If I were tasked with creating a PLN prior to engaging in a social media campaign, I would make sure to follow relevant organizations and thought leaders or advocates in professions related to that topic across a variety of social networks (LinkedIn, Instagram, blogs, etc.).
As an example, the non-profit that I volunteer with called the Looking Glass Foundation in Vancouver just participated in an annual campaign called “Eating Disorders Awareness Week’. This campaign involved a vast variety of participants including other non-profits, health authorities, dieticians, counsellors, and members of the public. During each day of Eating Disorders Awareness Week, Looking Glass would publish a new educational post, and would typically tag other partners in the area or across Canada to engage more individuals and facilitate increased participation. Looking Glass also used a specific hashtag for this occasion which was “EDAW2021” in order to create an easily searchable back-channel (Woods, 2013) for this event. In addition to this, organizers also arranged for different monuments across Canada to be lit up in purple in advance to increase awareness of the event, such as The Calgary Tower.

To be seen as a leader in a space of my choice, I would need to be well-informed on a topic, and be vocal, which would look like producing my own content as well as engaging with a variety of partners in the community and across the world. In order to help raise my profile, I would ensure that I have a strong and consistent personal and professional digital identity that is genuine, and try to ensure that
my PLN is an inclusive space, where commentary is respectful and everyone is welcome.


References
Woods, Bianca. “Building your own PLN: seeking new insights and ideas? Expand your personal learning network.” T+D, vol. 67, no. 11, Nov. 2013, p. 70+. Gale OneFile: Business, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A348998538/ITBC?u=uvictoria&sid=ITBC&xid=1010abdf. Accessed 15 Feb. 2021.