For better or for worse, the funding model transformation will be coupled with a shift away from a reader-centric culture to an author-centric approach. Organizations that have spent decades focused on serving readers will be driven by the necessity to think harder about how to serve authors. The skills and sensibilities that historically made a “good publisher” at an individual and organizational level are in flux. In this context, if OA publication now represents the new baseline for author service, OAplus explores the potential for how authors can be better served.

Setting aside peer review, a core function of journals is that they provide a mechanism for authors to share their work with peers. As noted by Sir Mark Walport, the former UK government’s Chief Scientific Advisor, “Science is not finished until it is communicated.” Research communication is therefore a key vector for improving publisher service to the author community. OAplus services such as content enrichment (e.g. video summaries) and generating content appropriate for new audiences (e.g. plain language summaries) can increase impact and extend author communication to groups like policymakers and the general public.

In the reader-centric culture, such communication enhancements would be automatically bundled into journal articles and their cost written off as a “reader benefit” eventually recouped through increased subscriptions. However, in the emerging author-centric environment, there is an opportunity for journals to define, package, and serve authors with OAplus services. This will require an analysis of author needs, thoughtful packaging, and appropriate marketing implemented with the right partnerships.

In summary, OAplus is a thought experiment about how scholarly societies might adapt to the fast-changing publishing environment. Is there something your scholarly society could do to help authors enrich their content and reach new audiences?

The post OSTP Mandate will Increase Scholarly Society Focus on Author Services appeared first on CACTUS.

1. Communication gap between authors and journals

Authors often face difficulty in complying with journal submission guidelines. Correspondingly, a common problem encountered by publishers is authors’ failure to adhere to their specific guidelines, leading to desk rejections and delays in the overall publishing process. A study that delved into common reasons for manuscript rejection reported that 9% of the papers they analyzed were rejected because of non-adherence to the journal’s formatting guidelines. This shows a disconnect that exists between authors and journals. In 2018, Editage published a large-scale global survey exploring the problems authors face in academic publishing. Almost 7,000 respondents from over 100 countries took part in this survey, with the top 10 countries corresponding to the top research producing countries in the world. In the survey, 49% of the respondents indicated that they hesitate to contact journal editors for pre- and post-submission inquiries. They perceive the journal editors as unapproachable or are uninformed about the means available for communicating with journals. Non-native English speakers especially found manuscript preparation to be challenging. They also tend to lack confidence in their English language skills and hesitate to contact journal editors, fearing repercussions for their submissions. This presents the need for journals to make it easier for authors to find and use available communication channels on their websites.

2. Problems with peer review feedback and process delays

Peer review is one of the most time-consuming parts of the publishing process. A study reported the average time taken for the first response is 13 weeks, which can vary based on the field of research. The time-taken is further extended with multiple rounds of peer review and extensive revisions required by authors. About 47% of the Editage survey respondents expressed conflicting comments from different reviewers as a pain point and 46% felt that reviewers at times requested authors for additional research to be done, which may not often be feasible. Publishers and editors can play a crucial role in making this process more efficient. Some suggestions include diversifying the reviewer pool by inviting more reviewers from across the globe and involving more ECRs, and acknowledging and crediting reviewers. Initiatives such as setting guidelines or providing training for peer review focusing on objectivity, scope, transparency, and accountability can also help in alleviating some peer review-related challenges. Offering systems for authors to provide feedback regarding their experience and the quality of peer review may also help publishers gain more insights into improving this process.

3. Lack of clarity on publication timelines

The survey showed longer turnaround time for publishing as one of the most urgent concerns that needs to be addressed. Timely publication of research is crucial for dissemination of information; in some cases, delays can also cause the final published article to be outdated. Prolonged publishing timelines can also affect scholarship applications, further burdening authors’ academic careers. “Scooping” by competitors is another concern that plagues authors. While the time taken to publication can depend on a variety of factors, journals and publishers can identify gaps in their processes and take steps to mitigate delays. Journals can not only regularly check the efficiency of their processes but also maintain transparency in informing authors about the time it will take to get published in the journal. This will set the right expectations and help authors plan better. Publishers can also provide regular updates about changes in manuscript status, thereby keeping the author in the loop during the publishing process. To further assist authors, journals can provide information about common queries around publishing delays and timelines.

