Through questionnaire survey and in-depth interviews, the study investigated the desired features, marketing strategies, and policies of real-time digital reference services from students’ perspectives. The project was executed in two phases using different research methods: in-depth interviews were conducted during the questionnaire development phase, questionnaire survey was used in the large scale survey of users’ attitudes. The survey results reflected the actual habits, need, and attitudes of current and potential users. Further analyses revealed the differences of need and attitudes of students of various majors and backgrounds. The findings could help academic libraries better serve and effectively attract target users.