AskMN Turns 10!

AskMN: The Librarian Is In! is Minnesota’s 24/7 statewide digital reference service. AskMN has been in service since March 2008, with 40 libraries and library systems participating from across Minnesota. FY18 marked AskMN’s 10th year in service. AskMN began in 2008 with eight libraries willing to try something new – be part of a cooperative of libraries helping each other answer patron questions 24/7. Since then more libraries have joined and patrons caught on quickly to the fact that they could get help whenever they needed it. AskMN has grown steadily through the years and since 2008, AskMN participating libraries have answered and followed up with nearly 300,000 patron questions! 

The FY18 Report is now available on the Minitex website. Here are some of the highlights from the previous year: AskMN participating libraries, in cooperation with the 24/7 Reference Cooperative, answered 37,257 questions with 32,997 questions coming from Minnesota patrons. The academic queue saw an increase of 13% in usage of the FY17 period. This is the largest increase in usage for the academic queue. The 24/7 Reference Cooperative is made up of libraries from the United States and the United Kingdom which is how we are able to provide 24/7 coverage for the service. In FY18 the 24/7 Reference Cooperative answered 33% of all Minnesota patron questions which fell mostly after hours and on weekends when Minnesota librarians were not available. 

AskMN is available via the statewide portal, AskMN.org, the ELM portal, and from participating libraries.