4. Issues related to submission requirements

Preparing manuscripts for submission can be an arduous task, notably for non-native English speakers. Providing comprehensive, simplified guidelines and explainer videos may help in making this step easier. Typically, every journal has its own set of author guidelines and authors must often rework on their manuscript to comply with them. This process can be repetitive, redundant, and eventually time-consuming while resubmitting the same manuscript to a new journal. A suggestion would be for publishers to standardize submission guidelines across journals to make the resubmission process easier for authors. Simplifying journal requirements and guidelines can go a long way in improving authors’ experience with the publishing process. Authors are important stakeholders in the publishing system and an author-friendly attitude can better represent their interests

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Academic journals earlier largely focused on growing subscribers and building relationships with libraries and librarians. Currently, with article publication charges (APCs) increasingly replacing journal subscription fees, journals have to think more seriously about audience building, impact, and outreach as authors are looking for more “value” from the APCs they pay. Journals therefore need to change their orientation from library-facing to author-facing.  This is why it’s critical to build a strong online presence.

There are many “strategies” and “tools” for organizations that want to build their online presence, but are these strategies enough to help you achieve your desired impact? Digital marketing, SEO, and social media solutions are proliferating, as are the providers of these solutions. Journals are also increasingly experimenting with alternative content formats, such as infographics, videos, and podcasts. However, such solutions may have limited effectiveness when journals apply them without following one crucial step: understanding the target audience and customizing the outreach strategy accordingly.

Journals have two key stakeholders: 1) authors and 2) readers. Both these segments, despite considerable overlap between them, include a diverse range of ages, demographics, geographical locations, genders, subject areas, and seniority. For your journal’s outreach strategy to be successful, your outreach strategy needs to be very targeted.  

1. Know your audience: Worldwide, researchers as a group are incredibly diverse. Journals and publishers therefore need to identify specific segments of the researcher community to target, and develop content plans and engagement activities accordingly in order to enhance their brand. For example, journals seeking to widen their readership cannot afford to overlook China, which is home to nearly 2 million researchers (even more researchers than even the US). Even within a single country or geographic region, researchers’ information consumption needs and behaviors can differ by generation, seniority, and workplace.

• Go where your audience is: A social media strategy needs to take into account what platforms researcher audiences actually use to search for or share information (versus just keeping in touch with family and friends or showcasing other interests). Is your audience in Korea present on Naver? Who shares their research on ResearchGate, WeChat, Facebook, or Twitter? Depending on who your audience is, you need to be present where they are.

• Timing is everything! Posts on social media need to be timed to catch the attention of researchers from the targeted time zone. So, if you release your post in the EU time zone but you are trying to reach researchers in Japan, then your post will probably not perform the way you expect it to.

• Choose topics of relevance: Choosing a theme for a special issue or commissioning a literature review requires knowledge of what topics researchers in a particular field are currently discussing. You may also want to have customized messaging based on what’s trending in your target geography and what are your audience’s most pressing information needs.

• Experiment with new content formats: Journals should consider audience preferences when it comes to experimenting with new content formats. For example, should a journal opt to summarize articles into one-page textual synopses or image-heavy infographics and short videos? In our experience, both of these approaches are successful, but it depends on the journal, the objectives, and the readership.

To summarize, the key to making a journal stand out lies in understanding what the targeted group of researchers want to know and delivering this information in a format they can easily access, use, and share. To become more visible and gain domain authority, journals need to craft strategies customized to their readership. In other words, to be of value to their audience, they need to know what the audience wants.

Know. Customize. Optimize. Repeat

This is the secret to a successful outreach strategy.

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The post How do Journals Stand Out in an Increasingly Cluttered Digital Space appeared first on CACTUS.

Despite the available evidence supporting the safety and efficacy of FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccines, a certain level of vaccine hesitancy still exists. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that as of December 2021, almost 15% of adults over the age of 18 years in the United States remained unvaccinated against COVID-19. One of the main reasons for vaccine hesitancy, particularly in high-income countries, concerns the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, especially with regard to their fast-paced development. Combatting this hesitancy is made more challenging owing to COVID-19 misinformation, inconsistency in communication around COVID-19, and the complexity of scientific information. Research societies are in a unique position to tackle vaccine hesitancy, especially by employing the following strategies.

