Speaker: Greg Schwartz
Who are you online? Identity is what you say about you and what others say about you. However, it’s more than just that. It includes the things you buy, the tools you use, the places you spend your time, etc.
You do not own your online identity. You can’t control what people find out about you, but you can influence it.
- Own your user name. Pick one and stick to it. Even better if you can use your real name. (checkusernames.com)
- Join the conversation. Develop your identity by participating in social networks.
- Listen. Pay attention to what other people are saying about you.
- Be authentic. Ultimately, social networking is about connecting your online identity to your in-person identity.
Speaker: Michael Porter
MP was the project manager for the social tools on WebJunction. It’s designed to be for librarians and library staff.
If you are representing your organization online, be yourself, but also be sensitive to how that could be perceived. Share your library success stories!
Speaker: Sarah Houghton-Jan
Library online identities should be created with a generic email address, should be up-to-date, and should allow comment and interaction with users. Keep the tone personable.
Don’t use multiple identities. Make sure that someone is checking the contact points. You’ll get better results if you disperse the responsibility for library online identities across your institution rather than relying on one person to manage it all.
Speaker: Amanda Clay Powers
People have been telling their stories for a long time, and online social networks are just another tool for doing that. Some people are more comfortable with this than others. It’s our role to educate people about how to manage their online identities, however, our users don’t always know that librarians can help them.
On Facebook, you can manage social data by creating friends lists. This functionality is becoming more important as online social networks grow and expand.
