Broader marketing efforts—those that demonstrate your tech transfer know-how—can elevate the profile of your technology transfer office (TTO). It can also cultivate productive relationships with your organization’s researchers, management, and potential partners/licensees. To help TTOs be successful with these efforts, this post shares the best practices that Fuentek has found to be effective time and again with our clients.

Reprinted from AUTM Newsbrief. Both skeptics wondering whether social media is worth the effort and social media enthusiasts are likely to find the results interesting. Although the brief survey was unscientific, the results provided data on the positive impact of social media as well as valid concerns about the use and role of these tools. An analysis of the responses sheds light on how TTOs can increase the value of social media while avoiding the negative situations cited by some respondents.

Last week I had the great opportunity to participate in a social media panel at the 2013 meeting of the Association of University Technology Managers®. My fellow panelists and I were thrilled to have a large audience with very engaged participants. I’d like to share a few of the themes that I found to resonate most strongly with our audience, based on both their questions and their facial expressions!

Calling all technology transfer professionals! Whether you use social media in your work or not, this survey is for you. Longtime readers of Fuentek’s blog may remember that 2 years ago we invited the tech transfer industry to complete a survey about current/planned use for social media. The results of that survey showed that many respondents had started (or planned) to use LinkedIn®, Twitter®, and to a lesser extent Facebook® and blogging to build their brand, market technologies, and build community. Well, 2 years is an eternity on the Internet. And since I’m participating in a panel called “Social Media Unplugged: Is It Worth the Hype?” at the annual meeting of the Association of University Technology Managers® (AUTM®) in San Antonio, Texas, later this month, it’s time to revisit the question:…

Last week I returned to the annual workshop of the Technology Transfer Integrated Planning Team of the Department of Defense (DoD) to give two presentations that I think our readers will find of interest. One session focused on the Global Technology Portal (GTP) launched earlier this year by AUTM®, while in the other I discussed using social media to enhance tech transfer. Yes, we’ve blogged quite a bit about AUTM’s GTP and Fuentek’s social media advice in the past, but stick with me because the info and insights I’m sharing today definitely caught the attention of the DoD tech transfer professionals.

We recently received a question through our Contact Us page from a tech transfer professional in Scandinavia looking to make LinkedIn an active part of his TTO’s activities. The inquiry concerned whether TTOs are posting technologies on LinkedIn, not merely pointing to the TTO’s own website. I figured my answer might be useful to our blog readers, so I’m sharing it here today.

We at Fuentek have blogged often about how tweets, blogs, and “likes” are key paths by which a technology transfer office’s (TTO’s) messages reaches the general public as well as about how effective use of social media can connect TTOs with licensing prospects and potential partners for specific opportunities. But federal TTOs face unique challenges in developing and maintaining effective social media strategies. Aside from tight budgets and overloaded staff, these TTOs have to operate within the confines of the highly controlled federal government. TTOs want to get the word out about what they do but, in most cases, a public affairs or communications office is responsible for the information flowing out of a federal organization. So what’s a federal TTO to do?

Technology transfer offices (TTOs) have much to gain from incorporating social media into their communications toolbox. With adequate planning and preparation, a TTO’s foray into the social media world can be a successful experience, yielding great exposure and benefits. We at Fuentek have blogged often about how social media’s tremendous reach can deliver real value to TTOs. And as of today, we have yet another resource for tech transfer professionals. We’ve released our white paper entitled, “Leveraging Social Media for Technology Transfer Marketing.”

Now that it’s been little over a year since I took over the Fuentek Twitter® account, I have some advice to share. My previous post covered the basics of tweeting: @-replies vs. mentions, using a scheduler tool to spread your tweets across the day, hashtags, retweeting, and how to get started. Today’s post offers my thoughts about how to tweet effectively.

We’ve blogged often about the importance of digital channels in your communications strategy. Most recently, we’ve offered free webcasts with tips on marketing your technologies online and choosing the right mix of marketing mechanisms. Now, we have released an exciting new white paper that offers all of our best practices in one read. I wrote “Digital Media Guidelines for Tech Transfer Offices” with Fuentek founder and president Laura Schoppe as an all-inclusive primer about planning and executing a comprehensive digital media program for TTOs. Packed with practical tips,…