The Hatter asked Alice, “Why is a raven like a writing-desk?” “I give it up,” Alice replied: “What’s the answer?” “I haven’t the slightest idea,” said the Hatter. Alice sighed wearily. “I think you might do something better with the time,” she said, “than waste it in asking riddles that have no answers.” Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
Librarians who are trying to solve intractable problems, such as how to improve the quality of their customer service, can often feel much like Alice, trying to find answers to impossible riddles. To whom can these perplexed librarians turn to help them find these answers? Increasingly, librarians have turned - and should be turning - to library consortia in an effort to glean a shared approach to the problem. Consortia can be very effective in this regard because, through their regular interactions with their member libraries, consortia gain a breadth of information that can prove very helpful in developing best practice models.
For any library that is trying to develop a customer service program - and for consortia that are trying to assist in that effort - it is important to understand the trends that are affecting the client base, the component parts of the customer service plan, the process to be followed to develop and implement that plan, and where consortia can provide added value.
(As a small digression, in this article I will not engage in the endless debate of whether those who come to the library looking for services should be called customers, clients, patrons, users, or constituents. For the duration of this article I shall simply use the terms “client” and “customer” interchangeably.)
There are some key, but not necessarily related, general trends in the world of business and the ways in which they use information management today that can be very instructive to libraries that are trying to develop a new client service model built in a technologically changing world that is increasingly built around electronic commerce. The first such trend has been the recognition that good customer service is good business. In the business world it is no longer sufficient to provide low cost services, or non-value-added services. Businesses rely on repeat customers, and the most effective way to guarantee that is to provide service that is not only courteous and helpful, but also effective, efficient and predictive of individual needs.
Second, the trend toward outsourcing non-core operations to external services providers has the potential for significantly improving or degrading the quality of customer service (or “QOS”) in libraries. Outsourcing can have a very positive effect on service if it is used to speed delivery time, reduce backlogs, improve the quality of services, or reduce internal costs to reinvest funds in public services. All of these are relevant to libraries as well, and library consortia are often the agents that libraries hire to outsource a particular service. Consortia can be very helpful to the libraries when they stress to libraries that it is the QOS factors that, when outsourcing, should receive as much consideration as - if not more than - simply trying to reduce costs.
The third trend is one in which the effects are likely to be more long-term and evolutionary: the shifting of services to be Web-based. Technology has changed client expectations, their patience, and their willingness to accept services that the library provides only at its own convenience. Clients expect services that are customized and available on demand, and the Web is providing fertile ground for this. Electronic commerce is changing the way in which people seek and use information services and products, and the competition has become fierce. This transition has been under way for a number of years, clearly accelerated with the birth of the Web, and is now becoming a rampage with the widespread availability of electronic text, images and sound files. Consortia can become excellent facilitators in the process of collecting, digitizing, organizing and making accessible these new electronic library resources.
Web-based transactions are burgeoning not only because they are convenient, but also because they can be customized. To customize effectively, market segmentation has become a critical sub-trend to address the different and specialized needs of each constituency. This is a trend that is particularly important for multi-type library consortia to consider, particularly when those different types of libraries are of widely different sizes (such as research academic libraries versus small liberal arts college libraries). The needs of, and solutions for, an academic library can often be quite different from those for a public, school or corporate library. If the consortium is not well-positioned to address the needs of each of its client segments then it will not be able to help its member libraries build a responsive client service program.
In the Web environment there have been different approaches for a business to meet the specialized needs of Web-based clients. First there were the different home pages for different types of users. For example, when entering a public library Web site, the user could choose from “adult”, “researcher” or “high school student”, and then get customized home pages to meet the general needs of each client type. More recently has been the development of individual portals, so each user can create his or her own customized view of the site and list their most-used resources. This has been an important evolutionary step in winning the loyalty of customers for the companies that previously provided only search engines, such as Yahoo and Excite. Just as their member libraries have developed portals to their sites, library consortia are also beginning to investigate the value of this customization of their own sites.
