible for unbiased information gathering
Ability to understand the question being asked
Knowledge of sources available and the ability to choose the optimal source
Integrity of data sources Ability to search effectively and efficiently Facility with communications software
Assuring quality during the information gathering and analysis stage: Ask yourself…
Have you accurately answered the question(s) posed?
Is your response clear, focused, and comprehensive?
Have you been prudent in disregarding “irrelevant” sources; discarding “irrelevant” material? Utilizing technologies available?
Have you noted any discrepancies?
Assuring quality during the post-processing stage
Ability to reformat data Ease of integration Organization/reorganization Enhancing information Customizing output
Post-processing issues
How can we use technology to improve the presentation of information?
What kind of software will facilitate the process? How should we present information?
– What’s available vs. what’s responsive to the question posed
– Make it actionable and tailored to the preferences of users– Tradeoffs
Repackaging of information and customization of output
Content Source Format Graphics Mode of delivery
“New” modes of delivery
Increased speed does not necessarily mean higher cost
Minimize the amount of times digitized data is transferred to print and retransmitted electronically
Make the data’s delivery mode fit its intended use
Assuring quality during the delivery stage
Timely delivery of information Cost-effective mode of delivery Minimize the number of times data must be
converted Review and summation
In summary
Present not the information that’s available, but what is NEEDED
Present information that enhances users’ ability to act, thereby increasing your value to them
Provide information in a cost-effective manner
Tailoring a current awareness update service
Consider product enhancements
Revise marketing “collateral” Use technology to market technology Redesign welcome screens and front-ends Build macros to facilitate end-user searching
Deal effectively with the competition
Understand why they are so popular Compare their products with your own Can you offer a similar one
– at less cost– with added value
Can you/should you piggyback your services onto theirs, adding value?
How do you determine which new products to offer?
Use the results of your needs assessment to identify priority market segments
Determine common information needs among various user groups
Offer complementary products Attract users from the competition
– Add value– Tailor formats– Price competitively
What is a “new” product?
New for your library Modification of existing product Repackaged for a new user segment Brand-new creation
A tough competitor learns what its customers need
Take a business that you are good at and find new customers for it
Devise related products/services and market to your existing customer base
Which new products to offer?
Establish priority target market segments Determine common information needs Offer complementary products Attract users from the competition
– Add value– Tailored formats– Price competitiveness
Issues
Are you providing the right products, given your current resources?
Is each provided to the best of your abilities? Are you presenting not the information that’s
available, but what is NEEDED– In the appropriate format– Using appropriate technology
Meet the information requirements of your users
Develop products and services to meet the needs of your university and each constituency in it
Employ the appropriate technologies Determine the best way to present and
deliver the information required
The opportunity
Don’t be bound by preconceived notions of what the library can offer
Broaden the base of products and services offered by the library
What is quality?
Absolute professionalism Single-minded devotion to satisfying the
customer– Meeting predetermined requirements of users– Exceeding their expectations
Perfectionism in the eyes of the customer
Defining a quality product
The best we can do, given our resources In the eyes of our customers Our product, as compared with our
competitors’ Situation- and application-dependent
The value edge
Availability Reliability Suitability Flexibility
Relevance Validity/accuracy Completeness Aesthetics Timeliness
Assuring quality means...
Taking responsibility: How liable are we? Minimizing risks
Assuring quality throughout
In summary
Establish that there exists an information need Estimate the size of the market for your potential
product Identify current and potential (future) competitors Analyze if you can meet that need now
– If not, what do you require?– How will you sustain/maintain that effort over time?
The Challenge
Find a need and satisfy it
Be a good product manager
Apply successful business management practices
Learn from others Use manufacturing successes in a service
environment
Create a framework for excellence
Focus on the quality principle throughout Focus on sustaining excellence Build a team of players