"Pimp Up Your Stuff!": How To Exploit The Social Web

A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Using the Social Web to Maximise Access to your Resources:

“Pimp Up Your Stuff!”: How To Exploit The Social Web Brian KellyUKOLNUniversity of BathBath, UK

UKOLN is supported by:This work is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 licence (but note caveat)

Acceptable Use PolicyRecording of this talk, taking photos, discussing the content using email, instant messaging, blogs, SMS, etc. is permitted providing distractions to others is minimised.

Acceptable Use PolicyRecording of this talk, taking photos, discussing the content using email, instant messaging, blogs, SMS, etc. is permitted providing distractions to others is minimised.

Resources bookmarked using ‘scaseo' tag Resources bookmarked using ‘scaseo' tag

http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/sca-seo-20090629/http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/sca-seo-20090629/

Email:[email protected]

Twitter:http://twitter.com/briankelly/

Blog:http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/


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Contents

About Social Web Services• Revisiting Web 2.0• Blogs and Wikis • Social Sharing• Social Networks• Communications and Mobile Devices

How They Can Be Used• Your Ideas• Your Resources• Your Institutional Brand• Your Personal Brand & Reputation

Conclusions


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Web2MemeMap, Tim O’Reilly, 2005

Characteristics Of Web 2.0

• Network as platform• Always beta• Clean URIs• Remix and mash-ups

Syndication (RSS)• Architecture of participation

Blogs & Wikis Social networking Social tagging

(folksonomies)• Trust and openness

Characteristics Of Web 2.0

• Network as platform• Always beta• Clean URIs• Remix and mash-ups

Syndication (RSS)• Architecture of participation

Blogs & Wikis Social networking Social tagging

(folksonomies)• Trust and openness

Web 2.0

What Is Web 2.0?

Marketing term (derived from observing 'patterns') rather than technical standards - “an attitude not a technology”

Web

2.0


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What Does Google Find?

Pages in Wikipedia are Google-friendly

• First 3rd party Web site for search for ‘British Library’ is from Wikipedia

Wik

is

• Similar results found for a search for ‘British Postal Museum’


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Exploiting Wikipedia (1)

Is your organisation listed in Wikipedia?

If not you are missing out on a (free) marketing opportunity.

Wik

is


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Your entry may have created by someone who doesn’t work for your organisation

Here’s a simple example of a Wikipedia entry.

Looking at the page history we can see when it was created and by whom.

The original page may have been embarrassing.

How long might this page have been promoting your museum?

Conclusions: Doing nothing may not be an option! And would you allow inaccurate information to be published in a popular print publications?

Conclusions: Doing nothing may not be an option! And would you allow inaccurate information to be published in a popular print publications?


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How to proceed:• How to create pages: See Museums and

Wikipedia paper, J Bowden from MW 2007.• No Wikipedia reputation: Get ID and be a

good Wikipedia citizen first. • Entry flagged as ‘marketing’: You’ve copied

your marking material, haven’t you! Work with your peers to avoid ‘the best’, ‘the leading’, …

Wik

is

Note: This is now fixed


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Why Blog?Multiple reasons for blogging (not all to do with maximising access to resources and ideas):

• Reflection• Dissemination• Engagement• News and alerts• Note-taking• Experimentation• ‘Think out loud’• Personal development• Syndication• …

Blo

gs

Jo Alcock (librarian at Wolverhampton University) has a blog which allows her to engage with her users on library developments and solicit feedback

Jo Alcock (librarian at Wolverhampton University) has a blog which allows her to engage with her users on library developments and solicit feedback


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Why I Blog

Reasons mentioned previously.

In addition:

• Talk about plans for new ‘stuff’ (events, papers, ideas, …)

• Talk and ‘stuff’ I’ve delivered (as illustrated)

Use of a blog allows this to be:

• Commented on

• Syndicated

• Repurposed

Blo

gs


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The Paper In The Repository

The paper in the repository can fail to engage with potential interested parties (especially if only the metadata is available)

The paper in the repository can fail to engage with potential interested parties (especially if only the metadata is available)


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Best Practices For Bloggers

Examples of best practices:• Have a blog policy (e.g. ‘Don’t be stupid’)• Define the scope and target audience• Link to others• Allow comments• Respond to comments• Decide on team or individual blog• Make use of your blog posts elsewhere

See UKOLN’s Cultural Heritage IntroBytes briefing documents


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From A Distance BlogB

log

s

Chris Sexton, IT Service’s Director at University of Sheffield & current UCISA chair

Her blog:

• Outlines senior management strategic thinking

• Embed title and link to my most recent blog post


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Reading, Even If Not Blogging

Negative impact – the bad things they say about your stuff

Can be useful to monitor:

• Your brand• Your ideas• Your reputation• Your stuff• ….

