Presentation about the use of social technology for scientific research institutions. Delivered October 2011 at the Annual Meeting of the Association of Independent Research Institutes (AIRI).

1. Maximizing the Use of Social Media and Technology at AIRI Institutes Wednesday, October 5, 2011

2. A few questions…

3. Which do you recognize?

4. Does your organization… Encourage web visitors to share site content via social networks? Push consistent messaging out via social media channels? Monitor conversations in social media about your organization/mission? Encourage web visitors to “like” you on Facebook? Maintain an organization campaign presence on major social media sites?

5. Does your organization… -- Edge Research & Convio, 2011

6. Do you know… What percentage of adult internet users use social networking sites like Facebook & LinkedIn? A: 25% B: 45% C: 65%  Correct Answer “Fully 65% of adult internet users now say they use a social networking site like MySpace, Facebook or LinkedIn, up from 61% one year ago. The frequency of social networking site usage among young adult internet users under age 30 was stable over the last year – 61% of online Americans in that age cohort now use social networking sites on a typical day, compared with 60% one year ago. However, among the Boomer-aged segment of internet users ages 50-64, social networking site usage on a typical day grew a significant 60% (from 20% to 32%).” -- Pew Internet, August 2011

7. Which is bigger… The number of Facebook users… Or the population of the U.S.? U.S. Population: 312 Million Facebook active users: 750 Million

8. Does your organization… Use hashtags? Do you know what a hashtag is?

9. Facebook

10. How does Facebook work? Profiles, Groups, Pages, oh my! Info Wall, Posting Photos & Video Likes & Comments Tagging iFrames Events Subscribe Custom URLs Profile Picture Apps & plug-ins 750 million active users

11. For example:

12. Five Key Tips: Be a constant presence – 15 minutes every morning? Be “real.” Set your goal to create community. Program expansion and/or fundraising may follow. Allow community members to comment… and then respond to them! Invite people to “like” you. Invite them to “share” content. Use Facebook’s tools.

13. twitter

14. How does Twitter work? Microblogging – 140 characters Tweets Handles Hashtags Retweets, Favorites Followers Short URLs Private messages Lists Klout score 1 billion tweets each week

15. For example:

16. For example:

17. Five Key Tips: Be a constant presence. Use and track bit.ly’s. Research hashtag trends, and use them. Deliver content people will want to tweet & retweet. Follow other users – especially users with high Klout scores (www.klout.com) – and retweet them. They may return the favor.

18. linkedin

19. How does LinkedIn work? Professional network Job posting, searching, networking Connections Groups Discussions Updates Profile views Account levels 100 million professionals

20. For example:

21. For example:

22. For example:

23. For example:

24. Five Key Tips: Encourage all current & past staff/alumni to use your official “Company” in their profile. Openly invite people to “follow” the “Company.” Create a “Group” for staff, students, alumni, etc. Enable open discussions. Research qualified staff candidates… and find volunteers, speakers, donors, etc. Be selective in what you share.

25. Other tools to consider

26. YouTube – youtube.com SlideShare – slideshare.net Google+ – plus.google.com Quora – quora.com Other tools to consider:

27. Internal tools

28. Intranet Protected, staff-only internal website Pro’s: Single (or limited) publisher/s of information Easily accessible (not tech-heavy) Branded to organization Fully customizable to your needs Share confidential information Con’s: Requires time and money for tech & content development Not interactive

29. Intranet

30. Intranet

31. Wikis Collaborative workspace that promotes sharing Pro’s: Quick, convenient exchange of ideas Trackable changes Transparency among users Historic record of resources and protocol Con’s: Can be less intuitive for non-tech-savvy users Navigation can become cumbersome If not heavily used, may not be worthwhile

32. Wikis

33. Wikis

34. Forums Community allowing people to post and discuss Pro’s: Easily moderated Allows you to trade opinions and expertise Encourages interaction & discussion Con’s: Limited navigation ability Relies on community for content Requires large user base

35. Forums

36. Document management/editing Listservs Groupware platforms Instant Messengers Other tools to consider:

37. Fears and concerns

39. Social media before vs. after publishing data

40. This is not unlike scientific publication... Peer review and citations are very similar to interactions on Twitter, Blogs, Digg’ed, etc. -- Neurobiology postdoctoral student, Retrospectra Blog, 2011

41. What could go wrong? …but anything can be made positive! “Upon owning up to their mistake, the Red Cross got several donations from people who thought the mixed-up tweet was understandable, and they even got some PR from the brewery mentioned in the offending tweet. So, take a lesson from the Red Cross: if you make a mistake on Twitter, own up to it. It’s fine if you want to delete an inappropriate tweet, but if you acknowledge that you deleted it, you’ll show your community that you’re trustworthy, and, most importantly, that you’re just human.” -- Media Bistro

42. It’s a wild world out there… But it’s not going away anytime soon… So you might as well get on board.

43. Final thoughts

44. Simple rules can be the hardest KISS Principle – “Keep it simple, stupid.” Be open and honest… be “real” Be a constant presence Create community Release control

45. Thank you! Julie Ziff Sint Senior Account Executive jzsint@sankynet.com @jzsint Paul Habig Executive Vice President phabig@sankynet.com @paulhabig www.sankynet.com