Social network services for academic libraries: A study based on social capital and social proof

Abstract

Despite the potential of social networking services (SNS) as a tool for communication between academic libraries and users, many academic libraries are yet to successfully optimize their SNS. As a result, their social proof and social capital of various SNS do not perform well. This research aims to evaluate the SNS effectiveness of the University of Hong Kong Libraries (HKUL) based on social capital and social proof concepts. We hope that our recommendations according to our findings will be applicable to other academic library contexts. We have found that: (i) there are no major differences between undergraduate and postgraduate students in their attitudes and behaviors regarding the SNS of HKUL on various platforms; (ii) low social proof is related to a lack of user interaction and promotion; (iii) low satisfaction with SNS contents may lead to low social capital. As such, understanding user information need, setting goals and metrics for each SNS, and formulating a formal SNS policy are the keys to further develop library SNS.