Report of the Web Advisory Committee to Library Council

(January 2011 – January 2013)

The Web Advisory Committee is a Standing Committee of Library Council, with members appointed by department / unit heads in the fall of each year. The Web Advisory Committee first met in January 2011, having superseded the Web Advisory Group, a working group of the Reference Services Committee. Two working groups report to the Web Advisory Committee: the Web Analytics Group (September 2011 - ), and the Web Accessibility Group (January 2013 - ).

The Web Advisory Committee met 20 times during the January 2011 – January 2013 reporting period: 10 times in 2011, 9 times in 2012, and oncejointly with the Reference Services Committee in January 2013.

1.0 Terms of Reference

1. To make recommendations to the University of Toronto Libraries Web Coordinator to help ensure that UTL web pages:

a. support the Library’s mission statement.
b. support teaching and instruction within the University.
c. support research within the University.
d. provide efficient access to the rich array of library resources (online and print) and services (virtual and in-person).
e. are an effective marketing, outreach and communication tool.
f. meet or exceed accessibility guidelines and standards.
g. are assessed for usability and functionality.
h. are optimized for mobile devices and other emerging technologies.

2.To meet regularly, at least eight times a year.

3.To report annually to Library Council.

2.0 Membershipduring reporting period

2.1 Chair
TheJanuary, March, and April 2011 meetings of the Committee were co-chaired by Jenny Mendelsohn (Robarts) and Monique Flaccavento (OISE). Following Jenny’s retirement, Monique Flaccavento has chaired the Committee.

2.2 Ex-officio
Communications Librarian: Margaret Wall
Faculty Liaison Coordinator: Rita Vine (prior to Rita Vine’s appointment, Jenny Mendelsohn, and then Patricia Bellamy, and before her Jenny Mendelsohn, prior to Rita’s appointment)
Information Literacy Librarian: Rita Vine (Patricia Bellamy, prior to Rita’s appointment)
University of Toronto Libraries Web Coordinator: Marc Lalonde

2.3 Appointed
Maria Buda (Dentistry), Heather Cunningham (Gerstein), Sarah Forbes (UTSC, Tri-Campus Scholarly Communications Group), Carla Hagstrom (Gerstein), Angela Hamilton (UTSC), Eveline Houtman (Robarts Reference), Pam King (UTM, Tri-Campus Scholarly Communications Group), Lari Langford (Robarts Access and Information Services), Judith Logan (Robarts Reference, Mobile Working Group), Kate MacDonald (Trinity), Sara McDowell (Robarts Reference, Collection Development), Noel McFerran (St. Michael’s), James Mason (Music), Andrew McAlorum (ITS), Elizabeth O’Brien (UTSC), Jen Robertson (Collection Development, Math), Mike Serafin (UTM), Nalini Singh (Inforum), Michelle Spence (Engineering & Computer Science), Susan Stone (Robarts Resource Sharing), Susanne Tabur (Gerstein), Berenica Vejvoda (Map and Data Library)

3.0 Summary

With input from ITS staff, in consultation with other UTL committees, departments, and stakeholders, andsupported by the data provided by the Web Analytics Group, the Web Advisory Committee has made recommendations to the UTL Web Coordinator regarding improvements to the usability and functionality of the UTL site. The Committee has worked to update content; simplify pages and navigation;improve consistency across web pages; improve accessibility; and increase the visibility of UTL collections, resources, and services. Work in all of these areas is ongoing.

4.0 Updating content

Updates to the content of the UTL site undertaken by the Committee include removing / replacing broken links; ensuring that information contained on web pages is current, accurate, and complete; removing obsolete pages;watching for and eliminating clichés and library jargon;and creating new pages as needed.

Examples of new pages which have been created with input from the Web Advisory Committee include:

  • Contact us:
  • Research consultations:

A few examples of pages which have been revised and updated by the Web Advisory Committee include:

  • Loan services:
  • Library cards / TCards:
  • Popular databases (revised in conjunction with the Reference Services Committee):
  • Special collections:

5.0 Simplifying pages and navigation

As the UTL site conveys information about the services, resources, collections, and policies of the University of Toronto’s 44 libraries, it is by nature a large and complex site. Many of its pages are information,text, and jargonheavy; the site’sdrop-down navigation menus areextensive, often containing multiple sub-menus.

The Web Advisory Committee has worked to simplify the site by ensuring that the pages they have reviewed and drop-down menus are free of technical language / jargon. For instance, “loan services” has replaced “circulation services”, “request items from other institutions” has been used instead of “interlibrary loans”, and the link to citation information has been named “create your bibliography.”

As patrons generally scan web pages for important information rather than read pages in their entirety, the Committee has endeavored to rewrite pages using concise language, bullet points, and images, as appropriate. An emphasis has likewise been placed on ensuring that the information on each page is logically organized.

Links in the drop-down navigation menus have been alphabetized.

The number of links in the drop-down menus and the number of sub-menus has been reduced, primarily by reducing redundancies in the navigation. For instance, two years ago, there were 13 “help” (contact us, telephone help, research help, email help, chat, etc.) links on the UTL homepage. Based on recommendations from the Web Advisory Committee, Marc Lalonde and Gordon Belray created a single page ( contains all of the ways a patron can find “help”. There is currently a link to this page in the header, the footer, and in three menus: “Help”, “Services”, and “Research”. The “Ask: Chat with a Librarian” icon on the UTL homepage also links to this page.

