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Holds and Acquisitions

'Acquisitions' are the materials that the library owns.

Books

Music

Movies

How Does the Library Get Acquisitions

Games

In an interview with Library Journal, the Deputy Director of the Cuyahoga County (Ohio) classifies their collection as read, watch, listen, play rather than the traditional (print, electronic, AV) method.   Read more about it here

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No matter what you call them, holds and acquisition models are designed to benefit the communities they serve - so it pays to know how they work.

Do you have an item that you want to access but isn't in the collection?  Make your voice heard with a simple suggestion to purchase form.  This particular form is courtesy of the Johnson County Library.  Try to include as much information about the item as possible - it will speed up the process.  Also, keep in mind possible restrictions (ex. some libraries limit the number of requests per month). 

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) connects patrons to libraries all over the country.  If you have an item in mind that the library doesn't own (and can spare a few weeks to wait), consider submitting an ILL form.  This form is courtesy of the John Richard Allison Library (Canada).  Keep in mind that the library may limit how many ILLs you can have at one time, and there's no guarantee of when (or if) you'll get the item.

Interlibrary Loan
Suggest a Purchase
Make Your Voice Heard
No Perfect Solution

A 2012 article published in Collection Management concludes that there is no no size fits all best practice for acquisitions and collection development.  The article suggests a balance between user demand and circulation data (materials being checked out, returned, put on hold) to create a successful collection plan.

A 2013 article written by Linda Speas for Public Libraries Online emphasizes the competition that public libraries face from content services like Google, Barnes & Noble, and Netflix.  The high demand for immediate access forces public libraries to evaluate their acquisition and collection development system in order to keep one step ahead of competitors.  Read more here

Lots of Options
Just-in-case VS. Just-in-time

The Association of College & Research Libraries explains two different approaches to acquisitions and collection development.

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Just-in-case involves libraries purchasing in excess in order to offer items if patrons ask for them.  While this method emphasizes a diverse collection, it may be seen as unsustainable due to increase in costs and reduction in budgets.

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Just-in-time involves relying on patron demand and requests before additional purchases are made.  This model is referred to as patron driven or demand driven acquisitions.  Right now, it is seen seen evolving strategy and a work in progress to creating a complete and sustainable library collection.

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Want to read the whole article?  Check it out here

A Balanced Look at PDA

A ProQuest blog by Shannon Janeczek evaluates the pros and cons of the patron driven acquisition model.

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Benefits

  • Obtaining holds quickly

  • Collections have titles with high user interest and a high potential for future use

  • Increasing collaboration between Collaboration between library departments

  • Requests are  filled efficiently and cost effectively 

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Cons

  • The library collection will be skewed and unbalanced due to heavy reliance on patron requests

  • Budgetary issues, libraries could become inundated with requests that are expected to be filled.

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Check out more here

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Another Name for PDA

A 2014 article in Georgia Library Quarterly uncovers several different names and variations for patron driven acquisitions (PDA)

  • demand driven acquisition

  • on-demand-purchasing

  • Books-on-demand (purchasing items instead of getting them through Interlibrary loan

  • Purchase-on-demand (for e-books)

  • pay-per-view (for e-journals)

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