Stewart Alsop, in “The five new rules of the Web technology” (1999), captures a number of changes for business brought by the Web - nearly all of which also have the potential for a profound impact on library-based services. One factor in particular warrants attention: transaction processing is being used to handle real-time buying and selling on the Internet. The technology now enables organizations to track the needs of their customers as the customer moves across the Web. Libraries have traditionally done this only at a high level, such as tracking which items are or are not checked out. However, the Web provides the opportunity and the means to measure at a more discrete level the research patterns of individuals and groups. For consortia that maintain union catalogs and shared patron-initiated circulation systems, collecting this type of transactional data is invaluable in developing more responsive systems. Libraries and consortia can use the data to see not only which resources a customer does or does not use, but also how clients use those resources. The latter is particularly important to discern ways to use the Web site to be predictive rather than reactive to client needs.
As a result of these trends, the Web is becoming a viable alternative to traditional services in business. Some leading edge companies such as Dell Computers and Amazon do nearly all of their sales through the Web, and other traditional companies such as Waterstone’s and Barnes & Noble are scrambling to keep up with the rapid changes that are occurring. Once unthinkable, libraries that are completely virtual are no longer out of the question. Whether the library is completely or only partially virtual, the development of an effective client service program within this technological environment is going to be quite different from a program that is strictly “building-based.”
While these are some of the trends in business that are affecting customer services, there are certainly some important counter-trends that can affect a client service program. First, not all Web-based transactions are positive. They can be depersonalized and depersonalizing. While some people enjoy Web surfing, others just want to get online, do their business, and get off. If the Web site is not well organized, or if the server is slow, the Web can be more tedious and slower than a human-based transaction. The Web is often used to transfer the expensive and time-consuming activity from the company to the customer. When the customer feels empowered by the technology to do transactions anytime or anywhere, that creates a positive experience. If the technology gets in the way of an effective transaction, the client experience becomes frustrating and poor service is the result.
While the Web also provides many options, there can be too many such options. It is all too easy to get lost on the Web and not have a personal navigator to help correct the course. Even if there is a number to call for personal attention, it may not be practical to do so - especially when the solution is another technological nightmare, such as a badly implemented voice mail system. Although these systems provide the illusion of customization, they can be much less efficient when the client gets stuck in a “voice mail hell” of having to press 100 buttons only to find out at the end of the road that the office is closed. This is made all the more maddening when the recording repeats for endless minutes that “your call is important to us, so please stay on the line.”
In addition to these important general business trends, there are some library-specific, client-service related trends that are also worth watching. For example, there are some relatively mundane service-related statistics and trends worth watching. Although there is not necessarily collective empirical evidence, many libraries are reporting that the amount of photocopying (and the concomitant revenue) is going down, but the amount of PC-based printing is skyrocketing. This means that the traditional biggest complaint about libraries - the quality, cost and number of copiers - will slowly decrease, but may be replaced by a new problem. To solve this problem, many libraries have adopted or are moving toward fee-generating networked-based printing solutions. Whether these will increase customer satisfaction remains to be seen, but a new client-service challenge is being created in an area where consortia may be able to provide some effective solutions.
Some of the more interesting customer-service related trends in libraries are reflected in the statistics collected by the Association of Research Libraries. Since 1991, the number of students at these universities has been relatively constant, and there has been a small increase in the average size of library staff. Yet there have been changes in the number of customer-service related transactions. The good customer-service news is that the number of group sessions taught by librarians, and the number of attendees in those sessions, has risen significantly. For example, in 1991 the number of attendees was about 7,000, while in 1998 the number was nearing 10,000 per institution. The number of attendees in group training sessions is up by an average of 4.2 per cent per year (33 per cent between 1991 and 1998). The number of group sessions has also grown, so the ratio of the number of attendees per session has remained relatively stable at an average of 13-14 attendees per session. Additional good news is that the amount of interlibrary lending is up significantly, probably precipitated in part by the number of patron-initiated circulation systems available.
