This or That?

Submitted by Melissa Reed

If you visit the breakroom at Post Road, you may notice the whiteboard we have where we ask a question for staff and volunteers to answer. Often, the question poses a choice: do you like this or that better? As a former staff member put it, the questions have allowed us the opportunity to get to know each other little by little over time. 

This past April, we turned this concept into an engagement program for our patrons. Each week, we post a “This or That” question for our patrons to vote on. The question is displayed on the counter at the corner of the main Ask Us desk, and patrons use poker chips (FCPL colors with a logo sticker on each one) to vote on their choice. Poker chip votes are dropped into one of two clear acrylic boxes that are sitting on either side of the This or That question so patrons can see how many votes each option has gotten up to that point. New questions are posted every Sunday, and the results from the previous week are also included on the sign that posts the new question. 

This engagement program has become a fun activity for our patrons when they visit our branch, and just as our breakroom questions have allowed us to get to know little tidbits about each other, we are learning little bits about our patrons. We have learned that soccer is more than twice as popular as baseball, that more patrons prefer the beach to the mountains, and that dogs are slightly more popular with our patrons than cats. 

The weekly question has offered a number of different opportunities for our patrons. We have seen parents use the question as an opportunity to teach some concepts: what voting is or what “favorite” means, making a choice, even talking about the colored poker chips for our littler patrons. We have also had such fun listening to the conversations amongst family members. I remember when we asked “Jelly Beans or Marshmallow Bunnies” and one family had quite a debate about which one was the best. All of the kids were basically in agreement that marshmallow bunnies were the best, and then mom came along and voted for jelly beans and caused quite a reaction from her kids who were shocked that she didn’t agree with them! 

But it’s not just families who are enjoying This or That! We are seeing just as much participation from adults. I spoke to one patron who was so upset that she had missed the “beach or mountain” vote. I had a wonderful conversation with a patron while we walked to her study room after she placed her vote for spring when the question was “spring or fall,” although she told me that really, winter is her very favorite season. 

Our participation numbers demonstrate that our patrons are really enjoying this engagement program and that it is gaining in popularity and that our patrons are making it a habit to return to vote in the new question each time they visit. The first week, we had about 120 votes, but each week, our total votes have increased and we are now getting over 200 votes per week!