A New Tool for Assisting Patrons: Patron Finder

Accessing patron finder from the Reports page on the Library Admin Site.

hoopla’s continuing efforts to help our Partner Libraries provide helpful troubleshooting tools to their patrons takes flight with our latest feature on the Library Admin Site: patron finder. This simple, yet powerful tool allows staff members with access to their library’s hoopla account to look up registered patrons by library card and/or e-mail address.

Imagine a patron asking if they already have a hoopla account, or if a patron cannot remember the e-mail address they used when registering for hoopla. Library staff can now use the patron finder tool to look up that patron (and only their account information, no borrow history or anything along those lines) and help patrons resume using their hoopla account promptly.

Patron finder menu after searching by e-mail address (or library card number).

 What other tools would help your staff assist patrons? We monitor the Contact Us on hoopla and hear from users, but we want to hear from our Partner Libraries. Let us know in the comments below!

FAQ Update: In-Depth Answers Based on User Platform

Previously, we gave our Partner Libraries a look at some of the support efforts we provide through various avenues. This week, we’d like to go in-depth on one area of focus, our FAQ/Help section. Not only do we want to provide examples of the types of FAQ’s you can expect to see, but gain from you the type of FAQ’s that would best help you and your patrons.

 Our latest app and website update allow us to create a device-specific FAQ experience for our users. This allows us to present information and give important tips to the user based on the device that is being used and that’s likely to be in question.

 We are also adding new topics of discussion to the FAQ pages:

• The “ABC’s of hoopla” will provide basic information about how hoopla works.
• On hoopladigital.com, there will be a direct link to Google help, the operator of the Widevine plug-in. This link contains helpful screenshots and troubleshooting information that can help users install Widevine on their computer.

 Adding refreshed, helpful information for our Partner Libraries and users is a project that’s ongoing for us here at hoopla. In the near future, we will be publishing a series of videos helping users with FAQ’s, resetting passwords and more. As always, be sure to check out our Library Community or library.hoopladigital.com for updates on these initiatives.

Last Chance to Enter our Southern Style Giveaway!

Darius Rucker's "Southern Style" is on hoopla! from hoopla digital on Vimeo.

One grand prize winner will receive a custom, autographed Darius Rucker guitar; and, 3 runner-ups will win an autographed copy of his new CD – Southern Style! On our Dropbox page, you’ll find a flyer with a QR code that will allow hoopla users to enter directly from their mobile devices. 

To enter to win, go to the hoopla Facebook page, or scan the QR code on the flyer. The Southern Style Giveaway runs from April 12-30. Don't miss out on your chance to register and win! 

And don’t forget to check out our Southern Style Collection on hoopla – relax, kick back and enjoy the mix of country, bluegrass and Americana sounds of the south.

hoopla Goes Back to School with Drexel University and Free Library of Phily

Check out Drexel University and Free Library of Philadelphia's new innovative lending program. hoopla digital is one of 5 apps available to all iPad borrowers!

Check out Drexel University and Free Library of Philadelphia's new innovative lending program. hoopla digital is one of 5 apps available.

Posted by hoopla digital on Friday, April 3, 2015

Providing Helpful Solutions and Support for hoopla Users

hoopla Partner Libraries are the front line for patron support. Library staff are often fielding questions from users, and sending them our way. Our Partner Libraries are great at helping patrons, but what about those times library staff need some additional information? Let us provide some additional information in these areas:

FAQ’s

Our mobile apps now have operating-system specific FAQ’s, based on the device a user is using. If a user is using an iOS device, there is now a dedicated section of iOS tips. Android/Kindle Fire HDX users also receive their own tip section as well. 

Take a look at some of the adjacent screenshots for the new look for FAQ's:

Library Community

The Library Community is our hub for on-demand information for hoopla, and is a fun, informative environment to collaborate with other partner libraries. Using the Knowledge menu, Community members can access helpful information such as a list of supported devices, removing PIN’s from your ILS connection hoopla uses, and other helpful information. If you would like an invitation to join our Community, please contact your hoopla Coordinator for further information.

Monitoring User Feedback 

Listening to our user base and adding features/functionality based on this feedback is essential for the development of hoopla support. We listen to social media, app reviews, customer feedback, and our Community (among many other places) for feedback. We are always looking for ways to improve our service and add in features that will help make hoopla a successful service for our partner libraries.   

Contact Us

Providing support beyond library hours is another facet of our support team’s efforts. Our Support Team monitors this inbox from 8:30AM through 10:00PM EST during the week, and from 10:00AM through 10:00PM EST during the weekend/holidays. The hoopla team provides library after hours support to your community, helping to educate and improve their hoopla digital experience. 

We are listening. What other tips and tricks would be helpful for you and your staff in providing support and assistance to patrons? Let us know in the comments below!

Innisfil, Evansville and Claiborne Parish Among our Latest Featured Libraries

The extremely generous Innisfil Public Library in Ontario held a special giveaway to their patrons. The library awarded a patron with an iPad Air. Innisifil ran this giveaway to kick off their hoopla rollout, and is just one example of some of the fun and engaging ways our Featured Libraries have been telling their patrons about hoopla.

Here are some of the other top activities some of our other Partner Libraries are doing to inform and engage:

Our friends at Mooresville Public Library created a series of videos hyping up their launch. In the video series, staff members show off a number of activities that are hard to do, compared to the simplicity of hoopla. 

