Digital Footprints

When I first started blogging, a few people who had been at it before me told me to check on Technorati occasionally to see what people were writing about me. At first I did it a few times, feeling like it was something that I needed to sneak. Something on the edge of improper as if this act were tied far too closely to my ego to be considered healthy. Over time however, I realized how essential an act like this is if you're working online.

Tracking your digital footprint is something we should all be doing. It's also something that we should be teaching our students to do. Students who are a bit older and who have spent some time putting content online might be very surprised to find things from their past still accessible that they haven't seen for a few years. This would be a good learning experience for them to consider as they head off to college and begin thinking of interviewing for jobs.

Tracking my digital footprint has become an essential part of what I do online. Here's a few things I've learned:

1.) Google yourself regularly. Google your own name and the name of your blog. Using Google, you can also set up Google alerts for your name and your blog so that when something is written about you, the alert sends you an email. I regularly receive email from companies who make "Remote Access" software products asking about the name of my blog and how I use it. I've actually had one of them tell me that people aren't really searching for my blog when they find me, they are searching for their product. While probably true sometimes, I still was slightly insulted by the lady who told me this. This goes back to the idea that Google had become so important in our society that it is not really a search engine, it is a reputation management engine. Reputation = accreditation online.

2.) Search technorati regularly for both your name and the name of your blog. This is great to see what people are writing about you. It gives you a chance to respond to posts people write and also it keeps your finger on the pulse of any ongoing conversations. I'll admit that sometimes I don't really understand technorati and have some doubts about the validity of their ranking system. Last night checking out my blog, I had a ranking of below 60 000; far below my usual. This morning, I was up around 38 000. While this ranking is lower than my usual, this doesn't really concern me, I'm more interested in the information I can garner about conversations than rankings.

3.) I watched Ewan McIntosh this summer with his own personal search engine. Ewan uses his RSS reader and technorati to subscribe to all of the possible spellings and misspellings of his name and his blog to catch any possible conversations. He also subscribes to feeds searching for conversations about projects he is involved in, keeping him directly in line with whatever is begin written about him or the things he is involved with.

4.) Track twitter. Although summize has been bought out by twitter itself, it is still a good place to search. I learned Ewan's lesson on twitter. Although I use the name "glassbeed," many people type in responses meant for me as "glassbead." (Yes I know it's misspelled. The name itself and the meaning behind them are a separate story).

5.) I also check my feedburner stats and the stats on my blog that I get from Typepad closely. This gives me more information about how people are getting to this blog, how long are they are staying here, what they are actually reading and where they are from. These are important ways to check up on your audience. Where are people from? What are they reading on your blog?

Essential basic skills for us and for our students as well.

Tags: digitalfootprint, technorati, ewan mcintosh, summize, twitter

Comments

[JenWagner]

Hi Clarence --

I enjoyed this post -- and will be doing some of the things you suggested.

I am especially pleased that you did not promote your ideas because you were seeking followers or to up your ratings. But rather just to gain information on perhaps how you were perceived and ways you might change or better that to become a better blogger....hmm, better sharer of information (smiles, not just with blogging!)

I have set up the google alerts -- but would like to know more. Is there a way to add them to my Google Home page -- or do I have to log onto them individually? Is it good to know so much about yourself? How do you sift through the "junk"? Is this something you would advise ANY one who is blogging to do from the getgo? Has knowing what you now know from watching this information changed anything you can share with us??

This was a good post.....actually at first I thought the title was going to have to do with the Olympics....so glad it was not!!

Thanks again for sharing. Lots to think about.
JenWagner

[Ann Oro]

I do some of the same things. To answer Jen's question, I have as many results as possible filter into my Google Reader. In this way, all I have to do is scan through my reader. I've been using Google Blog Search instead of Google Alerts. I wonder if they work in a similar manner.

The other thing I find really useful is using the StatCounter website. I can look at recent page load and see where they came from. It helps me see what people find most useful in my writing. I don't get a lot of comments, but I can see that people find my blog posts, bookmark them, and return again. The most often viewed posts tend to explain how I use various tools in the early elementary grades. I haven't used Feedburner in this way. I started using StatCounter first, and tend to go with what I know.

I should probably talk about this with my oldest students as they head off to high school and then college. You never know if they will run into other teachers who will take the time to explain this. I enjoyed your thoughts.

[Clarence Fisher]

Thanks ladies for your comments. I would assume (always a dangerous thing of course) that Google alerts and Google blog search would turn up the same results. If so, this would be another example of getting to choose the tool that works best for you to do a job you need.

Is there anything I've changed because of this information.... hhhhmmmm I'm not really certain that it has changed anything, but it has made me more aware of my audience for certain. I still write what I want, but now I can often predict which posts will be more popular than others. I also am much more aware of the fact that people in many situations and from many countries visit this blog, making me in many ways more humble and respectful and aware of the fact that people give me some of their always time pressed attention.