However, there are some potential trends that indicate that traditional client use patterns are changing. Overall, the number of circulation transactions is down dramatically, perhaps precipitated in part by the increasing use by customers of Web-based information resources. The number of service transactions at the reference desk has declined over the past two years from the high reached in 1996. Based on median values, in 1997 the decline was 2 per cent, a number that may have been only marginally statistically significant. However, the decline in 1998 from 1997 was particularly precipitous at 14 per cent[2]. While there are a number of possible theories for these changes, it is likely that, as Web-based search systems become more intuitive, and more searches are conducted outside of the library building, and as more people attend group presentations, clients are becoming more self-reliant. These changes in use patterns certainly should affect the design and implementation of a client service program.
As libraries seek to develop an effective customer service program, there are four key problems they must face: their image; their range of current services; their current and planned use of technology; and the need to retrain their workforce to be customer-responsive.
Libraries have always had a solid and staid image. In this regard, libraries are similar to Brooks Brothers, the conservative men’s clothier that was described in a recent article as “ a beloved brand [to which] ordinary consumers have an emotional attachment and don’t want to see it change, even if they haven’t bought anything there in 15 years” (Mead, 1999, pp. 89-90). Both share an image in the eyes of some customers that has “devolved into a wayward dreariness”(Mead, 1999, p. 90). For libraries, any attempts to modernize their image may face some obstacles because, again like Brooks Brothers, libraries have to project “an image of newness and modernity that is at odds with the reality of who the customer is” (Hernon and Albman, 1998). Consortia that have good marketing efforts themselves may be in a position to help their member libraries to redevelop a new and snappier image.
Traditionally, library services have been building-based and with limited service hours. Most libraries today continue to provide most of their services at walk-up desks located in library buildings. Most services are available only part of the time that the building is open - and not necessarily the most important times. The services are largely off-the-shelf, with little customization. However, with the trend toward flexible and customized services, clients want their services to be anytime, anywhere services. Consortia may be able to play an effective role for their libraries through the sponsorship or coordination of non-peak hour reference or other assistance services.
Clients want services that employ the latest technology. To deliver this level of service requires a high capital investment because these services are increasingly expensive to develop and maintain. Many libraries are significantly hampered by having hardware, software, or content resources that are slow and outdated. They are turning increasingly to consortia to provide not only training services so they can keep up with the latest technology, but also consulting assistance or even outsourced support to maintain library system hardware and software installations, Web sites, and digital libraries.
Most library staff have significant difficulty dealing not only with the pace of change but also with the vast changes in the content. Librarians and other staff were typically not trained to meet demands of the new world in which they find themselves. This creates a substantial disconnect between customer expectations and the library’s ability to meet those expectations. The result can be poor customer service. To rectify this problem, intensive and ongoing staff training programs are essential. In addition, the library must hire or obtain (such as through outsourcing) the skills and expertise that are required to provide highly technological services. Consortia are in a good position to provide not only the training assistance that these libraries need, but also recruitment and retention services to ensure that the libraries are able to hire and keep the best possible staff.
Fortunately, these challenges also provide libraries with opportunities. Within libraries there has been a growing recognition of “marketplace competition” and the need to differentiate their services through market segmentation. As Web technology matures and becomes commonplace, libraries and their clients will be able to concentrate more on content and less on “basic training” on how to use technology. Another opportunity is presented by the fact that customer service skills are increasingly valued - both by customers themselves and by management. Therefore, a new customer-focused program can be built to address these challenges. Finally, the recent rapid growth of library consortia presents libraries with more partners than ever before to help work through the difficult change management that these new client service programs will rely on.
Building an effective customer service program involves common sense, the recognition that effective service is a process and not a product. There are at least eight key steps to building an customer-service program, which are:
These eight steps are described in more detail below.
Whenever possible, a customer service plan should be undertaken within the larger framework of a fresh organizational strategic plan. Most strategic planning processes include: an environmental scan of external factors affecting the organization; an assessment of organizational strengths and weaknesses; the development of customer-oriented mission, vision and values statements; and an articulation of new organizational goals and objectives. The strategic plan is vital because it sets the larger context within which the customer service plan will operate. The development of a strategic plan is complicated, and requires a separate and more detailed description than can be provided here, but it is an invaluable first step in developing a customer service program.
