By: Adam Sockel, OverDrive’s Social Media Specialist.

Next week, June 23 through 28, the library community will come together in Orlando, a city built on nostalgia, magic and innovations that shape the world of tomorrow. What better place to show our partners the latest state-of-the-art features and tools laying the groundwork for the digital libraries of both the present and the future. Join us to learn about the powerful curation options available on the new OverDrive, customization options for consortia, how digital book clubs are helping to evolve the community reading experience, and new Performance Analyses to see how your digital library stacks up with other libraries around the world.

At the American Library Association annual conference, OverDrive will present new curation tools and customization options that will make your digital library website more valuable than ever before. Consortia libraries members will be able to curate their own collections (separate from the shared collection) and promote simplified URLs with their own branding. They’ll have more control over the content on their digital library and a greater ability to reach new members of the community.

The new OverDrive app
Library partners will have the opportunity to join the closed Beta test of the latest version of the OverDrive app coming later this year. The new app has been engineered from the ground up to bring your library new readers. With a focus on getting new users enjoying content quickly, you’ll never be more than a click away from reading the books you have checked out. This has been accomplished by taking advantage of our powerful OverDrive Read and Listen in-browser reading formats. Readers can now, truly, see a book and read it instantly. The new OverDrive app also enhances the value of librarian curation. The collections you create, your staff’s recommendations, and your library’s digital books clubs will all be front and center.

Digital Book Clubs
For more than a year, libraries have been using digital book clubs to connect community members through their OverDrive-powered digital library. This idea began with the Big Library Read and has grown to where libraries are now executing digital versions of their Book Clubs – at the community, city or even state and country level – with great success. At ALA we’ll discuss how you can easily set up your own digital Book Club to reach and engage even more readers in your community.

A better way to look at reporting
If you sign up for a meeting at ALA by June 17, we’ll create an OverDrive Digital Library Performance Analysis Review for you to see in the booth. This advanced report not only displays your stats and growth, but it also compares your collection to libraries of similar size and service population around the country. This comparison helps you identify any gaps in your collection, marketing or system features to assure the most valuable digital library experience for your users.

New content from Viz Media and DC Comics
Last but not least, don’t forget to stop by for an update on the latest additions to our industry-leading catalog of eBooks, audiobooks, video and periodicals. Viz Media offers some of the top selling Manga titles in the world, while DC Comics boasts many world favorites as well, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and much more.