Tweet from Garrick:
just got word that garrickvanburen.com doesn’t accurately (or obviously) represent the services I offer. Hmmmm. What to do, what to do.
Keep it.
If your online presence directly supports your professional efforts, there is no better way to propagate your brand than to use your signature. If I were a freelancer, my business card would read aaronmentele.com, nothing more.
Even though I’m not a sole proprietor, I screwed up by choosing an obscure url to brand this blog. At the time I wasn’t thinking about branding my professional efforts, I was thinking about how best not to distract from them (electric pulp, etc.)
So, now I’m using charisma:18 on this blog, signing blog comments as “aaron,” and setting up profiles (twitter, pownce, linkedin, etc.) using “amentele.”
It’s dumb, confusing, and completely contradicts anything I tell clients. Apparently, I don’t heed my own stuff. Or at least I didn’t – I’m flipping some things out now.
Until I do, I’ll point to Josh Spear as an example of building a consistent brand around a given name. We’ve followed his stuff for a while now, so just seeing his name on the contact line of an inquiry gave us the immediate impression the project was going to be cool. (And the impression is coming through.)
A good start to getting your reputation to precede you is keeping it attached to you.
6 Responses to “Given name dot com”
[...] alishafedrix wrote an interesting post today!.Here’s a quick excerptTweet from Garrick:. just got word that garrickvanburen.com doesn’t accurately (or obviously) represent the services I offer. Hmmmm. What to do, what to do. Keep it. If your online presence directly supports your professional efforts, … [...]
Unfortunately I’m up against Barry Hess, The Original Computer Nerd and forever candidate Barry Hess – ARI (also a Google-juice problem). So I’ve had to stick with my first email handle, bjhess.
I could add my middle name and grab a domain. Hmm…
I would add that keeping terms/words consistent when people look up your name. You want to nip those FTWs in the butt before thats all you represent!
Preface anything I write with the fact that I’m currently doing none of this myself…
So, if I were you, was a freelancer, and had no real branding efforts already hooked in, my business card would read bjhess.com. I’d sign comments, set up profiles, etc with the same name.
That’s easy to say when you have your first choice url. (There’s only one other, non-geek aaron mentele that I’m aware of.)
I’ve went about things preferring to build up my Google standing by signing things Barry Hess. If I’m in touch with a potential employer or partner in crime, I want them to be able to find me and what I’ve done on Google with my given name.
In part, I’m probably OK with this since I already own the top spot under “bjhess.”
My big mistake is that my only business cards say “scrawlers.com.” Not that they’re really _my_ business cards…just the only ones I own.
@Barry – owning your full name in Google is easy, though, regardless of domain (just add it to your site title, and you’re there).
I do see your point. I’m sure it’s similarly annoying to guild members (i.e., actors, etc.) that have to pick new names when they find out theirs is already “in use.”
Again, take my advice for what it’s worth (not much considering it’s hypocritical.)