Quick Start!Use the Blueprint Guide as a template
From Create New Guide choose "Copy content / layout from an existing guide" and select the Blueprint Guide.
(Best practices are built-in)
Most of our LibGuides should address the needs of our users, not ourselves. What do the guide's users need to do? How can the guide help users find what they need effectively?
Libraries are trusted sources of information for our users. Carefully vet information on your guide for quality, currency and relevance for the intended users. Strive for a balance of perspectives. Maintain content to make sure our guides aren't outdated and that our links work.
Use short descriptive titles, friendly URLs, and make sure that you've assigned your guide to the right Type. Assign subjects to your guides to make sure they appear in the relevant subject categories.
We want to give our users everything they could possible need, but they are often better served by content that is concise and selective rather than exhaustively thorough. Organize your LibGuides and LibGuide pages so users can easily scan and navigate them.
Creating and maintaining LibGuides is a considerable amount of work. Keep in mind that the LibGuides you create will need to be maintained regularly in the future so be selective about what you choose to create and be intentional in creating content that can be updated as easily as possible. See the suggested maintenance schedule.
Adapted from Erica Nicol's LibGuide Design Best Practices
Reviewed for WCAG 2.1AA compliance June 2024
For more on library accessibility, visit https://www.coloradomesa.edu/library/about/accessibility-in-the-library.html