Social media gives us the ability to make science and the scientific process clearer for more people than ever before. And, if that alone isn’t enough to get scientists on social media, I’ve got six more reasons why they should start using it to communicate their science today. 

It’s Where People Are

First, social media lets us take scientific information to people where they are. In January 2016, We Are Social reported that over 2.3 billion people around the world are actively using social media. That’s over two-thirds of worldwide Internet users and around 31% of the global population. There’s virtually no other platform that would allow us to bring science to that many people as quickly and easily as social media.

It Makes Science Accessible and Relevant

Second, social media allows us to make science accessible and relevant to people. It lets us get science into the hands and minds of the people who need and want it the most. And, we can now easily get scientific information to the people who can use it to enact the most change.

Not only does it allow us to make science accessible, it also lets us make it relevant to people by capitalizing on events and trends. Is it National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Day? Use that to teach people that compounds extracted from a species of red algae make peanut butter easier to spread. Is it National Chocolate Day? Use that to teach people how climate change can affect cacao trees. By capitalizing on current events and trends, we can reach even more people with relevant science and grow interest in scientific information and research.

It Gives Science a Human Face

Third, social media allows us to give science a human face. It lets people get to know the scientists behind the research, studies, and information. People can ask them questions, get answers, and learn to trust both them and their work.

It Provides Unique Opportunities for Engagement

Fourth, social media provides scientists with unique opportunities for engagement. According to a recent survey by Pew Research Center, 32 percent of online adults rank science and technology among the top three topics that they’re most interested in. However, an analysis of news coverage between 2007 and 2012 found that only about 2 percent of stories covered those topics. So, social media gives scientists an avenue through which they can engage with people, learn about their interests, and help fill the gap between what news outlets cover and what people want to know.

It Offers Big Rewards for a Small Investment

Fifth, social media can give scientists ways to earn large rewards—both in reaching their audiences and in engaging with them—without investing a lot of time or money. For example, the top Facebook post of 2015 received nearly 12 million interactions. Some of the top tweets of 2015 were retweeted over 500,000 times.

With all of those engagements, hundreds of millions of people likely saw those posts, and some of them were only a few words long. Even though it might be difficult for scientists to gain the same kind of following as the members of One Direction, they can still reach many more people with social media than with other traditional methods.

It’s a Great Way to Get Inspired

And sixth, social media is a great way for scientists to get inspired, both by the public and by other scientists and researchers. In a survey of American-based scientists connected with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, over half the respondents said that they use digital tools like social media to learn about science both within their field and outside of it. By engaging with researchers both within and outside of their fields through social media, scientists can be inspired to investigate new ideas that they might not have been exposed to otherwise.

Overall, scientists will benefit both themselves and the public by using social media to communicate scientific information with the world.