1. Grace Thornton
GCEP/TRMA 585: Developing A
Professional Online Identity Spring 2013

2. online identities, personal branding, social
media

3. LinkedIn
• LinkedIn has been my favorite social media network
• It seems the most relevant to my business
• Has my contact info, resume, specializations

4. Online Privacy
• NO Such Thing!
• Anything we post can be accessed
• We must be prepared to account for our online
presence, to our clients, potential clients and
colleagues
• It’s better to be safe than sorry when
it comes to posting on personal accounts

5. Twitter #GCEP585
• Twitter is a great place to disseminate mini-thought
bites to large audiences
• You can post links to relevant information
• “Hashtags” collect your thoughts topically such as:
#GCEP585
• You can follow other
professionals to see how
they are utilizing social
media too!
• Eg: https://twitter.com/Julie_Hanks

6. Professional Facebook Pages
• Facebook is a slippery minx
• It’s my favorite non-professional tool, but the
privacy settings are shaky at best.
• I have not decided to open a professional one as of
now, but am not closed to the idea
• I have certainly begun to monitor my personal
postings much more closely.

7. Google Plus (G+)
• Google+ is everything all on one place
• Facebook + LinkedIn + Twitter
• The evolutionary apex of all social media
• And totally outside my comfort zone
• I’m still just figuring out the circles
(which are really
cool!)

8. Blogs: Blogger, WordPress, Tumblr
• Blogs are everywhere!
• There is a blog for everything and everyone!
• If there is something you want to learn about,
chances are there is a blog about just that thing.

9. Learning from Mental health Professionals &
organizations
• Professionals benefit most from having a niche
• Using social media to promote this niche can turn
you into an “expert in the field”
• Build the practice you want by making your voice
unavoidable on your niche issue!

10. Managing your online identity
• Managing an online identity can be sticky!
• Hootsuite and other sites like this can help you
streamline your postings.
• These won’t help you make ethical choices though
• Consult with other professionals who can help you
see potential snags in your posts and online
presence.

11. Portfolios & profiles
https://plus.google.com/108194273442197399621/about

12. Curation Tools: scoop.it/pinterest
social media ethics for therapists
• Online Collections!
• Collect photos, articles, quotes, poems
• Keep them in categories and
share them at will
• Input! Input! Input!
• Allow public access and you
can refer clients to your page so
they can shop around for
information consistent with their
treatment plan!

13. Websites & domain names
• Not as difficult as you might think!
• GoDaddy.com and other similar sites sell domains
for yearly rates
• Use Hostgator.com to set up an e-mail with your
domain
• Use Wordpress to configure your site and then GO!
• Having a customized site is one of the best ways for
clients to find you and explore the practice you
built to build comfort before calling you!

14. Making A Difference
Goals & Strategies
• It’s important to use your online presence
intentionally.
• It’s easy for our online self to get away from us or to
be neglected
• With all the amazing tools available currently, there
is no reason not to use your voice for the things you
are passionate about.
• Who knows where it can lead you: public speaking,
book writing, legislation!

15. slideshare
• Slide share is another great way to disseminate
large amounts of tailored information
• For you can allow your clients to access the
information you covered for long after your
discussion
• For public speaking engagements, you can invite
the audience to follow along or invite comments

16. Final thoughts
With the amount of attention people give to the
internet these days, a clinician can no longer afford
to neglect the WORLD WIDE WEB and expect to be
successful. And, now that personal domains, blogs,
twitter and other networking sites are so accessible,
there is no more excuse to go old fashioned. It’s true
that privacy is more difficult than ever, but with
healthy boundaries and common sense, any
therapist can benefit from understanding their online
presence.