Blo

gs

Some minor criticisms from Stephen Downes, a well-read Canadian e=learning guru

Some minor criticisms from Stephen Downes, a well-read Canadian e=learning guru

A speedy reply, and a positive response

A speedy reply, and a positive response


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What Can Twitter Offer? T

wit

ter


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wit

ter

Promoting blog post about possible event.Brief - designed for retweeting (RT)Should you add “Please RT”?


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wit

ter

“OMG they’re criticising us – and this is being retweeted to new groups!”Note you don’t have to respond (but you may address issues raised)


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Quick Surveys

Twitter for rapid surveys & feedback

“Firefox is crashing frequently. Is this true for others? Respond with #firefoxcrashes or #firefoxisfine. Please RT.”


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Twitter – Delivering a Service

The Historic Royal Palaces use Twitter for Henry VIII’s 500th anniversary – picked up by the Telegraph

The Historic Royal Palaces use Twitter for Henry VIII’s 500th anniversary – picked up by the Telegraph


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Rationale:• Allow retweeting in entirety• Clause which can be removed

(“in light of #digitalbritain report”) to allow for commentary (e.g. “great post”)

Twitter Writing Style

New blog post published which I hope to gain a wide audience for.

Announcement tweeted.

First draft “Respect Copyright (and Subvert It!)" My thoughts on copyright and openness in light of the #digitalbritain report http://bit.ly/4XOMJ”

Second draft:“Respect Copyright (and Subvert It!)" Thoughts on copyright & openness in light of #digitalbritain report http://bit.ly/4XOMJ”


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Twitter – Some EvidencePersonal experience

• Most popular post on UKOLN’s Cultural heritage blog in May 2009: “Explaining the Risks and Opportunities Framework”

• Announced on Twitter at 08.55 on 21st May:Blog post explaining the Risks & Opportunities Framework published at http://tinyurl.com/p72kld

Tw

itte

r

“I haven’t got the time to use Twitter. And it can’t justify the ROI” Really?

“I haven’t got the time to use Twitter. And it can’t justify the ROI” Really?


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Twitter – Further Evidence

Where are the visits coming from?

Tw

itte

r

As the top post has been tweeted, possibly the visits are from a Twitter client (rather than the Twitter Web site)


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“The Power Of Passed Links”The Value Of Twitter Is In “The Power Of Passed Links” Wilson predicts that at current growth rates, Twitter “will surpass Google for many websites in the next year.” And that just as nearly every site on the Web has become addicted to Google juice, they will increasingly try to find ways to get more links from Twitter. Because Twitter equals traffic. …Moreover, he asserts that these Twitter links “convert better” than search links because they are often pre-filtered and come in the form of a recommendation from someone you are following.

TechCrunch, June 2009


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Slides To Engage Users

Slides designed to allow users to make use of content and links:

• AUP giving permission to reuse content & exploit WiFi network to discuss content

• Hyperlinks in slides

• Link to master copy provided in title slide and footer in handout

• Tag used in del.icio.us to bookmark resources (no need to copy URLs)

Sli

des

The PowerPoint file is a live resource which can be easily accessed, discussed and provide links to relevant resources during a talk and subsequently.

The PowerPoint file is a live resource which can be easily accessed, discussed and provide links to relevant resources during a talk and subsequently.


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Slideshare To Promote IdeasS

lid

esh

are

I use Slideshare to maximise awareness of ideas in papers I deliver at conferences. Approaches:

• Slides uploaded in advance (accessibility benefits)

• Allow slides to be embedded in blogs, Web pages, …

• Text, tags, links & metadata to support searching & provide context

I use Slideshare to maximise awareness of ideas in papers I deliver at conferences. Approaches:

• Slides uploaded in advance (accessibility benefits)

• Allow slides to be embedded in blogs, Web pages, …

• Text, tags, links & metadata to support searching & provide context


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What About Video?Increasingly users want video content – and are likely to use Google or YouTube to find videos

Google Video might have been an obvious place to store videos – but it is how being deprecated


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YouTube

Want to make your University appealing to potential students?

