For Public Services Librarians ·
What you'll accomplish
By the end of this guide, you'll use Claude or ChatGPT to draft LibGuide content — database descriptions, introductory text, search strategy tips, and annotated resource lists — cutting your guide-building time from 4–6 hours to under 2 hours.
What you'll need
Go to claude.ai. Open a new conversation. Set the context for your guide:
I'm an academic/public librarian creating a research guide (LibGuide) for [subject/course]. Audience: [student level or patron type — e.g., "community college nursing students" or "adult patrons interested in genealogy"]. My library subscribes to: [list your key databases — JSTOR, ProQuest, CINAHL, etc.]. I need you to help me write content for several sections of the guide.
What you should see: Claude acknowledges your context and is ready to help with specific sections.
Each database box in your LibGuide needs a 2–3 sentence description. Type:
Write 2-3 sentence descriptions for each of these databases, from the perspective of a [patron type] who wants to know: what types of content it has, what subjects it covers best, and when to use it instead of Google. Databases: [list them].
What you should see: Clean, patron-focused descriptions for each database — much better than vendor-supplied copy.
Write a 3-4 sentence introduction for the top of this LibGuide on [subject]. It should: (1) explain what the guide is for, (2) note who it's designed for, and (3) tell patrons where to start if they're new to research in this area. Friendly but professional tone.
Write a brief "Search Tips" box for a LibGuide on [subject]. Include: (1) 5-7 useful search terms or keywords patrons should try, (2) one tip for combining terms with AND/OR, and (3) a tip for finding peer-reviewed sources specifically.
For specific websites, reports, or external resources:
I want to include these external resources in my LibGuide: [list titles and URLs]. Write a 1-2 sentence annotation for each explaining: what it is, who produces it, and why it's useful for researching [subject].
Open LibGuides. Copy each section of content from Claude into the appropriate boxes. Add your library-specific links, database login URLs, and contact information.
What you should see: A nearly-complete LibGuide that needs your review and customization, but not hours of writing from scratch. Troubleshooting: If any database description is inaccurate (describes features the database doesn't have), correct it and tell Claude: "The description for [database] is wrong — it doesn't have [feature]. Revise it."
Database Descriptions:
Write 2-3 sentence patron-friendly descriptions for these research databases for [subject] research: [list databases]. What each contains, who should use it, when to choose it.
Guide Introduction:
Write a 3-sentence LibGuide introduction for [subject] aimed at [audience]. Explain the purpose and where to start.
Search Strategy Tips:
Write a "Search Tips" box for [subject] research. Include 5 keywords, 2 Boolean search examples, and 1 tip for finding peer-reviewed sources.
Annotated Resource List:
Write 1-2 sentence annotations for these websites for [subject] research: [list URLs and titles].