1. Targeted approach: The reasons for vaccine hesitancy can differ across population groups, and an effective way to curb it would be to address each group’s concerns in a targeted manner. For instance, a society of gynecologists and obstetricians may find it helpful to survey the patient groups they serve to understand their concerns about COVID-19 vaccination, such as miscarriage and infertility risk. The results of the survey can be used to disseminate patient-focused information to members, delivered using formats such as virtual events or FAQs.
   1. Credible communication: In a survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, 42% of individuals who were unvaccinated against COVID-19 gave lack of trust as a reason for not getting the vaccine. Given the growing mistrust in science, especially in COVID-19 vaccines, it is essential to communicate credibly to persuade people. As suggested by the AMA, when addressing vaccine hesitancy, it would be helpful to acknowledge the audience’s concerns, be transparent about the information you provide, give specific answers to their questions, and try to demystify the science and process of vaccination.
   1. Making information more accessible: The importance of accessibility to reliable scientific information cannot be overstated. In an age where the spread of misinformation is rampant, research societies can use novel, digital formats of science communication that can help the general audience better interpret and understand complex research. Visual forms of science communication such as infographics are compelling in disseminating scientific information to a wider audience. For instance, the British Society for Immunology created an impressive collection of visual aids, including infographics and explainer videos, to educate the public on COVID-19 vaccines.
   1. Using social media: Social media is considered to be a major source of vaccine misinformation. Given the growing number of people who consume content via such channels, it may be an effective tool to share factual information in an effort to combat the surge of misinformation. Effectively using social media and visually appealing formats like infographics and videos can help research societies reach and educate a wider audience while considering the limited attention spans of social media users.
   1. Inclusive messaging: A recent study suggests that localizing vaccine-related information could effectively combat vaccine hesitancy among non-native English speakers. The British Islamic Medical Association has made resources regarding COVID-19 vaccination available in multiple languages along with information that may be more relevant to the Muslim community. Strategies like sharing vaccine-related information in multiple languages can have better reach and may help address vaccine hesitancy among minority populations.
   1. Mandating vaccination proof for in-person event attendance: Data suggests that people are increasingly becoming comfortable attending in-person events with COVID-19 protocols in place. A survey of meeting planners indicated that about 60% of the group leaned towards mandating proof of vaccination for such events. As research societies begin to conduct in-person events, vaccine mandates for attendees may serve as an incentive for attendees to get vaccinated.

Several societies have taken initiatives to encourage vaccination through various means. For instance, the American Society for Virology in collaboration with the American Society for Microbiology conducted COVID-19 vaccine education town halls. Several Canadian organizations, including the Canadian Association of Science Centers, support the #ScienceUpFirst campaign to stop the spread of misinformation. The American Hospital Association created extensive resources, including webinars, to address vaccine concerns among target groups. COVID-19 vaccination is becoming the norm, and positive, clear, and transparent vaccination messaging from credible organizations can help in combating vaccine misinformation and the resulting hesitancy.

The post Role of Research Societies in Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy appeared first on CACTUS.

What is social listening?

Social listening is all about monitoring various social media platforms for mentions of your conference as well as conversations around it, and then analyzing the data while paying attention to mood and sentiment. In simple terms, you’re not just tracking how many times your conference hashtag has appeared on Twitter, but what users are actually saying and feeling about the conference.

Why is social listening crucial in 2022?

The 2022 conference arena is rapidly changing. Towards the end of 2021, many societies were optimistic about resuming in-person conferences in the following year. The emergence of the Omicron variant of COVID-19—and subsequent travel bans and lockdowns—has thrown a spanner into the works. Conferences scheduled for the first quarter of 2022 are likely the most vulnerable, with organizers grappling with the possibility of last-minute venue cancellations and even speaker/panelist no-shows. In this scenario, societies need to keep an ear to the ground and provide timely and sensitive responses to members’ and attendees’ concerns.

Does social listening really work for academic conferences?