Getting cheers from the media is always a plus when introducing hoopla to your community. Take Evansville, Indiana, and the Evansville-Vanderburgh Public Library as an example. This library is  getting high marks from Kelly Gifford in the Evansville Courier & Press. Kelly remarks “It’s kind of awesome.” in her story, which can be read in its entirety here.

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Staying cool this spring is an easy task for hoopla the Bear at Forsyth Library. hoopla The Bear has been a popular denizen of the library, and here he is participating in storytime with some local youths. hoopla (the Bear) is on the cutting edge of fashion as well, with his sharp hoopla t-shirt!

Creating a kiosk is an easy way to buid a point of conversation with your patrons. Claiborne Parish Library created a display using a computer and some homemade posters to go along with some hoopla-created collateral materials. Ashley Fuller, Network Specialist at the library said “I’ve noticed that everyone looks at it when they walk by!” Many libraries have created a wide array of displays to communicate about hoopla. 

Try creating your own display and sending it to us. We’ll make sure it shows up in our next edition of Featured Libraries!

hoopla Presents The London Sessions Mary J. Blige Giveaway!

If you saw this week's episode of the hugely popular FOX series Empire, you know that Mary J. Blige is back. Her duet with series star and Academy-Award Nominated actor Terrence Howard has everyone talking. This multi-platinum recording artist's latest stop is hoopla!

Her latest album, The London Sessions, is now instantly available on hoopla. This album features collaborations with some of the biggest English artists of 2014 including Sam Smith and Disclosure along with others. The London Sessions is also gaining critical acclaim; Billboard.com named The London Sessions the best R&B album of 2014, and Rolling Stone named it sixth in a list of the best R&B albums of 2014.

 hoopla is celebrating Mary’s album by giving away an autographed vinyl copy of The London Sessions. One winner will receive this once-in-a-lifetime prize, exclusively from hoopla digital and Capitol Records. This giveaway runs from March 15-22. Head over to our Facebook page to register today!

Helpful Tips for Using hoopla LightSpeed

As you are well aware, hoopla’s latest app update, LightSpeed is now in the wild across iOS, Android and our website. Our support team is hard at work, responding to user questions and concerns that have come in over the past week. We wanted to provide you with solutions to some of the common issues reported, so you can better answer patron questions.

New Locations for Genres

Our genres also have a new home on the format home screen. But fear not, genres have not been removed. Here are some helpful steps to access genres:

1.       Tap on Browse All for your desired format.

2.       Tap on Browse button in the upper right hand corner.

3.       Tap on Genres, which is always at the top of the Browse/Collections list.

4.       All genres for that format are listed, tap on a genre for additional titles!

Recommendation Behavior

Looking for new suggested titles or tired of seeing the same genres in your suggestions? Simply enter your Recommendation Behavior menu by opening the hoopla menu and tapping on your e-mail address. After entering this menu, you can turn on (or off) formats by tapping on individual genres. Your recommendations will update instantly.

Password Reset Issues

Due to the intricacy of LightSpeed’s update, we had to log iOS users (and only iOS users) out of the app. In a world dominated by remembering passwords, we know it is difficult to remember them all. On the main login screen, we have a Forgot Password link. Enter your e-mail address and hoopla will send you a temporary password which can be copied and then pasted into the password field.  After logging in with your temporary password, immediately click to open the side bar and click on your e-mail address, now set your permanent password.

Conversely, if you are resetting your password on hoopladigital.com, we will e-mail you a link that can be clicked to instantly reset your password, no copying and pasting required.

We are noticing that some users are requesting more than one password reset e-mail. We strongly advise against this, and ask users to use the latest/newest password reset e-mail received from hoopla. Using any link other than the newest link will not yield desired results, and users will be unable to change their passwords.

Tell Us More

We hope this information has been helpful and want to hear more from you. What are some of the common questions you are answer with LightSpeed’s launch? What are your patrons telling you about the new look? What other tips and tricks would help you better assist patrons?

hoopla LightSpeed is Now Live! Read About the Update and More

Hello Library Partners!

LightSpeed, hoopla’s next step to empower your evolution, will be arriving very soon. As we continue to improve hoopla digital’s mobile and online experience, your valued feedback (and that of your patrons) plays a vital role. LightSpeed ­ - an app evolution for brighter connectivity – is a direct reflection of how we are listening and incorporating this feedback into our most comprehensive upgrade to date. Your patrons will be able to experience, explore and enjoy hoopla digital in a new way that’s faster, brighter, easy-to-use and always available. And, as always, hoopla digital is committed to serving you through and beyond this new app launch.

That’s why we want to connect with you first, to share some of the more exciting aspects and important items you’ll want to share with patrons, so everyone’s hoopla experience is seamless.

A LightSpeed Release Information Sheet can be found below. This document offers a quick, yet comprehensive, look at the features we think you’ll find most interesting, and is segregated by use purpose:

• General LightSpeed Information
• Information Libraries Can Use
• Information Patrons Can Use

On top of these, two big changes that you and your patrons should know are:

1. Patrons will need to log in using their password (which they may or may not remember). hoopla will be glad to help in response to patron password inquiries.
2. Patrons (iOS users only) with active downloaded content will notice that updating to LightSpeed will delete their previous download (s). These are, however, still accessible, and only need to be re-downloaded – not re-borrowed - to enjoy offline.

With your help, we think we’ve created LightSpeed to be everything your patrons desire.

Make sure to tour LightSpeed. See what hoopla digital has to offer in a whole new light!