On December 14, 2022, experts from Innovative, part of Clarivate, hosted an informational webinar for the Library Experience (LX) Starter package—a modern approach to circulation and account-related email communications. Designed to work in conjunction with both the Sierra and Polaris ILS, LX Starter’s communication suite provides library staff with an intuitive, web-based interface that empowers them to design and send automated circulation notices.
LX Starter’s visual email editor grants libraries the ability to add custom branding, free stock photography, and automated cover art for items in the collection directly to circulation email notices. Libraries can schedule messages and track engagement metrics to view the number of emails delivered, opened, and clicked on.
The live webinar was hosted by Taylor Fisher, LX Starter’s Product Manager, Michael Monroy, Director of Solution Consulting, and Ophir Yoggev, Director of Product Operations, and included a detailed report of new features and functionality, a look at the roadmap for future releases, and offered insights on libraries currently testing LX Starter as part of our early adopter program.
Watch an archived version of the December 14 LX Starter webinar here
The last fifteen minutes of the webinar were dedicated to answering customer questions, and addressed a number of topics, including:
- Do we need to purchase a Vega Library Experience module to receive the LX Starter Package? No. LX Starter will be available for all Sierra and Polaris libraries at no additional cost as part of your subscription and maintenance package.
- Do I need to purchase Syndetics Unbound to use LX Starter? No. Syndetics Unbound cover art will be included for any library using LX Starter.
- What is required to run the LX Starter? Libraries must be running Polaris 7.3 or Sierra 5.5 or higher. Sierra 5.6 is recommended for Sierra libraries. Additional considerations, including community size and email volume, may impact library eligibility at this time.
- Can libraries customize the notices for their library? Yes, libraries can choose the Sender Name and From Email Address for their notices. In addition, they can add their logo, branded colors, and custom images. Libraries can also personalize their notices by using merge tags to include the first name of the patron and other patron account details.
- What is the timeline for rolling out LX Starter? Libraries in Wave 1 (early adopters) are using LX Starter today for their notices. Innovative has sent invitations to qualifying libraries in Wave 2 asking them to indicate their interest in LX Starter. Invitations for Wave 3 implementations will be sent in around mid-year in 2023.
- When will LX Starter gain multi-language or non-English support? While not available with the initial release, both are currently in the works and will launch with a subsequent update. We will keep you informed as details evolve so that you can plan accordingly.
- Which notices are supported at launch? At launch, some of your notifications may still need to be sent through the ILS directly. Additional supported notice types will be added to LX Starter in later updates.
- Can you continue to manage other notices in the ILS, if some of your notices are sent by LX Starter? Yes, the initial release of LX Starter will include the most used notices but not all notices from the ILS. Libraries will have the ability to edit notices in LX Starter, and still manage all the remaining notices in the ILS as they already do.
More information regarding roadmap and onboarding opportunities will be sent to Sierra and Polaris customers in Q1 2023.
Additional Resources