As noted earlier the image of most libraries is one of tradition. It may be that a library wishes to retain this as its customer service image, but more likely today that the library will want to develop an image that exudes innovativeness and technological savvy. The challenge is not to create a complete disconnect from the past but at the same time to indicate that the library is on the cutting edge of information provision. Libraries do have traditions and strengths upon which we should build and evolve, but which parts of the image should the library retain and which should be curtailed? How does the library build on its traditional strengths and simultaneously project an image that the organization is capable of helping its clients to move boldly into the information future? To build good customer relations the library must build new customers around new products while maintaining a certain comfort level for those traditional customers who are bound to the old services.
To build a new image even small changes can be meaningful. For example, when Brooks Brothers redesigned their stores they got rid of the desks because “we are greeting people [and the] desk creates a barrier” (Mead, 1999, p. 91). Libraries, which have relied upon reference service desks for many years would be well advised to look at other physical arrangements for their building-based operations. Brooks Brothers also worked to change their image in communications materials. “The block-letter logo was scrapped, in favor of a slightly cleaned up version of the old Brooks Brothers script. In the vernacular of logo design, anything that is in handwriting always stands for trust and guarantee” (Mead, 1999, p. 92). Libraries may well wish to convey their new image by developing a new logo that has a fresh and inviting appeal.
At a deeper level, the development of a new image requires that the library should know how it wants to be seen by its clients. To develop their image, Brooks Brothers employed a technique known as “BrandFocus” - a “method that uses visual rather than verbal cues as a means of eliciting from senior managers their feelings about the subliminal meaning of a brand (by asking them questions such as) “If Brooks Brothers were a chair, what kind of chair would it be?” Using this technique, the staff was shown various visual images and asked which ones most apply to the organization now, and which the organization would wish to project in the future. Questions were also asked, such as “if this company were a particular product or service (such as a wine, pen, sports team, or newspaper) which one would you want it to be? Brooks Brothers (ultimately) boiled their brand focus down to seven core attributes: distinctive, correct, casually elegant, genuine, eclectic, smart, and sexy” (Mead, 1999, p. 91).
If libraries were to use the BrandFocus technique, which products and images would best describe the library? What core attributes would best describe the customer service focused library? Perhaps this statement about Brooks Brothers would resonate with many libraries: “It wasn’t really about change It was like a beautiful house, but it needs tender loving care: new plumbing, new windows ” (Mead, 1999, p. 92).
A related question to image is which factors should drive the organization and its objectives for the future? For example, should the library use the customer service program as a means to introduce new programs or services, or largely to improve existing ones? Should the program be used to undertake active and innovative approaches, or simply to document the services that are available currently? Should the library seek through the program to give customers what they already have, or what they want? Does the library want to develop customized services and solutions, or to achieve a better balance between customization and standardization?
Ideally, an early step in developing a new customer service plan is to establish the level of current customer satisfaction and to assess the current quality of services. As Hernon and Altman (1998) observe, “library quality and service quality are very different measures”. It is possible for the quality of service to be relatively low and satisfaction still high, or for satisfaction to be low even when the quality of service is high. For example, the latter could occur when the organization is providing a quality service that no one wants. Therefore, it is important to establish how satisfied customers currently are with the service, and to ascertain the level of excellence of current services. Both require both qualitative and quantitative measures to be established, and then the current services tested against those measures. Specific elements involved in the preparation of the plan include the following:
With the plan in place, it is important that the entire client community understand that the customer service program is one of continuous improvement, not a quick-fix that will yield immediate results. The management of the library should seek the understanding of those above them (such as the university vice president to whom the library reports) that the library should be rewarded for undertaking this effort rather than be singled out for scrutiny. A customer service program needs adequate time to grow - at least three-to-five years - and administrative support during this time is crucial. Again, library consortia can play a critical role. As an outsider to the local process, the consortium may be able to provide objective information that can help the library’s sponsor to understand that customer service plans are a means of growth, not a product to be purchased.
