sharing evidence through twitter

It’s not as scary as you think!

@ukcochranecentr

#cochranesm

Item B: Sharing Cochrane reviews through Twitter

• Why using Twitter is a good idea!• How to use Twitter effectively to promote

your work and activity:– Basic tweets– Better tweets!– Building a following– Spotting and creating opportunities to

maximise your impact– A few Dos and Don’ts

What we’ll cover

UK Cochrane Centre 2

3UK Cochrane Centre

“There is great power in the conversation. Know the risks and behave accordingly, but do not be so risk averse that you do not participate.”

Faris Timimi M.D., Medical Director for the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media

Why use social media?

• Don’t Lie, Don’t Pry• Don’t Cheat, Can’t Delete• Don’t Steal, Don’t Reveal

(A 12-Word Social Media Policy, Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media, 2012)

• Add value

UK Cochrane Centre 4

Simple rules for using social media

Twitter is like a room full of people you want to network with – a very big one!

UK Cochrane Centre 5

• Self-promotion: target those who may be interested in your work & can use/promote it

• Others want to do this too – you can help each other!

• It’s an opportunity to put on a public display/represent your organisation

• Great for information-gathering• Remember – anyone in the

room could be listening• It’s social, it’s conversational• You might enjoy it!

• You have 140 characters per tweet • At its most basic this will be the thing you

want to say….• …and most often a link too (if you’re

tweeting about a review, for example, you need to give people the link to it)

Twitter: the bottom line

UK Cochrane Centre 6

• Updated falls prevention review: good evidence that exercise helps http://ow.ly/iJJ8a #falls #exercise @AgeUK

# - hashtags

@ - Twitter handle

http:// - link or shortened link

A tweet is built up of…

UK Cochrane Centre 7

• Associate your tweet with a topic

or event #epilepsy #cochranequebec

• Make your tweet searchable by that tag

• Can act as a sub-clause to your

tweet, for added comment, emphasis or humour:

#Cochrane researchers find #Relenza data provided by GSK unusable. http://ow.ly/lGCId #frustrated

Hashtags (anything with # in front)

UK Cochrane Centre 8

Using Hootsuite, a free social media management tool, shortens the links

Shortened link = 18 characters http://ow.ly/iJJ8a

Full link = 74 characters http://summaries.cochrane.org/CD007146/interventions-for-preventing-falls-in-older-people-living-in-the-community

There are other advantages to using Hootsuite too

A word about links

UK Cochrane Centre 9

UK Cochrane Centre 10

Performance anxiety

What can I tweet about?

UK Cochrane Centre 11

TWEETING YOUR REVIEW#cochranesm

12UK Cochrane Centre

This is ok:

Pressure-relieving interventions for treating diabetic foot ulcershttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD002302.pub2/abstract

But this is better:

Pressure-relieving interventions for treating diabetic foot ulcers http://ow.ly/kOY9u #diabetes #diabeticfoot

I’ve added #diabetes and #diabetic foot so people searching for that would find it. I’ve also shortened the link by using Hootsuite

Tweeting your review

UK Cochrane Centre 13

This is better still:

Non-removable, pressure-relieving casts more effective in healing #diabeticfoot ulcers than removable casts http://ow.ly/kOYKi #Cochrane

This adds value by saying something about the review’s findings. It tells people it’s a Cochrane review and a search for #Cochrane will find it.

Tweeting your review

UK Cochrane Centre 14

15UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

I found the account for @DiabetesUK - I could add them to my tweetI could look at who they follow and are followed by to find similar accountsUsing a hashtag e.g. #diabetes may gain me some new followers

Tweeting your review

• Updated falls prevention review: good evidence that exercise helps http://ow.ly/iJJ8a #falls #exercise @AgeUK

• If you haven’t got space to add hashtags at the end you can put # before the relevant word in the main text of the post

• If you include a Twitter name for an individual or organization they will get an email alerting them to it – a good way to be seen!

