For those of you lot that are scientists – you lot desire results, right? Cold, difficult facts. According to Tiffany Fox, Public Information Representative at the Qualcomm Institute at the UC San Diego Division of the California Institute for Telecommunication together with Information Technology (Calit2), the patch of social media is only every bit good novel to yield results that demonstrate its value for scientists.
However, at that spot is prove that the release of tweets a magazine article gets tin predict the release of citations it volition cause got – that’s according to the Journal of Medical Internet Research.
In a recent seminar designed to teach Electrical together with Computer Engineering students inwards the fine art of using social media to communicate research, Fox spent fourth dimension explaining why it is increasingly expected that scientists together with engineers cause got a social media presence.
“When nosotros say social media, what are nosotros talking about?” asked Fox. “Facebook, Twitter, Google +, LinkedIn, Pinterest/Instragram/Snapchat, blogs, Storify, together with the like. These platforms cause got the potential to transmit data to a large audience quickly.”
The term ‘quickly’ mightiness survive an understatement – this comic past times Randall Munroe explains how it is that tweets move faster than an earthquake.
As useful every bit it is, social media typically gets a bad rap. Fox position upwards this graphic to illustrate:
With thus much irrelevant data on the web, the inquiry remains: Which social channels should I survive on? It’s a thing of knowing your audience, says Fox.
H5N1 recent poll constitute that 65 per centum of people nether the historic menstruum of xxx are getting their intelligence from the Internet. In addition, a written report constitute that the potential for an audience at a scientific conference is 10-fold less than for social media.
If nosotros know that this is where our audience is, why don’t nosotros purpose it?
But I don’t wanna, you say. For all of your excuses, Fox has a response:
- Aren’t journals together with conferences enough? How many times cause got you lot seen a re-create of Nano Letters on someone’s java table?
- But that’s what journalists are for! Journalists tin larn it wrong.
- The Internet is forever! So are impress magazines.
- Scientists are introverts. Social media is perfect for introverts – you lot don’t fifty-fifty cause got to go out the house!
What’s inwards it for me, you’re wondering. Fox has a release of answers for that every bit well:
- Voice your thoughts together with opinions…for free.
- Keep up-to-date
- Share information amongst colleagues
- Be component of the larger conversation – non solely that, you lot tin sway it.
- Control you lot professional person visibility
- Boost your prestige
- Act every bit a world vocalisation for science
- Avoid the ‘blowback’ outcome – right faux impressions
- It’s becoming an obligation – you lot appear actually out of impact if you’re non using social media. In fact, I’d wager you’re doing scientific discipline a disfavor.
- Ability to crowdsource
- Invitations to write mass chapters
- Job offers/attract graduate students
- Real-time conference/workshop updates
- Increased newspaper downloads/citations
- Potential for novel fields of science
But, you lot say, I nevertheless don’t wanna! What if I’m wrong? Make a correction. What if no ane pays attention? Not participating guarantees fifty-fifty less attention. What if someone yells at me? That way they were paying attention. What if my boss doesn’t similar it? Work amongst your Public Information Representative to discovery out the rules.
Are you lot convinced? Good. Let’s larn started. Fox offers these full general guidelines for creating a profile on whatever ane of the social media sites nosotros listed at the get-go of this post.
- Check KnowEm.com to encounter your profile name’s availability
- Search for doppelgangers together with consider using middle initial
- Have a profile painting exhibit of yourself – DO NOT purpose the schoolhouse logo!
- Try to go on the same name, profile pic, imagery together with facial expression across all your social profiles – nosotros telephone weep upwards these social skins, together with it helps do a personal brand
- For your professional person profiles, survive every bit transparent every bit possible almost your affiliations
- Include a Twitter bio, together with tag @UCSDJacobs, @Calit2UCSD or @UCSanDiego
The “Staple” Update Strategy
Many people cause got a unmarried type of update that they post service regularly, such every bit a condition update or manufacture news. In fact, Fox says, some people solely retweet or percentage other people’s content. For every 4 staple updates, mix it upwards amongst a unlike slice of content.
Optimal Posting Frequency
Facebook: 2x/day
Twitter: 5x/day
LinkedIn: 1x/day
Google +: 2x/day
Pinterest: 5x/day
Instagram: 2x/day
Next Steps
- Start using hashtags to search for keywords that gibe your interest
- Follow people who are tweeting almost those topics
- Create lists to go on your feed organized
- Adjust your settings
Here’s an lawsuit inwards practice. Say TechCrunch posts an article, together with you lot only tumble out to come upwards across it patch browsing the Internet earlier you lot start your operate for the day: “Ron Conway Says Each Engineer Hired Creates Four Entry-Level Jobs”
If you lot have:
10 seconds – hitting retweet
2 minutes – retweet, together with post service to LinkedIn
5 minutes – all of the to a higher house together with follow Ron Conway, together with thus read some of his posts
10 minutes – all of the to a higher house together with tweet “@RonConway, peachy insights inwards @TechCrunch today!”
30 minutes – all of the to a higher house together with tweet “Hey, @RonConway, here’s how our tech could do jobs [insert link to a weblog post service you’ve written]
Social Media Best Practices
Posting:
- Consider creating split accounts
- Don’t clutter upwards feeds amongst irrelevant info
- Don’t over-post, construct vague posts or complain chronically
- Tailor your post service to the medium
- Ditch jargon, purpose metaphors, suspension downwardly concepts – for blogs, purpose Flesch-Kincaid readability test (Microsoft Word)
- Respect other’s privacy
- Respect media embargoes, NDAs together with ‘exclusives’
- You are non obligated to cause got friend requests or “follow” someone who follows you lot on Twitter
- Comment, “like”, retweet, reply together with otherwise survive supportive
- Try “hiding” together with if that doesn’t operate “unfollow” together with “unfriend”
- Use right grammar!
- To construct social media worth your while, Fox has these tips:
- Decide what your goals are together with purpose targeted tools
- Post when your readers are online
- Use together with search for hashtags (#engineering)
- Optimize your newspaper titles for social media – people dearest lists (5 ways, 10 things, etc.)
- Be selective – do lists inwards Twitter; alter your settings or ‘get notifications’ for Facebook posts
- Find what industrial plant for you
The ultimate finish is to do investment.
In the end, it all comes full-circle, Fox says. We are using social media to verbalise almost science, together with scientific discipline to written report social media.
Tiffany Fox volition host ane to a greater extent than workshop every bit component of her “Communicating Research: How to ‘Speak Science’ together with Be Understood” serial on May xix from five to seven p.m. The concluding workshop volition survive titled “Communicating amongst the Lay Public”. The workshop is free-of-charge together with volition survive held inwards the Booker Conference Room (Room 2512), Jacobs Hall/EBU1, UC San Diego. You tin register here.
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