Conference organizers may assume that most people are excited and delighted to attend a conference, especially in-person. After all, isn’t that what people have been hoping for since 2020? Social listening data can show that attendees’ feelings toward in-person events are much more complex and nuanced. When the American Historical Association declared that its January 2022 conference in New Orleans would continue to be held in-person, despite surging Omicron case numbers, the society drew flak on Twitter, and some tweets opposing the in-person event were even covered in news portals.

Social listening can also provide conference organizers insights on barriers or challenges faced by attendees, such as acceptance emails going to junk mail, time zone difficulties for virtual events, or the annoyance of cancelled flights and hotel registrations.

How can societies ace social listening?

Here are some tips to make your social listening more effective and translate into practical results.

Identify your audience

Is it just researchers or does it include undergrad and graduate students, practitioners, non-profit bodies, etc.? Is it confined to one country or is it global? What platforms do they use? Once you figure these out, your social listening becomes more purposeful and practical.

Form relationships

Rather than firing off a series of announcements about your conference at your followers on social media, take time to engage with them on a personal level. For example, congratulate a PhD student who’s excited about their first conference presentation (and respond to their plea for advice on how to present!). Have two-way conversations with your followers, which will ultimately lead you to uncover new insights and pain points for your potential attendees.

Respond to criticism appropriately

No matter how well a conference is planned, there will be hiccups. Perhaps a supplier has failed to deliver, or critical equipment has malfunctioned. Timely and empathetic responses to negative comments are a way of showing all your attendees that you care about their comfort and convenience.

Don’t underestimate the effort involved

Effective social listening is not the same as mindlessly scrolling through various social media platforms. You’ll need to pick a tool(s) that meet your society’s needs and budget and ensure that those responsible for creating and responding to posts are appropriately trained. Finally, you need to formulate a plan for handling and analyzing the data you collect, so that you obtain actionable insights.

Pro tip: Partnering with a trusted agency like Impact Science can help you up your social listening game, while saving your employees’ and volunteers’ time and effort.

Conclusion

Whether your 2022 conference is in-person, virtual, or hybrid, your society cannot afford to disregard the power of social media. The conference landscape has not only turned upside down but is constantly changing and evolving. Social listening is one of the simplest and most effective ways in which you can engage with attendee

The post Social Listening: Why You Need it for Your 2022 Conference appeared first on CACTUS.

Create the narrative

Societies and publishers can collaborate with the author(s) of a research paper to create a plain language summary as well as a press release around the paper. When the findings from a study are accurately summarized in non-technical language and this summary is publicly available, the chances of the findings being misinterpreted are lowered.

Share the narrative

The press release should be disseminated to trusted journalists and reputable wire services, so that the earliest coverage around the paper can be accurate. In the press release, it’s a good idea include a contact email ID and/or a phone number for the press to get any further details required.

Shape social media

Societies and publishers should proactively promote the research paper on social media while including links to the original paper, to control the social media narrative around the research. Here, it’s important to cover all popular platforms, particularly Facebook and Twitter, which serve as primary news sources for a significant proportion of the population. Further, the paper should be summarized using a variety of content formats, including videos if possible, considering the significant role of video platforms like YouTube in spreading fake news.

Check whatever is publicly available

If a paper is likely to attract significant public and political attention, it’s helpful to review all parts of the paper that are publicly available. For instance, the abstract should be checked to ensure none of the statements can be twisted or misunderstood, especially the numerical data. If any of the artwork is being made publicly available, the legends should be as detailed and self-explanatory as possible.

Don’t overlook preprints

Societies and publishers should discuss the presence of any preprints with the authors, particularly if there are significant changes between the preprint and published paper. The authors can choose to update the preprint, withdraw the preprint, post a link on the preprint server to the peer-reviewed version of the paper, etc.

Conclusion

In a politically volatile context, science communication is often more difficult than usual. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, topics like immigration, vaccination and autism risk, and climate change attracted considerable controversy. Research societies and publishers therefore need to realize that they can wield a great deal of influence over how science is communicated and thereby understood and applied. Disseminating research accurately nowadays can not just save scientists’ reputations but also save lives.

The post Communicating Politically Sensitive Research: Tips for Societies and Publishers appeared first on CACTUS.