To implement the plan, the library should publicize it well. Consortia can be helpful by providing ideas for creative marketing, and perhaps by developing standard marketing programs that each member library can adapt for its own use.
Obviously, the key purpose of marketing is to make the audience aware of the programs and services included under the customer service program. The first marketing efforts should concentrate both on traditional communications media, such as print brochures and library newsletters, and on using electronic measures, such as listservs and highlighting the program on the library Web pages. In every presentation, the library needs to add some snap to help project its new image. A brochure that presents dull content or presents it in a way that is not interesting graphically is likely never to be read.
For key clients (such as faculty) the library should consider not only distributing information in print but also having visits in person, whether through group visits or personal phone calls. The library should not worry about over-saturating the market with the message. It is far more likely that most clients will still be unaware of the program six months after implementation than that they will be sick of hearing from the library about new innovations.
The publicity developed should incorporate the principles of the plan throughout the organization, its services and operations. For example, the library Web site should be revised to include a copy of the statement itself. The content of the Web site should also be updated to be consistent with the objectives of the customer service plan. For example, if one aspect of the plan is to solicit continuous customer feedback, the Web site might be revised to include not only online suggestions but also the library’s response to all questions posted on the site. A customer service program is doomed to failure if the clients of the library do not know about or understand the program. A key element in implementation is the creation of a business or marketing plan, including the establishment of the objectives of the marketing plan and assessing costs for implementation. Examples of objectives include whether and how to market to different market segments, or what image the library wishes to project about itself and the program.
Earlier I discussed the importance of establishing benchmarks to the effectiveness of existing customer services. During the first year of the program it is important to develop regular feedback mechanisms to enable the library to monitor regularly the progress against the customer service program goals. Consortia can also be helpful in this follow-up stage by standardizing, collecting and providing comparative benchmark data from other member libraries. By reviewing its own data within this larger context, each library can gain a better sense as to where it ranks in terms of its rate of progress.
There are a variety of means for the library to ascertain its effectiveness. Although client surveys are often employed to gain direct customer feedback, surveys have distinct limits. First, surveys are often done poorly because they fail to observe the precepts of survey research and random sampling techniques. Furthermore, to be effective surveys must be short enough so that clients are willing to take the time to complete the survey. However, by limiting the length the library limits the extent and nature of the feedback. For this reason, surveys are a good tool for gaining feedback at a broad level, but they will not provide a highly granular level of information. Surveys can best be used in conjunction with other techniques, such as focus groups, which can provide more in-depth information on topics of particular importance to the library. If the customer service improvement program is being developed by the consortium, a standardized survey (that can be customized by each library) can not only speed the process but also help to provide some comparable results.
One particularly useful technique for customer service program evaluation is to review system logs of customer transactions to intuit search patterns and resources of interest. The new Web-monitoring tools and other software to maintain client histories can be very effective in tracking customer behavior and compiling useful statistical information about current client needs. This may require upgrading the library technology infrastructure, but Web monitoring tools can be fairly inexpensive and very effective. For privacy purposes, if tracking software is employed, it is essential to do so in a way that the logs do not identify the names of specific clients.
Some less formal ways to gain direct customer feedback include print and online suggestion boxes and unsolicited testimonials from clients. These can provide effective means of recognizing good performance or addressing customer complaints quickly and fully. It is also important to measure the effectiveness of current internal operations - such as the quality of the library stack maintenance program. A particularly valuable technique is through random sampling of work - both as it occurs and after the fact. For services such as reference, unobtrusive techniques can be used, such as observation of transactions. Perhaps more controversial, but still viable, is to hire an external agent (perhaps the local consortium?) to pose as clients to ask questions, and then to judge the effectiveness in terms of response time and accuracy of response.
