Comments on: Names

By: GP

GP — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 18:44:37 +0000

I’ve been giving this topic some thought lately as I try to figure out if I’ll use my name (full, first, initials, or other) when I setup a site. I think most of the reasons for / against are listed above and generalized below…

Branding (you vs. the site/business)
Privacy (personal vs. day job issues vs. stalkers vs. other)

One other factor that I think comes into play is people’s fear of failure. If I (or anyone) start up a site / blog and my name is plastered all over it… and it fails (miserably or otherwise) then it’s out there for all to see (of course if all saw, then it wouldn’t fail perhaps).

Overall, it’s easier to take a “risk” if you can somewhat disconnect or “hide” yourself (think mob mentality).

I think it’s acceptable to use “pen names” for anyone that isn’t banking on building that personal reputation (i.e Tom Peters, Seth Godin, etc.). When I read a site I don’t care about the name on it… show me some relevant information in the “About” section and move on.

By: Bill Peschel

Bill Peschel — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 21:47:36 +0000

Full name, because my goal is to be a published writer, and I want people to remember the name.

Now, my website is planetpeschel.com, which I bought on advice a long time ago.Back then, I even had pp on top of my blog, and that led to a problem with some linkers using my name and others using pp, effectively dividing my stats. It took a nameplate change and several years to get rid of that.

By: Monkey of Hope

Monkey of Hope — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 08:14:14 +0000

On my blog i use my real Name to let People know, who i am. This depends on the fact, that i like to be me and connect my nick to my real name.
I am not a ProBlogger but some friends of mine read my blog mainly, so why not?
And..this gives the reader more of identity about the writer, i think.
I like that you use your real name here and as I have seen “ProBlogger” on others. This makes this Blog special and you are known by your real name as the ProBlogger :-)
Greets from Germany

By: HART (1-800-HART)

HART (1-800-HART) — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 07:02:39 +0000

Although, ‘admin’ is probably not that good (if you’re admin, you should be able to change it) .. it’s nice to see any name on a blog, whether it’s their first, last or nickname. It’s definately better than those with NO NAME at all … At least you can get an impression what the reader is all about, and if there is more than one writer, it doesn’t seem so shizoid.

I always try to use HART (in upper caps) for all entries on all blogs .. and HART (1-800-HART) for comments now (since the fall) If people want to know my real name, or my other nicknames, they will have to read more than just the last post .. ’tis readily available for all those a’ looking.

By: DCS

DCS — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 01:55:14 +0000

I use initials as my ID. My last name is part of my blog name. I have considered using my full name, but to date have decided against it.

By: Ama

Ama — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 00:34:50 +0000

I use a nickname, which I think is fine for the type of blog I write…

If I had a really common name, I’d probably use it on my blog. But my name is so uncommon that any search for it on google brings up every instance my entire name has appeared on the internets. And there’s already stuff I wish wasn’t there from when I was a lot dumber about the internet and privacy…
So I try to be careful with that now. I don’t want to be so searchable. Not until I’m like famous or something.

By: The banker

The banker — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 23:16:46 +0000

I use a nick name. I feel it gives me more freedom, I don’t have to worry about what my friends IRL will think about what ever I write.
And when I start to make millions of dollars I guess it is good from a tax point too…Oh and before you all start telling me how immoral that is, just remember that here in Sweden we pay over 50% of our income in taxes.
Anyway II would probably chicken out anyway and pay my taxes, I mean a guy who does not even dare to write his name on his blog probably does not have the guts for tax crimes either :)

By: pcunix

pcunix — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 19:49:56 +0000

Full name. And my site itself is “aplawrence.com” which is my initials and last name.

Primarily, I’m selling myself. Like others here, my site is a vehicle for business income, so my name is all over it.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 18:53:55 +0000

My initial blog began with a semi-nickname which then turned into simply Kevin. Now with 3 blogs, they all have author first names only.

By: Martin Ralya

Martin Ralya — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 16:20:24 +0000

When I started doing freelance writing, I also switched over from using a nickname online to using my full first and last name.

Since my blog is a very visible writing sample for drumming up future work, I use my full name prominently there.

By: Janio Sarmento

Janio Sarmento — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 15:07:46 +0000

I always use my full name. Even if I decided not to anymore, my domain name is my own surname, and my blog directory is my name. :)

But on my other blog I always sign my articles just as “Admin”.

Best regards,

Janio Sarmento

By: Joe

Joe — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 14:51:06 +0000

Hey Darren,

I use my full name on both of my Blogs (If you use Blogger, only one choice for all Blogs, it’s in the profile).

On my Web page, there is no reference to me, it’s always we or us.

The other day, someone looked up my full name on Google and showed up on my Blog Stats.

Joseph Hauckes

By: Supa

Supa — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 06:00:13 +0000

I wonder if I can legally change my name into Supa “Dupa” Gama?

By: Tom Hanna - Financial Options

Tom Hanna - Financial Options — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 04:49:43 +0000

Cary,

You’re right of course. The way the program was rendering my name in the posts wasn’t something I paid much attention to, since the domain name itself is my name. But since you pointed it out, I put my money where my typing was.

By: Ricemutt

Ricemutt — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 02:50:27 +0000

I (obviously) use a nickname. As a new blogger, I’m still concerned about privacy issues, especially while I’m still learning about how blogs get propagated all around the Internet. Perhaps once my level of comfort increases, I’ll use my real full name. The only exception is that in the Chinese version of my blog, I use my Chinese “first name”, mostly because the nickname just doesn’t translate well.

By: kathleen fasanella

kathleen fasanella — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 02:00:35 +0000

I have two blogs. On the main one, I use my full name; I’m an author/consultant so it helps if people want to find me via search engines. Another blog is absolutely anonymous and I use an obvious psuedonym.

By: Jonic

Jonic — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 01:26:09 +0000

I use my full name now… Jonic Linley ;o)

By: yuga

yuga — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 01:00:39 +0000

I noticed that the bigger my earnings for a certain blog, the more anonymous I become in putting my name.

By: mark

mark — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 00:51:43 +0000

I just use my first name. it’s quite common, so it’s perfectly fine :D

By: Cary

Cary — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 00:47:55 +0000

Depends on the blog…at Cancer NewsWatch I use my full name because I think that it’s important for people to know the person behind the story, but on my other blogs I just go by Cary.