1. The Researcher Online:
Building an Online
Identity
Dr Helen Webster
Digital Humanities Network
University of Cambridge
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
2. Before we start...
I’d like to model the digital
behaviour I’m advocating!
• Feel free to livetweet #DH23 #CRASSH
• Slides are online: Slideshare http://
www.slideshare.net/drhelenwebster/
• We’re recording the talk to create a digital
artefact. We’ll be focussing on the
presentation rather than discussions.
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
4. Aims
Not to teach tools, but...
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
5. Aims
Not to teach tools, but...
• an awareness of the ways in which social and digital media
platforms can enhance and be embedded in your work as a
researcher
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
6. Aims
Not to teach tools, but...
• an awareness of the ways in which social and digital media
platforms can enhance and be embedded in your work as a
researcher
• an understanding of the issues raised by social and digital media
tools, potential pitfalls, good practice and future impacts on the
profession
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
7. Aims
Not to teach tools, but...
• an awareness of the ways in which social and digital media
platforms can enhance and be embedded in your work as a
researcher
• an understanding of the issues raised by social and digital media
tools, potential pitfalls, good practice and future impacts on the
profession
• an awareness of and ability to evaluate the various types of
digital tool and make informed decisions about your own
engagement with them in your practice
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
15. Your professional
identity
• What do you want to do as an early career
researcher, in terms of promoting your
identity (both traditionally and online)?
• Why do you want to be online?
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
16. Scale of digital
engagement
TechnoFEAR! TechnoJOY!
(Izzard, 1997)
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
19. Who are you, online?
• What online social media platforms do you use?
• What information have you put online?
• What information might have been put online
about you by others, e.g. friends, employers,
educational institutions, etc
• What usernames, profile pictures etc do you
use? Are they identifiably you?
• If someone Googles you, what would they find?
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
20. Write your name on a
post-it note.
Now pass it along, 2
people to your left.
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
21. ...now Google your
partner.
• Analyse the results and draw up a profile of
information and impressions about that
person. Don’t forget to check the images
tab!
• Now pass it back, 2 people to your right...
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
27. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
28. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
29. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
30. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Find out how people are searching for you and embed
likely keywords (your metadata)
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
31. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Find out how people are searching for you and embed
likely keywords (your metadata)
• academia.edu
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
32. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Find out how people are searching for you and embed
likely keywords (your metadata)
• academia.edu
• Google search autocomplete suggestions
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
33. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Find out how people are searching for you and embed
likely keywords (your metadata)
• academia.edu
• Google search autocomplete suggestions
Think ‘push’ and ‘pull’
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
34. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Find out how people are searching for you and embed
likely keywords (your metadata)
• academia.edu
• Google search autocomplete suggestions
Think ‘push’ and ‘pull’
Update at peak times e.g. 9am, 3pm 6pm
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
35. Tips for enhancing your
visibility
Google ranks certain types of website higher so link:
• social media
• sites with ‘authority’ - cam.ac.uk
Find out how people are searching for you and embed
likely keywords (your metadata)
• academia.edu
• Google search autocomplete suggestions
Think ‘push’ and ‘pull’
Update at peak times e.g. 9am, 3pm 6pm
If you don’t want something visible, you’ll have to bury it
or ask for it to be taken down
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
38. Where are you on the
web?
Proprietry/free
The Academic The Open
Web Web
Password
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
39. Where are you on the
web?
• You currently belong to an institution, a
discipline and a profession. All these may
change, and your webspace associated with
them.
• Any open web platform you use may be
removed or changed.
How will you ensure longer-term
online stability?
