Did You Find What You Were Looking For? You Talked and We Listened

The staff at Prince William Public Libraries are always looking for ways to improve the services and materials we provide to patrons. We analyze data, review what gets checked out and what doesn’t and test our databases and electronic resources regularly. We also communicate with librarians in other systems in the area and around the country to learn what is (and isn’t) working in their communities.

But far and away, the best source of feedback about how well a library meets patron needs is to ask patrons directly. We do this in many ways—we ask you for feedback about programs, your customer service experience, our facilities, and so on. And every March, we give patrons an opportunity to tell us how well we are doing at providing the materials they want and need.

For the entirety of March, we ask patrons who use any of our libraries to answer a short survey about the availability of materials; known as “Did You Find What You Were Looking For?,” the survey also gives an opportunity for personal feedback. At the end of the month, the survey results are collected and collated, and the data is analyzed.

This year's numbers were overwhelmingly positive—95% of all respondents reported that they could find something when they visited the library in person or online. Nearly nine out of every ten patrons said they found something by a particular author or a particular topic of interest. And while we can’t buy everything, we still had nearly eight out of ten titles patrons report they found what they were specifically looking for.

While the data is useful, reading the comments proves to be the most valuable when analyzing the survey. We learned from this year's survey that while many of you like e-books and downloadable audiobooks, more of you still like old-school paper-and-ink books and prefer them whenever possible. We are listening to you, and while we still have supply chain issues to overcome, we are working hard to get more copies of more titles on the shelves for your browsing needs.

We also received many requests for more titles and authors on a variety of subjects and literary genres, and those patrons should expect to see their concerns reflected in some of the new materials coming in the library even now. Our work of building and maintaining a library collection that meets the needs and preferences of all our community members is a never-ending, constantly evolving process. The annual “Did You Find What You Were Looking For?” survey is a great way for you to tell us what we’re doing well, and opportunities to enhance our services and collection.

Written by Kirk Johnson, Prince William Public Libraries Materials Services Division