Usage data provided by the Web Analytics Group has been instrumental in guiding the Committee’s recommendations regarding which links should be maintained – please see the attached report of the Web Analytics Group for additional information.Informal usability testing undertaken by Judith Logan and Monique Flaccavento in March 2012 also helped to inform these decisions.

The simplification of web pages and navigation will also help to improve the user experience of patrons navigating the site using phones, tablets, and other mobile devices.

6.0 Improving consistency

Greater consistency has been achieved on the UTL site through more consistent use of capitalization (sentence case for headings, for example); acronyms and abbreviations; formatting (use of bullet points; headings, subheadings, etc.); active voice; alternative text; etc.

Improved consistency across the site has the potentialto enhance the user experience by making information more findable. Consistency in the use of headings (h2 / h3 / etc.), alternative text, etc. also serves to improve navigation on the site, particularly for those relying on screen readers and other adaptive technologies.

6.1 University of Toronto Libraries Web Style Guide

Based on a draft of the Faculty of Information Web Style Guide (Joe Cox, Nalini K. Singh), and recommendations from the Web Advisory Committee, the University of Toronto Libraries Web Style Guide was produced in December 2011 and posted on the intranet where it can be accessed by all staff.

The Web Advisory Committee wishes to acknowledge the outstanding contributions of Nalini K. Singh in compiling the University of Toronto Libraries Web Style Guide.

7.0 Improving accessibility

All new pages on Ontario websites must meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, version 2.0 (WCAG 2.0), as outlined in the new AODA Information and Communication Standard by January 2014. To learn more about WCAG 2.0 and possible accessibility improvements to the UTL site, Joanne Oud, librarian at Wilfred Laurier University Library and author of “How Well Do Ontario Library Web Sites Meet New Accessibility Requirements?” ( and Dillon Moore, Web Initiatives Librarian at Wilfred Laurier University Library, shared their expertise with the Web Advisory Committee September 5, 2012. Susanne Tabur, who attended a CNIB accessibility workshop, provided a presentation to the Committee October 3, 2012, demonstrating the use of WAVE ( a tool used to analyze website accessibility. November 7, 2012, Derek Hunt, an Instructional Technology Analyst in the Education Commons at OISE, provided a demonstration of JAWS ( which allowed Committee members to gain insight into the user experience of patrons navigating the UTL site using screen reading software.

Following these presentations, theWorking Group on Web Accessibility was formed to further explore how accessibility can be improved on the UTL site, and to draft web accessibility guidelines for inclusion in the University of Toronto Libraries Web Style Guide.

8.0 Increase visibility of UTL collections, resources, and services

Available “real estate” on the UTL homepage is limited. The Web Advisory Committee has therefore had to carefully consider requests from competing stakeholders regarding placement of links, icons, banner ads, etc. on the homepage. When considering these requests, an emphasis has been placed on those which will improve the visibility of UTL collections, resources, and services, and / or would benefit the Library.

Two examples of additions which have been made to the website include: a rotating display of special collections in the bottom right hand corner of the page, and a “Work for the Libraries” banner.

The Web Advisory Committee has also created / updated pages which serve to highlight collections, resources, and services, including the “Special Collections” and “Research Consultations” pages.

Respectfully submitted,

Monique Flaccavento, Chair

Report of the Web Analytics Group to Library Council

(September 2011 – January 2013)

The Web Analytics Working Group met for the first time in September 2011 to support the Web Advisory Committee’s decision-making through the collection and analysis of website usage data. Current members are Jennifer Robertson (chair), Monique Flaccavento, Marc Lalonde, Heather Cunningham, Susanne Tabur, Maria Buda, Angela Hamilton, Heather Buchansky, Lisa Gayheart, and Graham Stewart.

Working with the Web Advisory Committee to increase the effectiveness of the library website, the group decided to start with Google Analytics to track visitor activity on the newly redesigned homepage (Google Analytics was installed in early 2011 to track UTL’s web usage data). The group held a workshop for members to learn more about Google Analytics and investigated how to use it to better understand visitor behavior on the library website, including where visitors are coming from, how long they are staying, and the most popular pages visited. With the input of the Web Advisory Committee, the group compiled and analyzed website data over the next year to target areas for change and determine the effectiveness of those changes.

Google Analytics central library website statistics for 2012:

Visits / Unique Visitors / Pageviews / Unique Pageviews / Pages / Visit
6,009,054 / 2,529,742 / 13,437,442 / 9,405,443 / 2.24

Highlights from the past year:

  • A main focus was the simplification of the website drop-down menu and home page navigation. Over the course of the year, the group compiled and analyzed data on low/high usage and overlapping links to help reduce duplication, identify incorrect links, and streamline link placement. Duplicate links were individually tagged to allow them to be tracked separately for comparison.
  • The configuration of Google Analytics, including external link tracking and tracking of terms people are searching on the UTL website.
  • The creation of a new profile in Google Analytics merging data from the central library website, new departmental library websites migrated to Drupal, and LibGuides.
  • An initial investigation into heatmaps to show most/least used elements on a page; ITS arranged for a 30-day trial of Crazy Egg in late 2012.
  • The group is currently exploring ways of sharing Google Analytics data through reports and digital dashboards.

Respectfully submitted,

Jennifer Robertson, Chair