Results from the community survey conducted on behalf of Daniel Boone Regional Library show high satisfaction rates among residents in Boone and Callaway Counties. Survey results show a 96% satisfaction rate for service provided by library staff, 92% of those surveyed were satisfied with the overall quality of public library services and 98% agreed with the statement “I think libraries are important to our community.” The community survey was conducted over the summer and the data analyzed this fall by ETC Institute out of Olathe, Kansas.
“I’m so proud of the library staff and the level of service they provide every day,” said Margaret Conroy, executive director of the Daniel Boone Regional Library. “They’ve consistently received high approval ratings from our surveys. What’s even more impressive is that we’re 17% above the national average of 75% for overall satisfaction with library services, according to ETC Institute.” The last survey, from 2014, reported a 95% satisfaction rate for the quality of customer service provided by library staff.
Overall satisfaction with the library system and services is high. Ninety-three percent of those surveyed were satisfied with the overall quality of best-selling and new books, 89% like the convenience and ease of use of the online catalog, 87% indicated they were satisfied with the value of library services received for their tax dollars, 86% were satisfied with how close public libraries are to their home, and 84% indicated they had used library services in the past year. Of those, 86% report that they use the library to check out books, followed by 30% who come in to check out DVDs or get help from staff.
“This recent survey will help guide us through our next strategic planning that takes effect 2021. We’ll review the results to help us determine what new initiatives we may want to pursue over the next few years, where we can improve and what services to continue,” said Conroy.
During the summer of 2019, a survey was mailed to a random sample of households in Boone and Callaway Counties. A total of 1,365 surveys were completed and tabulated. The results have a precision of at least +/-2.6% at the 95% level of confidence.
The Daniel Boone Regional Library serves Callaway County and most of Boone County with library facilities in Ashland, Columbia, Holts Summit and Fulton, and bookmobile service in the two-county area.