https://troolyprof.com/articles Guides for professors, authors and speakers on personal websites, bios and being found in Google and AI search. en Mon, 26 Oct 2026 07:33:18 GMT https://troolyprof.com/articles/academic-cv-vs-personal-website https://troolyprof.com/articles/academic-cv-vs-personal-website Yes, most academics benefit from both. A CV is a complete, formal record for committees, funders and hiring panels. A personal website is for everyone else: students, journalists, event organisers, publishers and collaborators. The website explains your work in plain language and links to the CV as a PDF for those who need the full record. Websites Mon, 26 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/lab-website-examples https://troolyprof.com/articles/lab-website-examples A strong lab website has six pages: a homepage that says what the lab studies in one plain sentence, a research page organised by question rather than by grant, a people page with photos and current roles, a publications page with links to the papers, a join-the-lab page for prospective students and postdocs, and a contact page. Most lab sites fail because they go out of date, so the structure should make updates quick. Websites Mon, 26 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/academic-bio-examples https://troolyprof.com/articles/academic-bio-examples A strong academic bio states your name, title and institution, says what you work on in plain language, and adds two or three credentials a reader will recognise. Conference bios run 30–50 words, faculty page bios 75–100, and website and speaker bios 100–200. Below are eight examples at each length, for professors, early-career researchers and PhD students. Writing Thu, 15 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/best-website-builders-for-academics https://troolyprof.com/articles/best-website-builders-for-academics The best website builder for an academic depends on time and skills: Google Sites is free and simple but basic; academic-specific builders such as Owlstown are quick to set up with publication lists built in; Squarespace and Wix give polished designs with visual editing; WordPress is the most flexible but needs upkeep; and GitHub templates like Academic Pages are free but need coding. If you have books, talks and press to present and little time to write, hiring a designer who also writes the copy is usually faster. Websites Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/professor-website-template https://troolyprof.com/articles/professor-website-template A professor website template needs five pages: Home (name, title, one-line summary of your research, photo, latest work), Research (themes and selected publications), Books (one page per book), Speaking and Media (talks, press kit, contact for bookings), and Contact. Fill each with plain-language text written for non-specialists, link to your faculty page, Google Scholar and ORCID, and keep a dated list of recent work. Websites Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/academic-website-examples https://troolyprof.com/articles/academic-website-examples Good academic websites lead with who the professor is and what they work on in plain language, give their books and research their own pages, show credibility through awards, media and clients, and make it easy for journalists, organisers and collaborators to get in touch. The three examples here, from Carnegie Mellon, Santa Clara University and NYU Stern, each put a different part of the professor's work first. Websites Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/author-media-kit https://troolyprof.com/articles/author-media-kit An author or speaker media kit is a single page (on your website, with a downloadable PDF) that gives journalists and event organisers everything they need without emailing you: a short and a long bio, two or three high-resolution headshots, your book cover and details, the topics you speak or comment on, recent media, sample interview questions and contact details for bookings and press. Speaking Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/author-website-examples https://troolyprof.com/articles/author-website-examples The best author websites put the book front and centre with a clear cover, a one-line hook and buy links; give each book its own page with a summary, praise and retailer links; show the author as a credible person with a short bio and photo; and make it easy for press, readers and event organisers to get in touch. For academic authors, the site should also connect the book to the research behind it. Websites Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-create-an-author-website https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-create-an-author-website To create an author website: register your name as a domain, choose a platform you can update, plan a homepage that leads with your latest book, give each book its own page with a summary, praise and buy links, add an about page with short and long bios, a press or media kit page, and a contact or speaking page, then connect the site to your publisher page, retailer author pages and social profiles. Websites Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-make-an-academic-website https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-make-an-academic-website To make an academic website: register a domain in your own name, choose a platform you can update easily, plan five core pages (home, research, books or publications, speaking or teaching, and contact), write each page in plain language starting with who you are and what you work on, add a good photo and your CV, link to your faculty page, Google Scholar and ORCID, then publish and keep it updated. Websites Mon, 28 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/do-professors-need-a-personal-website https://troolyprof.com/articles/do-professors-need-a-personal-website If people outside your department look you up (journalists, event organisers, readers of your book, prospective collaborators in industry), yes: a personal website gives them one current, complete page under your own name, which a faculty profile usually can't. Websites Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/faculty-profile-vs-personal-website https://troolyprof.com/articles/faculty-profile-vs-personal-website A faculty profile is the university's page about you, written for academic colleagues and tied to your current job; a personal website is your own page, on your own domain, that covers your whole body of work (books, talks, press and research) for any audience and stays with you when you move. Websites Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-show-up-in-ai-search https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-show-up-in-ai-search AI assistants describe you using what they can find and read about you. To show up accurately, publish a clear, current page on your own domain that states who you are, what you work on and what you've published, in plain text; add structured data; keep your name and details consistent across your faculty page, Google Scholar, ORCID and LinkedIn; and link them all to each other. Search and AI Sat, 26 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-write-an-academic-bio https://troolyprof.com/articles/how-to-write-an-academic-bio A good academic bio opens with your name, title and institution, then says in plain language what you work on and why it matters, followed by your two or three strongest credentials (a book, a major finding, an award or notable media). Write it in the third person, keep a 50-word and a 150–200-word version, and update it whenever something important changes. Writing Sat, 26 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/professor-website-checklist https://troolyprof.com/articles/professor-website-checklist A professor's website needs five core pages: a homepage with a plain-language summary and photo, a research page, a page for each book, a speaking page, and a press page with bios and headshots. Add a clear contact route, links to your faculty page, Google Scholar and ORCID, and keep a dated list of recent work. Websites Sat, 26 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha) https://troolyprof.com/articles/what-should-a-speaker-website-include https://troolyprof.com/articles/what-should-a-speaker-website-include A speaker website should let an organiser decide and act within a few minutes: a clear one-line positioning, your talk topics, video of you speaking, a short and a long bio, a downloadable headshot, logos or names of past events, and a simple enquiry form that reaches you or your bureau. Speaking Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT akanksha@troolyprof.com (Akanksha)