I received an automated email this morning from Robertson Library:
Dear Peter Rukavina,
Our records indicate these items are due in 3 days:
Please return or renew this material before fines accumulate.
Note that laptops and other reserve items cannot be renewed.
You may renew your material in one of 3 ways:
- online with your "My Account" page
(https://islandpines.roblib.upei.ca/opac/en-CA/skin/roblib/xml/myopac.xml?ol=4&l=4&d=2)
- by phoning 902-566-0583
- by replying to this email circdesk@upei.ca
Thank You.
How we decide, by Lehrer, Jonah.
Call Number: BF448.L45 2010
Due Date: 2013-06-24
Barcode: 37348007190119
What’s the first question that a patron like me asks when receiving an email like this? When exactly is this book due!
And where is that information? Buried down at the bottom in a difficult-to-parse date format:
Due Date: 2013-06-24
We can do so much better than this. Here’s a quick prototype for a better format for this kind of email:
This prototype has several features that I’m looking for as a patron:
- It includes the cover image of the book, so I can quickly remember which book it is from the several I might have checked out (the cover image is already in the Evergreen system that’s sending out the mail, so it should be trivial to include it).
- The date due is bold and obvious.
- There’s an option to add the due date to my calendar (clicking this would send me an iCalendar file).
- Renewal options are clearer.
- Useless information like the call number and barcode aren’t included.
This is only a quick first pass at what an improvement might look like, but I think it’s clear, regardless, that improvements can be made.
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