Blogger Identity: To Be Me Or Not To Be Me?
Rich Minx is my fifth blog, but it’s the first blog that I’ve really made an effort to update daily, promote, monetize (ha) and generally take care of with a loving but firm hand. Of those five blogs, I’ve had my picture on four and my real name on three. On Rich Minx I have my picture but not my name, so I’m half-anonymous.
You might be surprised to discover that Rich Minx is not my real name. In fact, I’m female so calling me ‘Rich’ which is usually short for Richard feels a little funny. But Rich Minx helps with branding. There don’t seem to be any other Rich Minxes out there except when Paris Hilton is referred to as one. It helps especially with SEO – I might be a new blog, but there are already searches for Rich Minx and I’m at the top of the (five) results.
The advantages of being an anonymous blogger are:
- Privacy. Especially if you’re famous for something else (I’m not) and don’t want your blog to be related to that.
- Mystique. Who is that masked crusader?
- Potential for a dramatic unveiling. New Yorker Melissa Lafsky of Opinionistas.com was outed by the media.
- Friends/family still talk to you instead of just reading your blog to see what you’re up to. It can be a little surprising when you’re filling in an old friend on your latest hi-jinx and they calmly reply: “I know. I’ve been lurking on your blog for six months.”
The disadvantages are:
- Lack of trust. Why should people believe your advice if you feel like a stranger?
- Split personality complex. Especially if you’re blogging under a ‘persona’ (not recommended).
- Potential for non-dramatic unveiling. What if I unmask myself and nobody notices?
Anyway, whether you choose anonymity should depend on your blog topic, your target audience and the above considerations. But for the most part, the blogs that do well have real names and pictures attached. I’m going to add my name soon. Media: call me. Please.
9 Responses to “Blogger Identity: To Be Me Or Not To Be Me?”
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Wait until they find out I’m really John Chow in disguise!!
John – damn you let the cat out!
So you’ve got new guest bloggers, eh?
And a new design………
Why no status update?(I read through feed reader, so didn’t know of the design change.)
Single column is more efficient. Just one thing – it lacks the glitz of the sidebars in previous design. Add some gradients and rounded corners, and it will be cool
Anonymous blogging is really uncomfortable from reader’s point of view. It creates a sense of insecurity – we don’t have any assurance that the blogger is not a fraud.
Being open can hurt your privacy in case you become **famous* !
tech – i didnt do a post about it because all ive really done is remove a sidebar and change the sidebar a little. i still need to fix the sidebars and get it the way i want – it was just a quick fix. once i get more time ill update the design properly and then let everyone know about it.
im gonna do a recap of all the new site authors soon
My career does require a bit of required privacy and I adjusted my story accordingly. I am who I am. Being aware the impact of the personal information should be a consideration right at the start.
I am happy to use my real name and background, but hide behind my ‘Evil Hasselhoff’ avatar to add some mystique
- Martin Reed