Social media - guide for researchers
v.1.4, Jim Caryl
Social media
1. Why bother with social media?
2. Platforms (blogging, twitter and other communications) - where, how, why, what
3. Your digital profile - getting your research out there, but anchoring it to you
4. Access to your University research profile
5. Other ways to network and share your research/data
Social media
Ultimate guide to social media for scientists:
Oregon State University Superfund Research Program - pretty much all you need!
See also:
Bik & Goldstein (2013) An introduction to social media for scientists. PLoS Biology
Osterrieder (2013) The value and use of social media as a communication tool in the plant sciences. Plant
Methods 9: 26Dunleavey (2014) Shorter, better, faster, free (2014) Writing for Research
@write4research - a useful source of academic writing advice
A-Z of social media for academia (a listing curated by Prof Andy Miah)
Using Twitter in university research, teaching and impact - LSE’s Impact of Social Science blog
Other reading:
Hulme (2014) EDITORIAL: Bridging the knowing-doing gap: know-who, know-what, know-why, know-how and
know-when. J Appl. Ecol. 51: 1131-1136
Bainbridge (2014) PRACTITIONER'S PERSPECTIVE: How can ecologists make conservation policy more evidence
based? Ideas and examples from a devolved perspective J. Appl. Ecol. 51: 1153-1158
Social media
Why bother?
“No-one can make you post trivial things on social media.” - Matt Shipman, Communication Breakdown
It’s not just about outreach
Professional networking/community
- With subject specialist peers
- With partners in other disciplines
- Immediate
Engagement with stakeholders
- The people that fund you
- Those influenced (or interested) in your research
Self promotion (and promotion of your research area or Institute)
- New channels to amplify the dissemination of your findings
- Gain perspective about how your research is consumed and by who
“It’s not magic. You can’t simply create a Twitter account and expect the world to be on your doorstep. When
you create a Twitter account you will have no-one on your doorstep.”
Social media
Online collaborations: Scientists and the social network (2014) Nature
Social media
Many platforms basically used as a web to catch people
trying to get in contact with you. Interaction with Twitter
is far more engaged – to follow discussions, comment
on research, discover and share papers, and to
discover and contact peers
Online collaborations: Scientists and the social network (2014) Nature
Social media
Tools and networks for scientists
A sample of some key tools and networks scientists can use for their work:
Social media (and networks for science):
Bik & Goldstein (2013) An introduction to social media for scientists. PLoS Biology
"Listening" tools:
Altmetric.com
”Personal profiling" tools:
Kudos, JournalMap, ResearcherID, ORCID
Adapted from McCormick (2014) Social media for scientists - including the shy, overcommitted and unconvinced. Elsevier Connect
Social media
Discovering content online that is timely and
relevant to my research and career
Discovering (and being discovered by) potential
collaborators
Invitations to give research seminars and other
talks, or to chair/moderate conference sessions,
often involving free travel and honoraria
Invitations to write book chapters
Social media
Familiarity with disseminating the results of
research to a broader audience using social media,
which can help satisfy NSF's requirements for
'Broader Impacts' statements in grant proposals
Job and consultancy offers
Content for my CV to demonstrate communication
skills and outreach savvy
Direct access to important people in science and
government
Social media
Access to papers using #icanhazpdf (especially
helpful now that I'm at a small non-profit research
institution instead of a university department or
large museum)
Getting near-instantaneous answers to questions
ranging from technical troubleshooting to polls
Last but not least, an incredible amount of
support and camaraderie, which has been
especially helpful during my recent career
transitions and a transatlantic, urban-to-rural
move
Social media
Social media
There is inherent value to engaging with social media, beyond
the expectation that using it will increase paper citations
SOCIAL
NETWORKING
• Improved dialogue with stakeholders
and public
• Add value to research by peers
• Opportunities to network informally
• Understanding how your research is
consumed
• Ability to communicate ideas effectively
• Increase reach of existing impacts
• Enable/share emergent best practice
• Crowdsource support and data
• etc. etc.
Social media
What do you want to achieve with social media?