Build a following

#’s & Twitter handles in your tweets can attract new followers

UK Cochrane Centre 16

You can highlight different aspects of a review:

Missing data weakens evidence in #Cochrane review of efficacy of fluoride supplements. http://ow.ly/kOZxP #caries #fluoride

Fluoride supplements are better than none in preventing tooth decay in children: #Cochrane review http://ow.ly/kP015 #caries #fluoride

Tweeting your review

UK Cochrane Centre 17

Tweeting your review

Some reviews really lend themselves to multiple tweets:

Home safety interventions effective in reducing #falls: updated #Cochrane review http://owly.org/CD007146

#Cataract surgery on 1st eye reduces #falls in older women http://owly.org/CD007146 #Cochrane

UK Cochrane Centre 18

19UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

Searching for a hashtag e.g. #exercise or #cataracts can show who is tweeting about these & may bring up some accounts worth following

You can target different audiences by the language you use

Taking antioxidant vitamins won’t cut your risk of getting #cataracts http://ow.ly/ivrBU

No evidence that antioxidant vitamin supplementation slows visual acuity loss or reduces #cataract risk or progression http://ow.ly/ivrBU

Tweeting your review

UK Cochrane Centre 20

It’s fine to tweet about uncertainties…

• Evidence on provision of educational materials to prevent #falls inconclusive http://ow.ly/iJJ8a #Cochrane

UK Cochrane Centre 21

…and to shout about the review’s reach

• Washington Post on #Cochrane falls prevention review: Obama calls it “the most important review of our time” link #falls

• @bbchealth features new #Cochrane review on #probiotics for #diarrhoea prevention ow.ly/lzrtx #CochraneEvidence

UK Cochrane Centre 22

Spot and target a potential audience

• It’s Falls Awareness Week: there’s a designated hashtag – #fallsweek add it to your tweet, & search for the # to see what’s being talked about

• There’s a conference (as above)

• It’s January & icy, time to tweet about falls prevention:

anti-slip shoes can reduce #falls in icy conditions http://ow.ly/iJJ8a #ice #winter

UK Cochrane Centre 23

• I’ve spotted the International Epilepsy Congress, Montreal, I’ve found the designated Twitter account @EpilepsyCongres and hashtag #30thIEC

• I’ve had a look at the programme• I’m ready to tweet some relevant reviews e.g.#Cochrane review finds good evidence lacking on melatonin as add-on treatment for #epilepsy http://ow.ly/kP3Sr #30thIEC

• I’ll also search for #30thIEC to see what people are tweeting about

Upcoming conference

UK Cochrane Centre 24

25UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

Events are opportunities to reach new audiences and to find new accounts to follow too.

26UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

When someone retweets or replies to your tweet, check if you’re following them. If not, perhaps you should!

These will usually be health-related, but not always!

Awareness/Special Days

UK Cochrane Centre 27

28UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

I tend to follow more organizations than individuals, but some individuals are powerful influencers with large followings – engage with them if you can!

I tweeted…

Health professionals: has a #Cochrane review changed your practice? We’d love to hear!

Take a risk!

UK Cochrane Centre 29

The lifestyle editor from NHS Choices responded:

These conversations followed…

UK Cochrane Centre 30

…and an optometrist

UK Cochrane Centre 31

32UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

This was retweeted by @MyEyeHealth – they could be worth following! Do theyhave followers I should

follow?

• Caroline Fiennes also commented on the tweet & I started following her. Then this:

…and I made a new connection

UK Cochrane Centre 33

EXAMPLE: Jumping into conversations

#cochranesm

34UK Cochrane CentreUK Cochrane Centre 34

Jump into a conversation

UK Cochrane Centre 35

36UK Cochrane Centre

Build a following

Engagement is more important than numbers. Increasing your following is good but you can show value & reach by the conversations you’re having.

DO’S AND DON’TS#cochranesm

37UK Cochrane Centre

Dos and don’ts

DO• Listen, engage, join in conversations• Link often, direct people to useful sites – especially your

own!• Keep it active• Credit others• Keep the tone pleasant and professional

DON’T• Use abbreviated text-talk; cutting corners in your tweets

suggests you might cut them elsewhere!• Allow your tweets to be truncated at the end – people

may miss things

UK Cochrane Centre 38

• Twitter offers big returns for even a small amount of time spent

• Hootsuite makes managing Twitter easier• Keep it active• Aim for a mixture of scheduled and

responsive tweets• Look for people discussing your topics

(events, conversations)• Don’t be scared – give it a go!

Takeaway points

UK Cochrane Centre 39