They’re likely to look at YouTube

What will they find?


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YouTube

Want to make your University appealing to potential students?

They’re likely to look at YouTube

What will they find?

Student-published videos may appeal to potential students – but the approaches (drunkenness, copyrighted sound clips, etc.) won’t be used officially

Student-published videos may appeal to potential students – but the approaches (drunkenness, copyrighted sound clips, etc.) won’t be used officially


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Your Institutional Video

Is it worth trapping your marketing videos in your institutional Web site?

The SEO tips for enhancing the visibility of your videos in YouTube follow well-established guidelines (e.g. title, description, tags, …)

“Given that YouTube is by far the most popular video website, you should be publishing videos there (even if you are a B2B company like HubSpot ”


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What About Facebook? (1)

Should you have a Facebook presence for your organisation?


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What About Facebook? (2)There may already be multiples pages and groups for your organisation

• <http://www.facebook.com/pages/Milton-Keynes/The-Open-University/7084005675?>

• <http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=b8c4e095201c81eb2da026ea04067fb0&gid=2212434521>

• <http://www.facebook.com/openuniversity/>

So

cial

Net

wo

rks

Note vanity URLs made available on 12 June 2009 – if you have > 1,000 fans. Did you miss out?

Note vanity URLs made available on 12 June 2009 – if you have > 1,000 fans. Did you miss out?


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Risks of Doing NothingWebinar held on 16 June 2009

Advice for US Universities on how to exploit social networks

What are the risks of being left behind?Must a service be 100% ‘pure’ before choosing to use it?


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Brooklyn Museum Case Study

Brooklyn Museum blog – with post about their iPhone App. Also note ease of bookmarking, user feedback, …

Brooklyn Museum blog – with post about their iPhone App. Also note ease of bookmarking, user feedback, …


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Brooklyn Museum Case StudyNote their presence in Facebook …


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Brooklyn Museum have also developed a Facebook application (Artshare) which allows their resources to be embedded on other Facebook pages


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Flickr used to support Graffiti Exhibition:

• Reach large nos.• Allow users to

comment• Allow users to

upload related photos in group

• Supported org’s mission

See “Building an On-line Community at the Brooklyn Museum: A Timeline”, MW 2007 and “Where Do We Go From Here? Continuing with Web 2.0 at the Brooklyn Museum”, MW 2008

See “Building an On-line Community at the Brooklyn Museum: A Timeline”, MW 2007 and “Where Do We Go From Here? Continuing with Web 2.0 at the Brooklyn Museum”, MW 2008


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What About My Organisation?50 Social Sites That Every Business Needs a Presence onSocial-Media/Social-Bookmarking SitesShare your favorite sites on the Web with potential clients and business partners by commenting on, uploading and ranking different newsworthy articles. You can also create a member profile that directs traffic back to your company's Web site.

Reddit, Digg, del.icio.us, Stumbledupon, Technorati, Ning, Squidoo, Furl, Tubearoo, Wikihow, YouTube, Magnol.ia

Professional-Networking SitesSign up with these online networking communities as a company or as an individual to take advantage of recruiting opportunities, cross-promotional events and more.

Linkedin, Ecademy, Focus, YorZ, Xing, Facebook, Care2, Plaxo, …

General Social-Media SitesThe following social-media sites provide excellent opportunities for businesses to advertise; promote specials, events or services; and feature published, knowledgeable employees.

Wikipedia, Newsvine, 43 Things, WetPaint, Twitter, Yahoo Answers

Don’t go for them all!Don’t go for them all!


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Conclusions

The Social Web:• Can be used to enhance access to digital

resources, real world resources and ideas and concepts

• Ignoring the potential may mean you lose out to your peers, competitors or rivals

• Can form part of your organisation’s mission and not just an added extra for dissemination

• But there are risks – to be explored later

"Pimp Up Your Stuff!": How To Exploit The Social Web

Education

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