Citations for your papers
Attract promising grad students
Identify funding opportunities
Look attractive to funding agencies or employers
Opportunities for academic collaboration
Opportunities for external partnerships
Who is consuming social media?
Potential students
potential faculty
Alumni
Funders (Government, independent, charity, NGO)
Policymakers (as above)
Current and future small-large business partners
General public
Social media
If you have no profile or visibility online, it is very difficult to promote yourself
…but worse, it makes it impossible for anyone else to champion you:
Impossible to point to from a tweet
Unlinked name in a seminar programme/external event
Unknown quantity to an external stakeholder
Your reputation (and Google presence) are left to chance/others
Social media
There is a public engagement element How can you present information to improve its consumption?
Social media
There is a public engagement element We are, after all, well known in this Institute at being great at cake presentation!
Twitter
Twitter
Conclusion? People spend a great deal of
time trying to understand how social media
is consumed
Twitter
As a tool: finding papers/resources/support
The traditional strategy for scanning newly published papers until now has been:
a) to pick papers based on the journal they were published in
b) search strategies based on keywords, or
c) personal recommendations
Support and discussion has typically been limited to your local office/meeting spaces
• Tweets linking to scholarly papers is now both popular and immediate
• Tweets are personalised (you curate the people you follow, or search query)
• Tweets can add value (+ve, -ve, rephrasing or concluding)
• Twitter markedly increases the size of your office (#phdchat #ecrchat)
Twitter
As a tool: conferences
Traditionally conferences offered only abstract books, programmes and reference
lists. No commentary (until months after), little file sharing, and rarely anything
live
• Use of #hashtags opens up conferences to wider audience
• Also opens up backchannels for discussions by participants
• Tweets offer criticism, review, extra resources to discussions
• Helps you identify people to meet (and arrange to do so)
• Large online citable databases can store conference media; Storify can store twitter
conversations
Twitter
As a tool: self-promotion
Quite simply, tweet your paper - or find a prominent tweeter to do so for you.
• Support the Institute Twitter (@IBAHCM)
• Establishing a network of followers can promote sharing (also #hashtag)
• Many NGOs and charities whom we work with are on Twitter and have audiences
relevant to your work (target them to re-tweet papers)
• A good approach:
Tracking interest: altmetrics.com
Twitter
10 rules to tweet by
1. Get rid of the egg (the default avatar) makes you look like a spammer
2. Don't pick a Twitter name that is too long, or difficult to spell or remember
3. Tweet regularly (2-3 day - find out when others are active: https://followerwonk.com)
4. Don't ignore people who tweet at you (phone app useful)
5. Engage in conversation. “Broadcast-only” approaches are rarely popular
6. Learn the #hashtags for your subject field or topics of interest, and use them
7. Don't just make statements. Ask questions
8. Don't just post links to news articles - add your input
9. Do show your personality. Crack some jokes
10. Have fun, but be respectful (you’re in public)
Adapted from post: Gulliver (2012) Chronicle of Higher Education
Twitter
Curating the streams
https://about.twitter.com/products/tweetdeck
Twitter
Curating the streams
Your main feed
People mentioning
you, RTs, favourites
Can have a column for
#hashtag searches of
keywords, e.g. rabies
Create ‘lists’ to
curate different
groups of
people, and thus
content
https://about.twitter.com/products/tweetdeck
Blogging
Blogging
Why blog ?
