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The Scholar Website Checklist

Twenty checks. About three minutes. Tick every statement that is true of your online presence today, and be honest: nobody sees your answers but you.

Each check opens to show why it matters and what to do about it, whether or not you ever work with us.

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Can people find you?

Your own page shows up on the first page when someone searches your name.Search your full name plus your field.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Whoever owns that first page tells your story.
If you're doing it yourself: One page you control, with your name in its title, beats five profiles you don't.
Search your best-known book or article, and your own page appears alongside the publisher.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: You wrote it. Right now the publisher or journal likely gets the credit and the click.
If you're doing it yourself: Give each major work its own section on your site, using its exact title.
Your ORCID, Google Scholar, and university profiles all link to the same home page.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Consistent links tell search engines those profiles are all one person: you.
If you're doing it yourself: Add your home page address to the website field of each profile.
Your publications are readable text on a web page, not only inside a PDF.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: A record that has to be downloaded before anyone can read it is hard to find and easy to skip.
If you're doing it yourself: Paste your publication list into a page, one citation per line.
Your site tells search engines who you are.Not sure? Count it as a no.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: A short, standard "about this person" record (name, title, affiliation, profile links) helps search engines connect your name to your work.
If you're doing it yourself: Search "Person schema" plus the name of your site builder for its instructions.

Is it actually yours?

Your site lives at an address you own, like yourname.com.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: An address you own is the only one that follows you through a whole career.
If you're doing it yourself: Register a domain in your own name and point it at your site.
If you changed institutions tomorrow, your site would stay up, unchanged.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Faculty pages are removed when you leave, and sometimes when the university redesigns its website.
If you're doing it yourself: Keep your main site off any address with your employer's name in it.
You could get a complete copy of your site's files and move it somewhere else.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Your legacy shouldn't depend on one company staying in business.
If you're doing it yourself: Ask your current host how to export your site. If there is no answer, that is the answer.
No ads, upsells, or "people also viewed" links appear next to your name.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: On some academic platforms, your name is what draws the visitor, and the platform keeps the relationship.
If you're doing it yourself: Keep those profiles, but make your own site the page they all point to.
You, not a web office, decide what your page says.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: If a change takes a ticket and a month, the page will always be out of date.
If you're doing it yourself: Choose a setup where a change can be made within days, by you or for you.

III

Is the whole record there?

Your books have covers, a short description, and a link to buy each one.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Readers, reviewers, and instructors choosing a text look for the author, not only the retailer.
If you're doing it yourself: One section per book: cover, a description of about 80 words, and the publisher's link.
Your publications are complete and organized, by type or by year.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: A complete record shows the arc of a career. A partial one invites the question of what's missing.
If you're doing it yourself: Export your list from ORCID or Google Scholar, then group it by type.
Your talks, interviews, podcasts, and press coverage are gathered in one place.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Public scholarship reaches people journals never will, and it is evidence of impact.
If you're doing it yourself: One page, newest first, with the date, venue, and a link for each.
Your CV is a readable page, with a current copy to download alongside it.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Busy readers and search engines skip attachments. A page gets read.
If you're doing it yourself: Publish the CV as a web page and keep the PDF as a secondary download.
Editors, journalists, and collaborators can reach you without hunting for a department form.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: People with a deadline move on quickly when they can't find a direct way in.
If you're doing it yourself: Put a simple contact form, or a professional address, in the footer of every page.

Does it show you at your best?

Your photo is current and professional, taken within the last five years.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: A current photo tells a visitor a real, active person stands behind the record.
If you're doing it yourself: Natural light, a plain background, and you looking like you do at work.
You have one biography, and every other profile matches it.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Bios that disagree look careless, and search engines can't tell which one to trust.
If you're doing it yourself: Write one short and one long version, then paste them everywhere.
The site has been updated in the last twelve months.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: A page that stopped changing makes a visitor wonder whether the work stopped too.
If you're doing it yourself: Set a reminder each semester to add what's new.
It reads comfortably on a phone.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Many first visits happen on a phone, often right after a talk or a mention.
If you're doing it yourself: Open your site on your phone and try to reach your CV in two taps.
A visitor understands what your work is about within ten seconds.
Why it matters, and the fix
Why it matters: Visitors decide quickly. A clear first line keeps them reading.
If you're doing it yourself: One sentence at the top: who you are, what you study, and why it matters.

Your result

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Every unchecked box above is something Scholar Legacy handles: your full record gathered into one polished site with your name on the address (your own domain, if you want one), built from your CV and a few links, and reviewed by you before it goes live. The files are yours to keep.

See a live example How it works

Email me my results

Your score, plus a short list of the checks you missed with the fix for each. One email.