Gale Analytics Launches New Interactive Dashboards to Help Public Libraries Gain Deeper Insights into Community Interests and Needs

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., June 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Gale, a Cengage company, is helping public libraries analyze data more efficiently to better serve their patrons and communities. Gale Analytics has introduced new interactive dashboards that provide public libraries with valuable insights into their service areas. Now library staff can dynamically interact with data to better understand the lifestyles and behaviors of households in their communities to design and market customized library services and resources to fit their needs.

"As online learning becomes the new normal, public libraries must ensure they have the right programs and services in place to meet patron and community needs," said Leigh Ann Cusack, senior director of public and consortia product at Gale. "Now with interactive dashboards available across all reports, Gale Analytics enables libraries to really drill down and actively analyze data to gain deeper insights on the households in their service areas. Its dynamic visuals and filterable variables like household income and branch usage provide libraries a view into areas of opportunity to meet emerging needs."

Gale Analytics easily merges libraries' integrated library system (ILS) data with Mosaic® segmentation from Experian and other datasets. Using interactive dashboards in Tableau Reader, users can segment households based on demographic and lifestyle criteria—drilling down into rich visuals, dynamic maps and downloadable custom mailing lists based on segmentation.

Gale Analytics' new interactive dashboards include:

• Gale Analytics: Community Insights: Segments households in a library's service area (patrons and non-patrons) based on interest, income, presence of children and allows libraries to build custom marketing lists with a household address or email. As change happens over time, libraries can better understand and visualize their community's current library activity and how to effectively meet their needs. Dashboard controls allow for more dynamic analysis and customized output.
• Gale Analytics: Digital Collections: Blends eBook and audiobook vendor data with segmentation and lifestyle data to provide demographic insight into who the library is serving and how to better inform collection development. Whether analyzing by genre or household type, this dashboard helps libraries understand not only what is being checked out, but by what segments, when, how often and more.
• Gale Analytics: Physical Collections: Combines checkout data from a libraries' ILS with segmentation and lifestyle data to assess how their community is using print resources. Many existing collection analysis tools provide only basic insight into the number of checkouts by genre or format. Whether analyzing by genre or household type, this dashboard helps libraries understand not only what is being checked out, but by what segments, when, how often and more.
• Gale Analytics: Patron Insights: Segments patrons (at the household level) based on interest, income, technology use, presence of children and more. As change happens over time, your library can uncover the types of patrons your library attracts, as well as the types of users that need better outreach.
• Gale Analytics: Branches: Tracks cardholder activity across various branches in a single library system. This dashboard provides insight into where and how individual consumer types are engaging with the library system. The resulting analysis allows staff to tailor materials, programs, services and outreach, as well as provides a holistic view of home-branch, non-home and multi-branch use.

Gale Analytics' new interactive dashboards are available now. Consulting services are available to libraries who need support on specific projects or assistance interpreting data.

To learn more about the new Gale Analytics dashboards, Gale will host a live webinar titled: Dial Up Your Outreach with Data on July 15 at 2pm ET. To register, visit the webinar registration page.

For more information or to request a demonstration, visit the Gale Analytics webpage.

About Cengage and Gale
Cengage is the education and technology company built for learners. The company serves the higher education, K-12, professional, library and workforce training markets worldwide. Gale, a Cengage company, provides libraries with original and curated content, as well as modern research tools and technology that are crucial in connecting libraries to learning, and learners to libraries. For more than 60 years, Gale has partnered with libraries around the world to empower the discovery of knowledge and insights – where, when and how people need it. Gale has 500 employees globally with its main operations in Farmington Hills, Michigan. For more information, please visit www.gale.com.

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Media Contact:
Kayla Siefker, Gale, a Cengage company
248-699-8456
[email protected]

SOURCE Gale, a Cengage company

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