Welcome to Lesson #1 of the SciComm Society “Making An Impact” email course!
If you feel like you’re stuck in a science bubble and wish you could reach more people with your amazing research, you’re certainly not alone. It’s something most scientists and science communicators experience at one point or another. It’s frustrating, and we get it.
But don’t worry! We’ve got some ideas to help you break out of that science bubble, reach a wider audience, and make a bigger impact with your SciComm. Let’s get started with Lesson #1!
It’s so great you’ve decided to share your exciting research project with people from outside of your field! Yet, it’s likely that most of your experience comes from presenting your research to other scientists. And the opportunities to do SciComm outside of academia come infrequently. That means it’s time to start your own SciComm project!
We know that taking your first step of the SciComm journey can be intimidating, but it’s so worth it! And a ton of fun!
A great and efficient way to start a SciComm project is to create your own platform. That way, you don’t have to wait for anyone to grant you permission to get started. You just do it yourself!
Here, we will talk you through each step of the process and give you practical tips to get started on the platform of your choice.
To reach a wide audience, you need a place to talk about science to people outside of the scientific realm. And the easiest place to do so is social media.
We recommend you choose one social media platform, like Instagram, Twitter (don’t forget to follow us on @...), Facebook, Tiktok, or whatever one you love hanging out on.
Starting with a single platform rather than multiple ones will allow you to focus your efforts and not feel overwhelmed by having to “be” in too many places. You’re going to have to actually hang out on these platforms and engage with your audience by responding to comments and getting to know your audience. So, it’s best to choose a single platform for it to be manageable.
What do you want to be known for? Are you “the bacteria lady” or “the genetics guy”? What is your research field of study? Take that and choose a broad category for yourself. When we were starting our SciComm journeys, Justine wanted to be known as a microbiology expert and Sarah as an expert on the bacterial world. So, that’s what we added to our social media bios.
It can feel strange claiming to be an expert in anything. When deciding to start doing science communication, you may feel self-conscious about posting about your scientific field and putting yourself out there. We felt that way. But eventually, for us, it clicked that, yeah, we are experts in microbiology!
So, don’t forget that you know way more than most people do about your field. When we’re studying in graduate school, we’re surrounded by people who know way more than us, so it’s a bit counter-intuitive to claim an expertise. But don’t overthink it. Be bold!
You can look at our bios to get ideas for your own: Justine’s Instagram, Sarah’s BacterialWorld Instagram, Justine’s Twitter, Justine’s Joyful Microbe Twitter, Sarah’s Twitter, and Sarah’s BacterialWorld Twitter.
Now, that you’ve decided what you want people to know you as, create your first SciComm social media post. We know this can be nerve-wracking, but we promise it gets easier as you go. And in the next few weeks, you’ll learn more and more about how to create engaging social media posts. See this first post as your training post. Just this one.