Are The Scientists on to something with altmetrics? new tools for assessing and tracking scholarly impact

As scientific authors and researchers vie for tenure and funding they are including altmetrics to their CV's and tenure packets. Why the inclusion?  They feel these alternative metrics disclose the full impact their work has with their colleagues, students and the public.  Altmetrics, a term first coined in a tweet, involves "the creation and study of new metrics based on the Social Web for analyzing and informing scholarship".  Often, altmetrics are providing a tangible for what is read, discussed saved and recommended as well as cited in a particular area.  They are also diverse in product, platform and audience. Products include articles, datasets, software, blogs, videos, and more.  Some platforms are institutional repositories and online communities where the audience is going to be beyond the academy and include, practitioners, clinicians and the general public.  Scientists in growing number are providing this data to demonstrate their value in the profession and I believe these metrics will allow law librarians to do the same thing.  Many law librarians are already online participating in scholarly conversations through blogs, SSRN, comments and Tweets why not track it so you can show others the valuable digital footprint you left behind.  Additionally, altmetrics instruction may also be a valuable service that we can provide to our primary users.

Slides: 

Are the scientists on to something Altmetrics 6-16.pdf