Web Metrics for Library and Information Professionals

Book excerpt: A practical guide to using web metrics to measure impact and demonstrate value. The web provides an opportunity to collect a host of different metrics, from those associated with social media accounts and websites to more traditional research outputs. This book is a clear guide for library and information professionals as to what web metrics are available and how to assess and use them to make informed decisions and demonstrate value. As individuals and organizations increasingly use the web in addition to traditional publishing avenues and formats, this book provides the tools to unlock web metrics and evaluate the impact of this content. Key topics covered include: • Introduction to web metrics • Bibliometrics, webometrics and web metrics • Data collection tools • Evaluating impact on the web • Evaluating social media impact • Investigating relationships between actors • Exploring traditional publications in a new environment • Web metrics and the web of data • The future of web metrics and the library and information professional. Readership: This book will provide a practical introduction to web metrics for a wide range of library and information professionals, from the bibliometrician wanting to demonstrate the wider impact of a researcher’s work than can be demonstrated through traditional citations databases, to the reference librarian wanting to measure how successfully they are engaging with their users on Twitter. It will be a valuable tool for anyone who wants to not only understand the impact of content, but demonstrate this impact to others within the organization and beyond.