Video Testimonials
“It’s been a great pleasure working with UMS. I always tell everyone that you all are the best vendor we’ve ever worked with, hands down!”
-Laura Lazaraton, ILS Analyst
“Before using Unique, we had to hide our chat feature, because we didn’t have the staff capacity to answer them. Now, Unique has made chat one of our most popular features, and we have quadrupled the number of patrons we have been able to assist online, both during and after open hours.”
-Morgan Hanks, User Experience Manager
“A patron came in today so excited about their new email! They said that it felt like having the book/items “right in your hands” which made them feel like coming in sooner and felt like a really bright and colorful way to get them in sooner. She wanted me to reach out and let people know that she felt like it was a wonderful rebrand, and I couldn’t agree more!”
-Carmi Parker, ILS Administrator
“One of our biggest concerns about going fine-free was that it will cause patrons to hold on to books longer in general, making waits for reserved items longer and giving us less information on what is truly available in the collection.
With Unique, I have not noticed any significant increase in items that are long overdue as we greatly appreciate how efficiently you all work to help us get back items! I was happy to see how beneficial this service has been just from a financial data standpoint.”
– Joseph Chapman, Circulation Coordinator
“Unique Management has been an excellent partner for us in our efforts to recover library items that are long overdue. We’ve seen a substantial return of both materials and replacement funding beyond what we were able to achieve on our own – almost $3,000 in cash and over $15,000 in materials last year – but more importantly, we’ve been able to return many users to borrowing status so they can continue to checkout materials. Thank you for helping us with this difficult issue!”
– Alicia Phinney, Circulation Director
“Unique are great representatives for our library: friendly call reps, accurate information – I just wanted to say thanks and let you and your reps know that we notice and appreciate it!”
Kate Mutch, Assistant Director
“I want to thank Unique for helping us with MessageBee. I think the product is great and the way Unique have helped us move 47 libraries to use the product has been incredibly effective and I just want to say a big thank you. We look forward to the next processes of adding text messages to our MessageBee service and working with Unique in the future!”
Grace Riario, CEO
“In the beginning we thought Unique chat service would be a nice add-on service…Now we consider it a core part of our service, not just an ‘add-on.’ The staff at Unique is accurate, courteous and enthusiastic. They know our policies and procedures just like our own employees… We were so happy it was already in place these past two challenging years. It’s really been a lifesaver for us!”
Thais Rousseau, Collection Development Director
“We’re extremely happy to be fine-free because it encourages more people, especially our families and youngest patrons, to use the Library. Having Unique Management as a partner to recover our long overdue Library materials is not only effective but reassures our community that we’re holding people responsible for ultimately returning the Library materials.”
Susan F. Gregory, Director
“We love the flexibility of the Unique process. We give our patrons plenty of internal notice, but if for any reason they need more time, we can exclude them from being submitted or we can suspend the account using the tools provided by Unique. We have been ecstatic to see nearly $10,000 in materials returned in just our first month back from the COVID downtime with patrons already back and using the library.”
Donna Heatherington, Circulation Manager
I tested and am very impressed. You all are fabulous. This turn around time is amazing! I am hopeful that this will relieve some of the torque on our staff. Thank you, thank you!
Cathy Bartel, Manager, Circulation and Technical Services
Anythink is always looking for opportunities to provide a sense of hospitality as well as sustainable staffing models. Unique helps us with both. By utilizing their call center, we save hundreds of hours of staff time each week. This gives staff more time to create terrific on site interactions with our community.
Pam Sandlian Smith, Director
I have been very pleased with using your services and wish to thank you for all that you have done to help our library with our recovery efforts on materials. The amount you recovered is half of my yearly budget for materials. As a small library with limited staff and limited resources, I don’t know what I would do without Unique.
Renae Rountree, Director
I’ve been very impressed with the quality of the e-media assistance Unique provides over live chat. It’s reassuring to know that patrons who visit us online can receive immediate, skilled help right there on our website without needing to call or come to the library.
Elizabeth Chase
Unique has been invaluable for our room reservation service, helping answer hundreds of customer questions weekly, assisting with online reservations, payment questions, and changes. This support has allowed administrative and branch staff to help in-branch customers, saving significant time on this important work. It helps us focus on what we do best.
Robin Jacobsen, Director of Community Engagement
Our partnership with UIC has enabled our staff to focus on the customers at the desk without having to constantly stop and answer the phone. This has greatly benefitted both the customers at the desk and the call in customers since they all receive top notch service…
Sarah Later, Director
There are patrons who prefer to call, patrons who prefer to chat online, and patrons who prefer to interact in person. Partnering with Unique has allowed us to extend the quality and quantity of service that we provide to each of these distinct populations.
Elizabeth Chase
UIC enables us to be more responsive to the needs of our patrons while also making life simpler for our staff. We’ve extended our reach at a price that fits in our budget. The implementation process on our end required minimal effort.
Michael Gannon, Associate Director