Researcher IDs and Profiles
An ORCID identifier is a unique, persistent personal ID. An ORCID ID provides an easy way to distinguish yourself from other people with similar names and to guarantee that you will get credit for your work. A few things to know:
* Registration is free. See a sample profile here.
* You can choose which parts of your profile are public (though a public profile is much more useful!).
* You can link DOIs, grant numbers, and your other profiles (e.g., Web of Science Researcher Profile, Scopus Author ID) to your ORCID ID
A Scopus Author Profile is a unique record of a researcher’s publication activity. The details come from peer-reviewed articles and other publications that are indexed in Scopus. The information in a profile includes the author name, the unique Author ID, affiliation(s), subject area(s), publications, citations, and co-authors. The profiles do not cover editorship, managerial or executive roles, or teaching positions. Visit the Scopus Author Profile FAQs for more information.
SSRN (formerly Social Science Research Network) has grown to become more interdisciplinary, representing disciplines including the applied sciences, health sciences, humanities, life sciences, physical sciences, and social sciences. This searchable online library enables authors to post their papers and abstracts easily and free of charge. For researchers, its site-specific metrics for “top papers,” “top authors,” and “top organizations” may serve as significant markers of impact.
A Google Scholar profile is a very simple way of collating your publications (and citations to them) so that others can find your work and often find an accessible copy that they can read. See example profiles from University of Delaware researchers. Setting up a profile is quick and easy. After signing in to your Google account, click "My profile" to register and start adding your publications. Once you've set up the profile, you can choose automatic updates so you don't need to spend a lot of time updating your publications list.
Academia.edu is a free social networking platform for academics which aims to provide a system for scientists to share their results beyond the current journal system. Researchers can create a profile and list or upload their publications and monitor the number of document views. A subscription is required to access the enhanced analytics and impact tracking tools.
ResearchGate is a social networking site to connect researchers and make it easy for them to share and access scientific output, knowledge, and expertise. The RG Score is a metric that measures scientific reputation based on how all of your research is received by your peers. See ResearchGate article "Understanding your stats" for more information.