Academic libraries are complex organizations, and can be slow to change because of their multifaceted relationships with university administration, faculty, students, and consortial partners. The integrity of, and access to, vast and valuable collections must be maintained simultaneously with the acquisition of new media formats and the adoption of new technologies.
R2 offers a broad range of services to organizations seeking to serve academic libraries including:
Product Design & Development
Web technologies are developing quickly, creating new opportunities for book vendors and content providers. R2 helps library vendors remain viable contenders by analyzing the current and anticipated marketplace and then by redesigning or building new web products and database access services.
Focus Groups
The key to success in the academic library market lies in intelligent listening and questioning. Given an appropriate forum, libraries can provide valuable guidance to companies seeking to introduce new products and services. R2 has developed strong relationships with many librarians and has extensive experience presenting new products and facilitating group discussion. Many companies have found R2 focus groups useful for product introduction, design, and initial marketing.
Product Introduction & Marketing
R2 has introduced, developed, sold, and maintained products and services in the academic library market for more than 25 years. We understand how libraries work. We know how they budget, what their major goals and concerns are, and what problems and opportunities confront them. We know many key decision makers. Most importantly, we know how to listen to them, and how to present product information in a way that addresses their needs.
Topical White Papers
Typically underwritten by a commercial entity, R2 is always interested in the opportunity to publish a seminal article on "hot" or emerging topics. For example:
- Natural Selection: E-Books, Libraries, and Vendors. A HARRASSOWITZ White Paper, May 2010.
- Agents in Place: Intermediaries in E-Journal Management. An R2 White Paper written with support from HARRASSOWITZ, October 2003.
- The Real Cost of ILS Ownership. An R2 White Paper, written with support from Innovative Interfaces and Presented at IUG, April 2003.