1.           Encourage attendees to create detailed profiles, including social media handles. Detailed profiles help attendees get to know each other and discover commonalities, which can help break the ice. Profiles shouldn’t include merely what they’re researching, but allow attendees to share personal interests (e.g., yoga, gaming).

2.           When promoting your event, especially on social media, make sure to specifically mention the networking components and explain how to join or register for them. Audiences are still figuring their way around the various platforms and formats of virtual conferences, so it’s a good idea to make it as easy as possible for them to join a networking session.

3.           If possible, curate the attendee list of a networking event. Ideally, try to keep a balance of “regulars” and “newbies,” so that you don’t have 7-8 pals catching up with a couple of strangers staying on mute in the sidelines. Try not to have an obvious “odd man out” such as an early career researcher among a bunch of tenured professors, or a single non-native English speaker in a group of native English speakers.

4.           Get your timing right: for discussion to be meaningful, attendees need at least one hour. But after 90 minutes, serious “Zoom fatigue” can kick in.

5.           Set informal guidelines in both a pre-event email and at the start of the meeting. Since there will always be newcomers, it’s best to spell out clearly what topic(s) can be discussed, what an attendee needs to do if they’re leaving early, etc.

6.           Start the session 2-5 minutes early so that early birds can join. But keep your main icebreaker for 1-2 minutes after the event’s official start time, so that you have maximum participation. It’s also a good idea to choose a conversation starter that doesn’t specifically have to do with an attendee’s title, institute, or country. 

7. Choose a platform that enables attendees to create their own meetings and breakout sessions. In offline events, attendees serendipitously connect with each other and choose to engage with different people on a one-on-one basis. Having some semblance of this in a virtual meeting will improve engagement.

Conclusion

Although many societies have planned in-person conferences and congresses in 2022, the old status quo is unlikely to return: societies have realized the scope for a virtual component to an in-person event and even a series of virtual events to complement a single, big in-person meeting. Virtual networking events, though not interchangeable with in-person networking, have their own advantages. For instance, organizers can split participants into random groups online to promote mixing, whereas in offline conferences, attendees focus on connecting with either known faces or acknowledged leaders. Furthermore, in conferences of the future, virtual attendees should not be made to feel like second-class citizens. Hence, conference organizers would do well to actively improve their virtual networking components, rather than assume that only the in-person attendees have networking needs. 

The post Seven Ways to Improve Your Virtual Networking Event appeared first on CACTUS.

Make Students Aware of Your Benefits

Students need to know how joining a society will benefit them directly. Societies need to cater directly to students’ various needs, to build a thriving pipeline of younger members. For instance, the Academy of Management’s Doctoral Student Development Program offers student members access to videos on sophisticated research methods and data analysis techniques, as well as video lectures. Programs or schemes targeted towards students, especially undergraduates or recent graduates, should be promoted through channels popular to their generation (e.g., TikTok rather than Facebook).

Enable Practitioners to Apply Research

Healthcare practitioners join societies to access research that can benefit them in their daily clinical practice. Societies can best meet this need by providing easily digestible summaries of the voluminous literature they produce, so that busy practitioners can stay updated without devoting a significant amount of time to reading. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) catered to this need by partnering with Impact Science to develop concise and attractively designed visual summaries of multiple oncology papers, intended for clinicians. As part of this collaboration, ASCO’s 60-page annual report was distilled into a 3-min video.

Help Researchers Stay Updated

A fundamental need of a society’s researcher members is to stay abreast of latest developments in the field. With many researchers working from home due to lockdowns in various parts of the world, Societies need to make sure their peer-reviewed content is easy to access and consume even outside the traditional university/institutional environment.

Help Early Career Researchers Advance

Early career researchers account for a large portion of the academic workforce, but society leadership is generally dominated by senior researchers. One way societies can retain early career researchers as members is by offering them opportunities to lead, share their opinions, and influence Society decisions. For instance, the American Society for Cell Biology instituted COMPASS (Committee for Postdocs and Students) to help young scientists build connections within the Society, network with policymakers and leaders, enhance their skills and expertise, and advance in their careers. The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics has set up PharmTalk, a platform to inform young researchers about career options and share best practices.   

