Download - Building professional connections online
Building Professional Connections Online
Strengthen Your Online Presence Through Effective Communication
Genevieve Howard
Sharon Wood-Turley
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Where you are now
• What are you currently doing?
• Google yourself. Check regularly and set up Google alerts.
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Where you want to be
Why build a strong online presence?
• Connect with other academics in your field.
• Help you on the job market.
• Find speaking engagements.
• Promote your group or business.
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Social Media: the big ones
• Linkedin: page on CAFNR to help you set it up.
• Facebook: keep it clean, check your privacy settings.
• Twitter: try it to see if appropriate.
• Blogging: be ready for time commitment and topics. WordPress is customizable.
• Academia.edu (research).
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
• @ sign + user name = responding to someone. These are publically visible. @cafnr
• RT = retweet. This means you are resending someone else’s message. RT @cafnr
• # = hash tag. These add context to your tweets. #ag
• D = direct message. You can send direct messages to people who are following you. These are not publically visible. D cafnr
• Backchannel = Tweets during a live presentation
How to talk Twitter
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Is Twitter right for you personally?
• Yes, if you like this kind of online participation. Do you want to follow trends and learn from others in your specialized area?
• Find people by looking at who your colleagues follow.
• Who Should I Follow?
• Wefollow
• Listorious
• Most people use an application to manage Twitter, such as TweetDeck or Hootsuite.
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Ideas for using Twitter academically
• Post reminders on assignments.
• Send links to relevant readings.
• Promote upcoming events.
• Ask for opinions, “What should we name our next flavor of ice cream?”
• Use in the classroom to share questions and thoughts, an official backchannel.
– Helps to have a person monitoring Twitter stream
– Use a # hashtag
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Web
• Each MU student has 200 mg of server space.
• You can use it to post papers and articles.
• There are also many hosting options. Check for pricing and features.
• Set up your Google profile page. This will help your name in search results.
• Slideshare for presentations.
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
E-mail management
• Electronic signature: add links to where you want people to go.
• Maintain consistent tone across media.
• Remember grammar and punctuation.
• Think of your e-mail as public. You never know where it will be forwarded.
• Less is more. Limit the quantity that you send. People will appreciate it and give more respect to yours when you do send it.
Building Professional Connections Online Genevieve Howard & Sharon Wood-Turley
Other considerations
• How to handle negativity
• Measurement
• Transparency: Personal vs. private vs. professional
Thank you! If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Genevieve Howard, [email protected]
Sharon Wood-Turley, [email protected]