Success on the social Web can be measured in a variety of ways. This is not one of those “here’s how you measure social media efforts” posts. You can learn loads about ways to measure over on the Brass Tack Thinking blog. This post stems from me thinking a lot lately about how we represent ourselves online, and in turn, the various ways we define personal success online.
There is plenty of debate about whether or not personal branding is a viable concept. Shannon Paul argues in this post, Having a Personal Brand is Fine, But Making an Impact is Better, that personal branding “trivializes the human experience”. However, some people have built solid reputations, both online and offline, as personal branding experts, such as Dan Schawbel and Michigan’s own Hajj Flemings.
I want to examine one small piece of the online branding puzzle – Twitter handles. There are no set-in-stone rules for what a person should choose for a Twitter handle, but it seems in the past year or so more people have chosen to use their full name or a variation of their name for Twitter handles versus an alias. I’ve noticed more recently that people who previously did use alias names switched to their real names.
When I signed up for Twitter three years ago, it was much more common for people to not use their names as their handle. People ask me all the time why I chose @EstrellaBella10. Long story short, @EstrellaBella is a name I used for an MSN Messenger account when I was studying abroad in Chile, and it stuck with me once I got home and started experimenting with social networks. I had to add the “10” for my Twitter handle because someone already claimed @EstrellaBella.
Clearly, my Twitter handle has zero association with my name. My initial reasons for choosing @EstrellaBella10 were because it’s unique and it ties into the fact that I speak Spanish. I’ve debated internally many times over the past three years on whether or not I should switch my handle to my name. I claimed @nikkistephan and @nikki_little for when I’m married. But here’s my problem: My last name will change in less than a year. I don’t want to switch to @nikkistephan now just to switch to @nikki_little in a year. So, even though a part of me feels like I’m ready to make the switch, I’m sticking with @EstrellaBella10 for at least another year.
I have worried that using an alias name on social networks might hurt my credibility or how I want people to think of me as a professional. I include my full name on social networks even if my profile name is EstrellaBella10, so anyone who wants to connect with me knows my real name. This is personal preference, but I’m less likely to follow someone back if they use an alias name and don’t include at least a first name.
I’ve never once had someone tell me that they think my Twitter handle is unprofessional, or that it’s detrimental to how I represent myself online. In my opinion, the information I share on Twitter is a more accurate representation of who I am, both as an individual and a professional.
Here’s a good test to see what your Twitter followers think about you: Look at the lists you’re on. I’m happy to see that I’m on several PR, marketing and social media lists because I make a concerted effort to share info related to those three topics.
Maybe I’ve missed the potential to gain new followers because people prematurely assume I’m either a spammer or a robot when they receive an e-mail saying @EstrellaBella10 is now following them on Twitter. But, looking at the lists I’m included on and the relationships I’ve built through Twitter, I’m confident my Twitter handle choice has not negatively impacted people getting to know who I am and what I’m all about through this online channel.
For some varying opinions on this subject, check out Gini Dietrich’s post about Twitter handles.
So, what do you think? Is it a bad idea from a branding perspective to use anything other than your name for your Twitter handle (put aside your thoughts on personal branding)? Are people who use an alias for a Twitter handle just as successful in the Twitterverse as those who use their real names?