Web Presence Challenge
Mini Challenge Summary
Summary: Build and improve your web presence as a component of online identity. Time: 1 hour.
Stimulus Resources
- Your Digital Footprint;
- Students Turn to Internet to Build Online Presence, Showcase Work, from the Huffington post;
- Your Online Presence from the Open University;
- 10 Ways to Build Your Online Identity.
Purpose
The purpose of this learning challenge is to:
- Build and improve your web presence (both professional and academic);
- Establish your academic web presence as the hub for your learning digital footprint;
- Reference and/or link your preferred social media identities to your academic web presence.
Tasks
In this challenge you are required to build or update your professional online biography and the “About” page of your academic/course website. Read the terms of reference of the respective web service(s) you use or are planning to use. If you already have an existing site(s) for these purposes, you do not need to create new accounts. Focus on updating and improving your web presence.
While it is advantageous to register your own domain name and use a paid service for your website, this is not a requirement for this course. You can use one of the many “free” online services for your LiDA102 course activities.
- Reflect on the following online personas, target audience and how this will impact on the style and voice of the communication medium.
Persona Primary audience Personal Friends and family Professional Employers and professional network Academic Peer learning network
- Choose the most appropriate medium for each of your online personas, for example:
Persona Medium example Personal Facebook Professional Linkedin Academic Course blog or website
- Identify one or two professionals from your field of interest who maintain an active web presence and contribute regularly via social media. Explore their respective websites and professional listings as examples.
- Twitter is a good place to search for individuals using popular hashtags from your field or area of study, for example “#highereducation”
- Click through to their respective twitter user page. If they have a personal website listed on the user page, visit the site and review their “About” page.
- Visit their employer’s page and try to locate their biography on the employer’s website.
- Search for the user on Linkedin
- Compare the user information on these different sites. Observe how they link to social media accounts, and vary the style and content presented for the different personas.
- Create or update your professional profile on Linkedin. (Consult the help page for support.)
- Create or update your “About” page on your course blog. You may prefer using a more informal style for this page aligned with your own personality and interests. Include links to your professional profile and respective links to social media that you use.
- Visit the profile pages of your active social media accounts. Update if necessary providing links back to your main page (for example, the “About” page on your course site).
- Think carefully about information you post publicly and keep a clear distinction between your personal online presence and your professional online persona. Review your privacy settings on your personal account(s).
Outputs
Prepare a short blog post of about 200 to 300 words on “Top three tips for improving your web presence” based on your experience:
- Include links to your Linkedin profile and “About” page on your course blog.
- Remember that your blog posts are contributing to your digital footprint and online identity.
- Add a category or tag for your post using the course tag: lida102
- Show interest and support for your learning network by posting comments on their blogs.