Get Creative With Membership Fees

Although you may feel your fees are priced reasonably, your calculations are probably based on “normal” (i.e. pre-pandemic) times. When faced with budget cuts, job insecurity, or other financial constraints, your members will probably re-evaluate whether their society memberships are financially worthwhile. Now’s the time to explore affiliate or loyalty programs if you haven’t done so before: for example,  the American Chemical Society offers existing members a one-year waiver on their dues, as well as special waivers or discounts for not just student members but also those pausing their careers to care for their families, those who are disabled, and those serving in the US Armed Forces.

Foster Connections Among Members

It’s an understatement to say that all types of members are probably craving more connection with their peers this year. Even those fortunate enough to return to their workplace have to grapple with new travel restrictions, which prevent them from attending conferences to network as they used to. While virtual and hybrid (online/offline) conferences will likely dominate the scene in 2022, Societies can host various large and small virtual networking events throughout the year. For instance, AHRA (American Healthcare Radiology Administrators) offers both members and non-members the opportunity to host a free virtual networking event, while providing logistical and marketing support.

Conclusion

Owing to the pandemic, the needs and environment of society members have changed, often drastically. Successful societies recognize and adapt to these changing needs, ensuring they are relevant and valuable for all member segments in the long run.

The post Growing and Retaining Membership in 2022: What Societies Need to Do Differently appeared first on CACTUS.

1.      Host Virtual Events

By and large, the biggest advantage of virtual events is how accessible they are. Travel, accommodation, and visa costs—all of which can be prohibitive for researchers from low- and middle-income countries—are eliminated. Keeping some events online-only and having a virtual component to offline events (i.e., hybrid events) makes society activities much more accessible to international researchers. It’s also a good idea to repeat sessions or webinars at different times and days, to cater to multiple time zones.

Pro tip: In emailers, notices, etc. about virtual events or webinars, use the 24-hour clock and specify multiple time zones in the description (e.g., 09:00 EDT, 13:00 GMT, 22:00 JST).

2.      Actively Increase Diversity

Audiences identify with and engage with speakers of their own ethnicity or cultural background more easily. Virtual conferences make it easier for societies to recruit speakers from a variety of countries, and several societies also include  an “international” component to their governance structures, such as an international councilor or international committees. In all this, however, it’s important to avoid token diversity (e.g., having just one member or speaker outside the dominant country or region).

3.      Exploit Social Media

Judicious social media use can help societies reach out to and engage with members from a variety of countries. For instance, the European Molecular Biology Organization used the hashtag #ScienceSolidarity to promote its online list of resources for US researchers stranded by Trump’s 2017 immigration ban on 7 Muslim-majority countries. As a result of social media publicity, researchers outside the US made new contributions to the list as frequently as every 3-4 minutes. To cater to an international audience, Societies need to use multiple platforms and repost announcements strategically. For instance, a tweet posted at 11 AM ET might not be seen by an East Asian audience, for whom it is midnight or nearly so.

Read more: How The BMJ boosted engagement in China by leveraging local social media platforms

4.      Translate Judiciously

For a society targeting a specific country or region, translating research content owned by the society into the local language is expensive and time-consuming. Many non-native English-speaking researchers, though capable of reading and following scientific information in English, would be comfortable if webpages related to registration, payments, etc. were in their native language. This allows them to navigate society websites and resources more easily, while reducing translation overheads for the society.

5.      Price Equitably

Membership dues, conference registration fees, etc. can be prohibitive for researchers in the Global South, especially low- and middle-income countries. Societies need to explore various alternative pricing models, such as tiered pricing, travel grants, or support-a-delegate schemes. Providing society benefits to such researchers can also prevent colonialization of science.

Conclusion

Societies in the Global North can tap into the growing body of researchers in non-English-speaking countries (for instance, China now has more researchers than the US). Looking beyond one’s borders is a smart move for societies aiming to grow their membership base in 2022. International members can bring in new perspectives, thereby enriching and advancing research worldwide.

The post Five Ways Research Societies Can Boost International Membership appeared first on CACTUS.

