The sins of library web sites

Ah, Twitter is a wonderful thing.  I asked members of the Twitterverse to catalog the problems of library web sites, and my followers (as friends on Twitter are called) did not disappoint.  I got responses not only from both library and non-library folks, but even a bit of international participation with a comment or two from Australia.

Here’s a sample of much of what I received:

• “Nonsensical links to products by name. Bookletters, EBSCO, iBistro.”
• “Branch hours/locations not easy to find from the library home page.”
• Having to…”scroll waaay down to bottom to find search box and then was Title(not keyword).”
• “Animated gifs and blinking text.”
• “Focus on library materials and facilities, rather than how people use our materials and facilities.”
• “Acronyms.”
• “No site search.  C’mon, time to leave 1998.”
  
• “Hiding your staff and/or hiding ways (or not providing them at all) to contact staff through the web site.”
• “Library jargon: what the heck is a ‘electronic reference database’ to the layperson?”

I saw at least one major theme here:  many libraries don’t have sites that are intended for the end user.  Too many library sites are designed around the perceived needs of library staff, rather than for their patrons.  I encourage every library to take a good, hard look at their public-facing web site(s) and ask the question “Who is this really for?”

Here’s some additional sins I’ll add to the list:

• Can’t find the address and/or phone number for at least the main branch on the front page.
• Too much text on the front page.  Don’t put the whole 3-paragraph story there; just a teaser.  People scan the web; they don’t read.  When I see too much text, I’m outta there.

What other problems with library web sites do you commonly see?  Share’em in the comments!