• Extend your influence and visibility (or that of the Institute)
• Two-way communication that is more interactive than just website and emails
• Easy to read, incisive and informal writing can demystify jargon
and cut to the chase
• Evidence that we can communicate beyond academic circles - too invested in your
work to see who else might be interested
• Feedback loops can identify new audiences, collaboration opportunities and
media-interaction (op-eds, policy engagement)
Blogging
What to blog (and tone)
• Issues, not personalities – an professional Institute or group-blog should be less
about personal diary entries of the users, and more about the hot topics for discussion
• What’s the message? You’re not re-writing a paper - focus on what matters
• Be clear, complete and concise
• Stick to what you know and add value (i.e. your story, see next slide)
• Give them somewhere to go - reference other related posts / sources of information
if not blogging a paper
• List of key points is useful
• Use headings, especially if it’s a longer post
• Use pictures if they help illustrate your point (check copyrights)
• Be who you are – anonymity does nothing for your credibility or professional visibility
• Respect your audience - avoid posting material that is obscene or defamatory, and if
challenging other people/data – do so professionally
• Caveat personal opinions – you can offer informed opinions, but posts on an Institute
blog should state that this is what they are
Adapted from ODI communications toolkit
Blogging
What to blog
Whether writing about a research paper or not,
don’t forget:
- You are part of the story
- Your writing can emphasise your skills in logistics,
overcoming struggles in the field
- Communicate the process of science not just
the findings
‘When bridges in the jungle fail’
Chris Schmitt (@fuzzyatelin)
Evopropinquitous blog (brilliant read)
- Where else can you record your activities with
external stakeholders – useful for you, and useful for
others to know that they could work with you too
Blogging
Disseminating research is not just the tack on at the end; it can begin by
opening a discussion with stakeholders about research questions you
are proposing, and using feedback to refine your research programme.
Likewise, stakeholders may be more interested in your approach to
tackling research problems (i.e. your processes and methodologies) than
the output of your research programme itself. Methodologies can be
especially inaccessible to non-academic partners (e.g. NGOs), who may
only hear a summary of findings, yet may value your experience in
different field settings, logistics and research techniques.
Blogging
Where to blog
Personal (your own blog)
- Adv: your own space, your own rules, self-edited
- Disadv: Responsible for everything
Options:
Wordpress.com (online hosted) and Wordpress.org (you download and find a host)
Blogger.com
Tumblr.com
If you just want to post (without bother of a blog site) consider Medium
Personal (Networked blog)
- Adv: Greater visibility, community, audience
- Disadv: Limited cosmetic input, some pressure to post, selective recruitment
Options:
SciLogs.com
Blogging
Where to blog
Collaborative blog
- Adv: Pooled source of content, some editorial input (others read, blog post ideas
discussed), can cover more topics at greater expertise, wider dissemination
- Disadv: Some rules and selection
Options:
Institute blog (Naturally Speaking, or Boyd Orr blog)
Research group blog
- Recommend Academicblogs.co.uk hosted by University of Glasgow - contact:
Laura.Tyler@glasgow.ac.uk
Blogging
Where to blog
Collaborative blog
- Adv: Pooled source of content, some editorial input (others read, blog post ideas
discussed), can cover more topics at greater expertise, wider dissemination
- Disadv: Some rules and selection
Current Academic Blogs hosted by
University of Glasgow – visit them
to see the range and tone of posts
http://endoflifestudies.academicblogs.co.uk/
Blogging
Where to blog
Collaborative blog
- Adv: Pooled source of content, some editorial input (others read, blog post ideas
discussed), can cover more topics at greater expertise, wider dissemination
- Disadv: Some rules and selection
Current Academic Blogs hosted by
University of Glasgow – visit them
to see the range and tone of posts
http://robertowencentre.academicblogs.co.uk/
Blogging
Where to blog
Guest blog
- Adv: Nothing to set up, editorial focus, targetted or wide dissemination (built in
audience), greater opportunity for wide feedback, often re-shared
- Disadv: Selective (may need prior blog), more time required (but worthwhile)
Options:
Targetted guest blog, e.g. NGO, charity, society (e.g. BOU) – work out which groups
are most aligned to your research and see if they have a blog – ask if they take posts
Mass media blog, e.g. HuffPo, The Conversation, PLoS blogs – most will have contact
pages with information on where to pitch an idea. May need to show past evidence
of writing, but expertise will also count for something
See also:
British Ornithologist’s Union: The benefits of blogging about your research
The Conversation: (e.g. Ebola, rabies)
Huffington Post: Contact them to pitch a blog idea
Blogging
Blogging syndication: scientific
http://researchblogging.org/static/index/page/help
Also general syndication: networkedblogs.com
(NB an app within Facebook)
Blogging
Blogging syndication: specialist
Syndication through
websites that aggregate
and organise blogs helps
your posts to be found
Some, such as
ResearchBlogging, have
some curation to ensure
the posts are correctly
categorised by research
area. They also offer
‘Editor’s picks’ for good
posts – improved visibility
Research profiles
How to build your profile as a scientist – Friday 14th Nov 11.30 – 12.30 SpotOn London (twitter hashtag #solo14profile)
- Some of the content from this session ‘Storifyed’ here: https://storify.com/BAHCM/creating-a-research-profile
Research profiles
Research profiles
http://www.gla.ac.uk/researchinstitutes/bahcm/studentstaff/websitecommunications/staffandstudentprofiles/
Research profiles
What sort of content?