Regardless of which techniques the library uses, it is important when gaining feedback to be able to distinguish feedback from noise. In an information environment that is heavily reliant on technology, the Gartner Group notes that it is important not to mistake the customer for the market. Ultimately the service providers “that overemphasize the importance of the customer-listening process are frequently those that trail the market and come up short on winning ideas for next-generation products Telling customers that ‘we listen to you’ may be flattering, but it often is a cover-up for a vendor that has lost its inspiration and its way.” The pitfalls Gartner enumerates are that customers:
The final step in the process is one of renewal. Annually, the library should review its plan, the customer service statement, and its progress. Based on this review, the library should make revisions and modifications to the plans and statement. More importantly, every five years or so the library should scrap the plan entirely and start over. Why not build on the existing plan? For the same reason that the library should not simply copy another library’s service plan: the tendency to forget things that should be included. Furthermore, there will be changes in approach and in technology that the library should consider - but may forget - by simply following the annual add-on process indefinitely. For example, five years ago the Web was new, but today it is ubiquitous, so the customer service expectations should be different. Similarly, a plan from three or five years ago might have emphasized the quality of photocopier services, but ignored the demands for PC printing. How different would your library’s customer service plan be today if it were to continue to rely on the technology as it existed five years ago?
As noted above, there are many ways that a library consortium can play an invaluable role in developing and helping libraries to implement new customer service programs. In addition to those ideas mentioned above, there are at least two ways in which library consortia can help. The first is to support library change management programs related to customer service improvement, and the second is to help improve the services themselves.
To advance library change management there are a variety of steps consortia can take. Library consortia can develop standardized customer service delivery programs. This would save the libraries from having to develop each program from scratch, and consortium members could derive benchmark data after the program has been implemented. Consortia can also provide training programs to assist libraries in the development of customer service programs, and on techniques for staff to practice for good customer service delivery.
Innovative technology is another way in which libraries can improve their customer service, and there is a definite role for library consortia to play. Especially with the integration of library and computing service desk operations, more libraries are implementing “help desk software” to enable the library not only to track customer calls, but also to develop a database of questions to common answers and to generate statistical profiles of client transactions. There are a number of help desk software packages on the market, but local implementation of the software is complicated. Consortia can assist in this process both by reviewing software options and providing libraries with alternatives to consider, and by acting as software implementation partners to speed the implementation process.
Another potential technology-related role for consortia is Web site development and management. The Web has clearly become a major tool for providing direct services to clients. However, some libraries may not have sufficient on-staff expertise to mount the most effective possible sites. Graphic design, content development, site organization, and technological capabilities such as Java applets or portal design all require different expertise that a single library Web master may not have. Consortia can play a valuable role, either by training their members about the technology or possibly by serving as an outsourcing agent to provide high-quality Web sites for those libraries that cannot or do not wish to perform this task in-house.
A growing area of importance in service delivery is the process of hiring and retaining staff who will have effective customer service skills. There is potential here for consortia to provide professional recruitment (“headhunter”) services for libraries to help relieve the libraries of the burden of identifying and attracting appropriate candidates when vacancies occur. Consortia can also help libraries to develop good staff performance appraisal and retention processes; for example, the library could provide workshops on conducting effective evaluations of both individual and team efforts, and to develop good team management skills. Consortia can also serve as a clearinghouse or as a sponsor for library staff exchanges and to develop mentoring programs. Such programs can provide opportunities for library staff to learn first-hand about effective service delivery.
Finally, consortia can help libraries improve their operating processes, and thereby improve the ultimate quality of the services that are provided. Many consortia are in an excellent position to provide objective assessments about current library processes and operations in cataloging, acquisitions, circulation, technology, or reference services. The consortium can provide detailed analyses of how to make the operations more productive. This can result in better production rates and in cost savings that give the library money to reinvest in other client-related services.
To help improve the services that libraries offer, consortia can help libraries to expand their service offerings and to do so at a lower cost. For example, many consortia are already negotiating site licenses for consortial purchase of electronic resources. An emerging area of interest is the development of library and regional digital library programs and services. Consortia can serve not only to provide training for libraries interested in developing digital imaging services, but also can serve as an outsourcing agent that would generate the images, create the searchable database using standard technologies, or mount and maintain the Web site.