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
40. Collating Your Self: the
Open Web
• Namechk - consistent username
• Grab variants of your (user)name
• Consistent and recognisable profile picture
• Gravatar
• Google Profile
• About.me, Flavours.me
• Share and update on other platforms
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
41. Collating Your Self:
Academic Web
• Google Scholar Citations Profile
• ResearcherID
• ORCID
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
43. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
44. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
• Different platforms for different purposes
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
45. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
• Different platforms for different purposes
• Check privacy settings
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
46. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
• Different platforms for different purposes
• Check privacy settings
• Have a policy on ‘friending’, ‘following’ etc and add a clear
statement of your intentions
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
47. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
• Different platforms for different purposes
• Check privacy settings
• Have a policy on ‘friending’, ‘following’ etc and add a clear
statement of your intentions
• Avoid logins and synching with Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn
etc
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
48. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
• Different platforms for different purposes
• Check privacy settings
• Have a policy on ‘friending’, ‘following’ etc and add a clear
statement of your intentions
• Avoid logins and synching with Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn
etc
• Don’t let your computer ‘remember’ your login
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
49. Or not?
If you want to keep your identities separate...
• Different platforms for different purposes
• Check privacy settings
• Have a policy on ‘friending’, ‘following’ etc and add a clear
statement of your intentions
• Avoid logins and synching with Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn
etc
• Don’t let your computer ‘remember’ your login
• Use pseudonyms and abstract profile pictures for personal
identities
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
51. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
52. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
53. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
• Address a defined audience (but be aware that anyone may
be seeing you if on the open web)
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
54. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
• Address a defined audience (but be aware that anyone may
be seeing you if on the open web)
• Update ‘regularly’ but don’t overload
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
55. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
• Address a defined audience (but be aware that anyone may
be seeing you if on the open web)
• Update ‘regularly’ but don’t overload
• Offer something of yourself e.g. a photo, identifiable name, an
appropriate personal tone
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
56. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
• Address a defined audience (but be aware that anyone may
be seeing you if on the open web)
• Update ‘regularly’ but don’t overload
• Offer something of yourself e.g. a photo, identifiable name, an
appropriate personal tone
• Link it to yourself in Real Life
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
57. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
• Address a defined audience (but be aware that anyone may
be seeing you if on the open web)
• Update ‘regularly’ but don’t overload
• Offer something of yourself e.g. a photo, identifiable name, an
appropriate personal tone
• Link it to yourself in Real Life
• Avoid the echo chamber
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
58. Principles of successful
online engagement
• Don’t just broadcast- interact
• Offer something of value
• Address a defined audience (but be aware that anyone may
be seeing you if on the open web)
• Update ‘regularly’ but don’t overload
• Offer something of yourself e.g. a photo, identifiable name, an
appropriate personal tone
• Link it to yourself in Real Life
• Avoid the echo chamber
• Be professional, not perfectionist - be timely
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
59. What do you need
your profile to do?
• What aspect(s) of your work or self do you want
to promote?
• Who is/are your audience(s)? Who do you want to
exclude?
• What purpose do you want to achieve, using this
profile? What value is there for your audience?
• What kind of information do you want to
exchange?
• What tensions or conflicts might you encounter?
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
61. Some more decisions...
a/ technoFEAR! or technoJOY!
b/ private or public?
c/ original content or mashup and curate?
d/ single identity or many identities?
e/ low activity or high activity?
f/ one platform or many platforms?
g/ content created specifically or ‘collateral damage’?
h/ academia or beyond?
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
63. Measuring success
• Keep Googling yourself *
• See who’s talking about you -
• Socialmention
• Technorati
• Academia.edu and Google search alert
• Blog analytics and who’s following you
• Google analytics
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
64. Platforms
High
Time
commitment
Low
Academic Webspace Open web
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
65. What might you do
with (e.g.) a blog?
• Wordpress
• Twitter
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
66. Tidying Up After Your
Self
• Do experiment, but deactivate dormant accounts
(where possible)
• Ask others (e.g. employers) to keep information
current
• Personal digital archiving - what data do you want
to keep, how long for, and in what format?
• Who owns your data? Can it be accessed by you or
others?
• Have a password/username management strategy
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
67. Your Strategy
Take:
• your aims
• the digital mindset
• principles for effective engagement
• your preferences
• your platforms
Create an infographic representing what
you intend to do with your online identity
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
68. To explore further, see
DH23Things Module
One
http://dh23things.wordpress.com/
Wednesday, 10 October 2012