Learn how to bring more librarian voices and expertise into Libby with shelf talkers.
This feature is available in OverDrive Marketplace for public, professional, and academic library partners, including those with advantage accounts. This does require one of the following Marketplace permissions.
In a physical setting like a library or bookstore, shelf talkers might look like this.
Here we see staff picks and trivia on hand written note cards. Shelf talkers are a way for content creators to speak to their customers, display their expertise, and share their personalities. What if you could create shelf talkers for your digital titles in Libby?
By sharing personalized staff recommendations.
Sharing your favorite quote with end users.
Or sharing book club picks or thoughts with your community.
All of this and more can be done with the shelf talkers feature in Marketplace.
From shop or curate, you can add a shelf talker to any title in your collection.
Shelf talkers then display on a title's details page in Libby for your end users to see.
Shelf talkers can be used to share librarian and staff recommendations for titles,
Quotes for titles,
Trivia about the title and author. For notes that don't fit into one of the other types, for example, you may want to promote an upcoming author visit, or book club, or call out new titles. You could even mention an upcoming books in a series.
Just like shelf talkers in the physical library, shelf talkers in Libby allow you to speak directly to your users, share expertise, and introduce your personalities. This helps users feel like they are visiting your library in Libby.
At this time will walk you through the process of creating and managing shelf talkers on the back end in Marketplace and view how it looks for end users in Libby.
First sign into Marketplace. Shelf talkers can be accessed from the shop or curate page. Today I'll show you through shop, but the options are the same on the curate page. If I'm a curator making a staff picks list, I may want to add shelf talkers and attribute recommendations to various library staff.
To do this search for a title you own in Marketplace.
Click shelf talker on search results page or the title details page.
A modal opens which guides you.
First, choose a shelf talker type.
When you do it will preview on the right.
View our help article to see example notes to get you started.
Add a note.
Use clear, concise language. This must be at least fifty characters and no more than three hundred characters. No links are able to be added at this time.
And avoid repeating info already found in the title's description.
Just like curated list please add translations for your self talkers since these are so personalized.
You have the option to schedule a note.
You can keep these shelf talkers fresh and timely. For staff picks, you may want to have those up for just a few months or if you're featuring an event include an end date.
Avoid having outdated shelf talkers in your collection.
You can also attribute the note to library staff to showcase their expertise and personalities. Enter their name, library branch, and upload a headshot or image.
Once you've added their name, location, and image,
Review the shelf talker on the right
And hit
Publish.
The active indicator is now next to shelf talker.
Status will appear as active, inactive, no note, or scheduled. To recap, shelf talkers can be added to any title in your collection on either the shop or curate page
Next
You may want to see how many titles in your collection currently have a shelf talker. You can do this two ways: with an advanced search and the search results filter.
From Marketplace, click the advanced search option.
Once your advanced search displays, utilize the shelf talker status.
Active is for shelf talkers that are live in Libby and end users can see it.
Inactive- shelf talkers that passed their end date. They are still discoverable in case you'd like to access again in the future.
No note allows you to search for titles without shelf talkers. For example, searching for titles published in the last month that don't have a shelf talker.
And scheduled-
Shelf talkers with future start dates.
Click on any one of those in shelf talker status and
Hit search.
You can then open, review, and edit the shelf talker from your search results.
You can also use the shelf talker status filter on the left hand side of your search results.
This will show up during any search you run so you always have the option to filter your results by shelf talker status.
To recap, search for titles with a shelf talker through an advanced search or on the search results page.
Now let's see what this looks like in Libby.
Open the Libby app.
Search for a title.
Using the magnifying glass and go to a title's details page.
Click on the title
To see the details.
If there is a shelf talker,
It will appear here.
At this time shelf talkers only display on the title's
Details page.
Placement will vary based on the screen size for phone, tablet, or computer. You can tap on an image for a larger view.
Helpful when there is a headshot.
As a recap, users can view shelf talkers on the title details page
In Libby.
Remember these best practices when creating shelf talkers. Be sure to select the correct shelf talker type.
If you're noting that title's author is visiting your library, put that under thought not trivia.
Use clear, concise language. Avoid repeating information already found in the title's description.
Limit notes to one or two paragraphs. There is a three hundred character maximum.
Schedule to keep shelf talkers fresh and timely
Attribute with a name and picture to showcase staff's expertise and personalities.
Be selective. The more shelf talkers you add, the less impactful or special they may become.
Know when to use a curated list instead.
If one phrase, quote, or description applies to several titles, curate them and add a description instead.
Shelf talkers are a great way to bring librarian voices and faces into Libby. If you have any questions, please refer to the Resource Center or ask your Account Manager. Happy reading!