Making Academic Research Go Viral: Six Principles
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Making Academic Research Go Viral Karen Lee @karenlee #confabEDU
Transcript of Making Academic Research Go Viral: Six Principles
Making Academic
Research Go Viral Karen Lee@karenlee
#confabEDU
We looked back on what we learned - what worked, what didn’t -
from writing and sharing academic stories
Six Principles from Stanford Business
While I was at the GSB, I felt intellectually on fire – now that I’ve graduated, the GSB keeps that flame alive by providing me with stimulating content and unique perspectives on big compelling issues.- Alumna
1. Create stories that teach and reach
“If you can’t explain to a six year old, you don’t understand it yourself.” - Albert Einstein
➔ Fulfills a public purpose to promote education and learning
➔ Fuels people’s desire for lifelong learning◆ Help people better understand the
world◆ Inspire people (practical, aspirational)
Stanford Business objectiveWe help increase the reach and impact of business management research and insights to influencers who are seeking knowledge to change lives, organizations, and the world.
Our website is the anchor
Before: June 2012
Designed & organized for readers
Bigger type
Jump to topic pages
Emphasis on richer
visuals
Social sharing
Dive intoother stories
See faculty profiles and related papers, articles
Sign-up for our e-newsletter
Jump to related stories
Shortened linkto share
Social sharing
“Those groups without whose support the organization would cease to exist.” - 1963 memo, Stanford Research Institute
2. Be accountable to your stakeholders
➔ Who are your stakeholders?➔ How does your organization build trust?➔ How do you convey your mission &
goals?➔ When do you seek their feedback?
Editorial process
Trigger
Do research
Meet with professor
Brainstorm story format
Develop story/assets
Share story with professor
Receive feedback, make edits
Get approval
Get feedback from professor
Publish on website / magazine
Promote
3. Find storytelling to fit your audience ➔ Who is your audience?➔ What types of storytelling formats do
you use?➔ How does the type of content or
platform influence the way you choose to tell a story?
Story: Who’s making the ethical decisions in a
driverless car?
Story: A change to a tax credit could kill the nascent U.S. solar
industry
Embrace criticism because it’s good for quashing bad ideas (
here’s how)
Best practices for video interview
➔ Do your homework
➔ Keep it conversational and light
“It’s all about control without making it look controlled.” - Beth Rimbey
➔ Go in with a narrow idea of what you want the end product to look like
➔ Take your time
4. Focus on building your reach ➔ Where is your audience?➔ Can you do more with less?➔ How unique is each channel, platform,
or product? Where is there overlap?➔ What are the requirements to support
your platform or product?
Where you can find Stanford Business stories
WebsiteMagazine
Email PartnersSocial Media
5. Think evergreen: recycle & repackage
➔ What channels do you use to share your content and stories?
➔ When can you recycle and peg your stories to what’s happening in the news?➔ How do you tailor your content to specific channels?
SlideShareA Look Back at 2014
7 Business Books and Business GoalsSetting Vague Goals
Goals: Teach & build a relationship ➔ Reach more people ➔ Create compelling content ➔ Engage with content➔ Read other stories ➔ Amplify story ➔ Create loyalty
6. Define and measure your success➔ What do you keep track of (or not)?➔ How do your metrics measure your
organization’s objectives?➔ What is your process for determining
what you should continue or stop?➔ In what ways do you encourage new
ideas and experiments?
Potential experiments and tests➔ What angle should we use?➔ Are people interested in reading about
this particular topic?➔ Will readers watch a video?➔ Does story format affect social sharing?➔ Which subject line is better? ➔ Should we be on Periscope?
TumblrLong-form story
Infographic Infographic
➔ When Power Moves at Work Backfire
➔ 7 Myths of Boards of Directors➔ Why Winning Could Go Wrong
in a Fitbit World➔ Facebook Profiles: The Biggest
Bank of Personality Data?➔ When To Bootstrap Your
StartupFacebook Profiles 28.1%, 5.2%7 Myths of BoDs 27.0%, 7.1%Email
Follow on Periscope: @StanfordBusiness
6 Principles from Stanford Business1. Create stories that teach and reach2. Be accountable to your stakeholders3. Find storytelling to fit your audience4. Focus on building your reach5. Think evergreen: recycle & repackage6. Define and measure your success
If you’re interested in a copy of my e-book on how to tweet, get in touch:
Karen [email protected]
@karenlee
Thank you!