Who is looking at your profile?
- Potential collaborators (including those outwith your field)
- Potential students or postdocs
- Funders and stakeholders (NGOs, charities, animal/vet/conservation industry,
policymakers, journalists, film makers)
Most will be after information on what you do, what you've done/found, who you work
with. Especially useful if you can say what you've done in the context of what everyone
else has done.
Can punctuate projects with links to references (could consider Kudos pages)
Include other works that help people understand your projects:
Project websites, press releases, presentations, your own lay summaries, or research
blog posts
Research profiles
Examples using the new template
http://www.gla.ac.uk/researchinstitutes/bahcm/staff/davidedominoni/
http://www.gla.ac.uk/researchinstitutes/bahcm/staff/francescobaldini/
Research profiles
If you do the training on
how to use the t4 web
Content Management
System, you can do a lot
more with your profile
However, for more
extensive website it might
also be easier to use an
external website generator
(More on this in two slides
time)
http://www.gla.ac.uk/researchinstitutes/bahcm/staff/ruedinager/ruedinager/
Research profiles
Postgraduate profiles
Still working on getting
a listing in here
Postgraduates will have
the option of a
template, like staff
Research profiles
Collaborative effort: SIGs
If you’re struggling to fit all
your activity in your profile,
make it a group effort in a SIG
SIGs provide a place to:
record grants/publications in
a project or theme
record materials that help
communicate more widely
link to a group research blog
that discusses new papers,
reports from the field, other
activities
Research profiles
Keep it together!
Don’t give people the run around, aggregate your media:
about.me
flavors.me
These sites provide an attractive way to create a professional website that will pull
the content from many different types of social media platforms (e.g. twitter,
linkedIn, blogs, flickr etc) and incorporate it into the site.
You can also create custom links to pages that can’t be aggregated
You can also write pages of content, i.e. a bio, basic profile information etc.
Research profiles
Personal pages
Your own website can
travel with you
between jobs, but keep
it up to date, and
always link to it from
your current University
profile.
http://www.squarespace.com/
When writing content you want people to find, use keywords they are most likely
to use. If not sure, use Google KeywordPlanner to find most common usage
University profiles
‘typically’ get ranked
higher in Google, and
are a professional
association. Do include
enough research
content to be found
with keywords other
than your name.
Research profiles
Personal pages
https://sites.google.com/site/bartadr/home
Provide a PDF or link to open access papers. Also provide clear-speak versions (blog posts, media,
presentations) that help people understand your work and its context.
Research profiles
Research project sites
Websites for large projects can be funded on grants. They can be used as a repository for information, analysis,
outputs and outcomes for a define project of work, acting as an ‘archive’ available and discoverable by external
stakeholders. They need to be updated to include all outcome of the project.
Other sharing/networking tools
Other sharing/networking tools
Kudos (www.growkudos.com)
Provides researchers with tools to optimally label, summarize, and propagate
research publications across many online platforms including social media.
Sign up
Let it find your papers
Work through the prompts
to add:
•
•
•
•
a short title
say what you found
say why it’s important
extra resources
Then share the pages it
creates for each paper
Other sharing/networking tools
The pages look like this,
providing access to your
paper, your lay summaries,
and extra resources
Extra resources could include:
Data (e.g. held in figshare)
PDF (if permitted)
URL
Images
Interview
Press release
Blog (or other media) post
Project report
You can then share this page,
i.e. tweet, or link to it from
your profile page etc.