Is TikTok a waste of time? Something for bored teens? The numbers say otherwise. Let’s look at what makes TikTok such a powerful communication tool.

What is TikTok?

With 60% of the user base belonging to GenZ, TikTok is primarily video-based like YouTube. The maximum length of a video that can be uploaded to the platform is 60 seconds. Videos created by other users, known as tiktoks, appear on a user’s “For You” page according to TikTok’s algorithms. Users have the option of recording themselves alongside an audio clip. Tiktoks can be reposted on other social media platforms, but some like Instagram actively discourage this practice.

TikTok v/s. Other Social Media Apps

Facebook: Long considered the preferred social media platform, Facebook lost out to TikTok in 2021 in terms of time spent per user. Despite the erstwhile social media giant being able to host all kinds of content, including video stories, the platform has declining growth among younger users in the US, its oldest market.

Twitter: Twitter is primarily considered the go-to platform for news and updates as well as discussions and commentaries on public affairs despite having multimedia upload features. This gives Twitter an edge over TikTok, especially in terms of grabbing the attention of journalists, policymakers, and public officials.

Instagram: Both TikTok and Instagram work best on smartphones. Instagram has been around longer than TikTok and allows sharing of images and GIFs in addition to videos (though the time limit on Instagram reels is 30 seconds). Instagram wins over TikTok in terms of being more business-friendly, offering users the option of creating a professional account and also offers a Business Tools feature, which makes content promotion easier.

YouTube: Before the rise of TikTok, YouTube was the undisputed leader of video and video marketing. It still retains a key advantage over TikTok: there is no time limit on YouTube videos. This enables the creation of more in-depth videos as well as more opportunities to build brand awareness or gain audience trust. 

TikTok for Science Communication

Considering TikTok’s younger user base, it’s not surprising that the platform has been used to inform and educate high school and undergraduate students. There are tiktoks explaining chemistry concepts, generating excitement around marine biology, and helping engineers upskill. Universities like the University of Victoria  and Syracuse University have used TikTok for virtual campus tours and online wellness kits. In the US, Black creators have used TikTok to spread awareness of Black history (but TikTok has also been criticized for devaluing Black creators and unfairly censoring material related to the #BlackLivesMatter movement).

TikTok has also been useful in public health education. Individual doctors have created tiktoks explaining topics as diverse as the dangers of vaping and ways to improve gut health. Further, TikTok has had some success in destigmatizing mental health among men. Team Halo, a group of scientists and healthcare professionals working to combat Covid-related misinformation, have successfully used TikTok to combat vaccine misinformation, encourage minority communities to participate in vaccine trials, and reassure the public about vaccine side effects. The US government has followed suit, enlisting TikTok influencers in campaigns to get Gen Zers vaccinated. 

Advantages and Disadvantages of TikTok for Science Communication

Here are some factors to consider when choosing to include TikTok in science communication initiatives.

1. Engagement: The amount of time users spend on TikTok, particularly in the US, is increasing. For example, the average time per month spent on Tiktok was 442.9 minutes in October 2019, which increased to 858 minutes by March 2020.
2. Audience reach: Most TikTok users are Gen Z. In the US, around 30% of its users are 10-19 years old. TikTok is available in 75 languages across >150 countries including China (where platforms like Facebook and Twitter are banned).
3. Content format: TikTok primarily caters to smartphone users; hence, videos in the vertical format perform better than videos shot horizontally. The ideal aspect ratio (i.e., the relation between width and height) is 9:16, as for a standard smartphone screen. The time limit for videos is 60 seconds, though TikTok is experimenting currently with a 3-minute length.
4. Legal constraints: TikTok is currently banned in India and Pakistan. It has also been intermittently blocked in Indonesia and Bangladesh. While the Trump administration attempted to ban TikTok in the US in June 2020, President Biden revoked this order in June 2021.

Conclusion

Like it or not, TikTok has a large and growing audience in the US market. While it definitely shouldn’t be the sole (or even predominant) social channel for your digital content strategy, don’t overlook it when determining your social media mix or when it comes to social listening. Tiktok could be a useful platform for campaigns targeting younger members and early career researchers.

The post Should Your Society Take TikTok Seriously? appeared first on CACTUS.