With the growth of anytime/anywhere Web-based services, libraries are increasingly being expected to provide customer assistance at non-traditional hours. Ideally, a library should be able to provide telephone, e-mail, or interactive chat assistance to their clients 24 hours per day, seven days per week. However, to do so may be expensive, and many libraries cannot afford to provide this service if there is a low number of callers. By combining the transactions of multiple libraries in the consortium it may be practical to achieve an economy of scale to answer at least the most common questions. When combined with the knowledge database that would result from the help desk software described above, the consortial service could not only answer more questions but also log questions that could not be answered immediately but would require further action the following day.
There are, of course, many other ways in which consortia can provide services to libraries that will directly and indirectly result in customer service improvement. The consortium could provide a common ground delivery system for rapid interlibrary lending, develop a common solution for collecting fees for printing at PC workstations in the library, or develop a consortial curriculum for an effective information literacy program. These are all illustrative and not exhaustive examples to demonstrate that library consortia can and should play a vital role in helping libraries to deliver quality services to library clients.
Libraries today are facing unprecedented challenges not only to provide customer-responsive services, but to do so in the face of constant change. By working with their consortia as strategic partners, libraries can find highly effective solutions to help them answer the riddle of customer services. And so, why is a raven like a writing desk? The end notes to this paper provide some of the answers provided by Lewis Carroll and others, but in the context of library customer services perhaps there is a new answer: “because both are noisy when ignored, and better when they are given some attention.”
1. This paper was originally prepared for delivery at the Australian Library and Information Association Reference and Information Service Section Conference on 8 September 1999 in Sydney, Australia under the title “Why is a raven like a writing desk? or, answering the riddle of client services.”
The answer to the riddle in the opening quote has been the cause of much speculation. According to Martin Gardner in The Annotated Alice (C.N. Potter, 1960, New York), Lewis Carroll, in the preface to the 1896 edition of Alice in Wonderland, wrote that the riddle “why is a raven like a writing-desk?” did not originally have any answer at all. However, since he had been asked so many times after the publication of Alice in Wonderland for an answer to the riddle, he suggested as an answer: “because it can produce a few notes, though they are very flat, and it is nevar [sic] put with the wrong end in front.” He was quick to point out, however, that this was merely an afterthought.
Martin Gardner notes in the More Annotated Alice (Random House, 1990, New York) that Aldous Huxley in an article in Vanity Fair (September 1928) supplied two nonsense answers: (1) because there is a b in both and because there is an n in neither. Huxley went on to defend the view that such metaphysical views as “does God exist?”, “do we have free will?”, “why is there suffering?”, are as meaningless as the Mad Hatter’s questions - nonsensical riddles, questions not about reality, but about words.
Gardner also noted that Dennis Crutch, writing in Jabberwocky (Winter, 1976), reported that the answer that Carroll supplied for the 1896 edition of Alice, was later “corrected” and probably destroyed Carroll’s intent. Note in the statement about it that the spelling of “never” was “nevar.” Crutch stated that “Carroll clearly intended to spell raven backwards. The word was corrected to “never” in all later printings, perhaps by an editor who fancied that he had caught a printer’s error. Because Carroll died soon after this correction destroyed the ingenuity of his answer, the original spelling was never restored. Whether Carroll was aware of the damage done to his clever answer is not known.”
Finally, in a note contained in the Philosopher’s Alice (St. Martin’s Press, New York, 1974), Peter Heath observes that Shibels compared this to the “unanswerable questions allegedly asked by philosophers, but the real objection is that it has too many answers, namely all the innumerable negative properties that ravens share with writing desks. If these do not count then nor does the property of unanswerability which the Hatter’s riddle is supposed to share with the questions of the philosophers.”
2. Source: Association of Research Libraries. See Table 1 at http://www.arl.org/ stats/arlstat/1998t1.html