Other sharing/networking tools
Extra resources could include:
Data (e.g. held in figshare)
PDF (if permitted)
URL
Images
Interview
Press release
Blog (or other media) post
Project report
You can then share this page,
i.e. tweet, or link to it from
your profile page etc.
Other sharing/networking tools
If you are looking for other material to include in your Kudos page (or elsewhere), you
can track ‘interest’in the original papers with altmetrics.com. Easy way to do this is to
install the bookmarklet. Alternatively, go to the publications in your profile, click the
title to go to the University Enlighten entry and scroll down – altmetrics are there.
Identifies media who have discussed work
Identifies how (and where) it has gone
You can see how people tweet it, i.e. do they rephrase
the paper title? Do they do a better job than you of
phrasing the core conclusion of the paper?
Other sharing/networking tools
I mentioned figshare as a place to store data. So what is figshare?
figshare (http://figshare.com/)
Allows researchers to publish all of their research outputs (figures, datasets,
media, papers, posters, presentations and filesets) of any format in seconds in
an easily citable, sharable and discoverable manner.
Useful resource to find otherwise undiscoverable reports and data on work
related to your own, helping to identify potential pitfalls, data that have already
been collected and contacts with whom you could collaborate.
If people can get access to data from published papers, they’re more likely to
cite those papers.
Watch some of their information videos:
https://www.youtube.com/user/FigShare
Other sharing/networking tools
JournalMap is a scientific literature search agent that empowers you to find relevant
research based on location and biophysical attributes combined with traditional keyword
searches
Adapted from materials here: http://wiki.journalmap.org/doku.php?id=presentations
Other sharing/networking tools
JournalMap
Adapted from materials here: http://wiki.journalmap.org/doku.php?id=presentations
Other sharing/networking tools
JournalMap
Use it to identify knowledge that can be applied between similar biomes, or to find
people (in varied disciplines) doing fieldwork near you – potential for shared
resources, knowledge, fixers or even collaboration
Other sharing/networking tools
JournalMap
Yet another personal profile – but they are also developing one that can be used to
‘collect’ the Institutes research locations and embed them on our website.
Traditional media
Traditional media – we haven’t focused on this, but efforts to disseminate
research by social media will help drive interaction here. Those of you who saw
the first edition of BIOSPHERE might also consider writing something for them.
They are looking for scientists to contribute.
end
Bernhardt et al. (2011): Dissemination 2.0: Closing the Gap Between Knowledge and Practice With New Media and Marketing, Journal of Health Communication, 16:sup1, 32-44
Research
process
Research
findings
Covered in Editorial, f1000?
Blog post
Institute/personal blog
Targetted guest blog
(e.g. NGO, charity, partner)
Mass media blog
(e.g. HuffPo, Nat Geo, SciAm)
Journal article
Press release
Open access or £
Technical or comment piece?
Kudos
Twitter
Facebook
(amplifiers)
Media
Mainstream
(e.g. TV/Newspapers)
Specialist
(e.g. Business press, funders)
Common language for you, poorly understood by just
about everyone else…
Infectious
Quarantine
Endemic/epidemic/pandemic
Viral load
Shedding virus
Surveillance
Reservoir
Vector-borne
Elimination/eradication/control
Stochastic
Metapopulation
Learning about what is and isn’t understood helps when you need to communicate
meaningfully and impactfully with external agencies
Other dissemination tools
Altmetrics
Since 1990, the correlation between impact factor and paper citations has been
diminishing; the highest cited papers don’t necessarily come from high impact factor
journals. Nor does the greatest impact.
Citations often take years to accrue so it’s difficult to get a measure of what types of
work are interested in your paper (it also biases towards academic publication)
Altmetrics (and in particular altmetrics.com) is a measure of interest, not quality
The point is to move away from a single way of assessing a single type of impact
(citations & influence on other articles) and to provide a variety of different options that
give you a broader view of impact
Provide a rapid assessment of who might be interested in your work within academia
(Mendeley, CiteUlike, f1000) and beyond
Interest a measure of: degree of translation/application; effectiveness at engaging on the
research topic; quirkiness