Written on April 16th, 2008 at 03:04 am by Darren Rowse
The Choice of Associating Your Name with Your Blog
Do you associate your name with your blog?
One of the choices that face bloggers when starting out is one around their own name and whether they will use it on their blog (and to what extent).
There’s a range of options open to bloggers:
- Blog under your personal name and promote it prominently on your blog (this is what I’ve done here on ProBlogger)
- Blog under your personal name but don’t really promote yourself (this is what I’ve done on DPS - my name is on the about page but not much more)
- Blog under an alias and promote that name (Skellie does this on Skelliewag)
- Blog without any name on your blog at all - letting the content speak for itself
I’m sure there are other options - but these would be the most common.
So which is the best option?
I heard a speaker recently answer this question and they argued strongly that the best way to build a blog is to associate your name with it. In answering the question they used me and ProBlogger as an example saying something like ‘when you think of blogging for money, who do you think of? Darren Rowse’.
It’s nice to have you name associated with a niche and it certainly can be a smart move - but it’s not the only way to build a successful blog.
Let me use myself as an example of this.
Here on ProBlogger I’ve always blogging under my name, included it in the byline of my posts, had a prominent about page, written in a personal tone, included personal details of my life and included video and pictures of myself in numerous places.
As the blogger I mentioned earlier suggests - it’s paid off. Having my name associated with the blog has opened opportunities for me to speak at conferences, pick up consulting work, meet partners to start a business and write a book. Some of these things might have come to be without promoting my name - but I suspect less so than they did.
But what impact has it had on traffic? Let’s look at the stats:
- ProBlogger has had just over 7 million readers since it started a three and a half years ago. It currently averages around 14,000 unique visitors a day.
- RSS readers osilate between 43,000 - 46,000 depending upon the day of the week.
The growth has been steady since I began blogging with different peaks and and troughs along the way.
But what about my other blog Digital Photography School
DPS is a blog that I don’t really associate my name with very much. Like I mentioned above I mention myself on my About page and use it in passing on weekly newsletter emails but my approach on this blog is much less about aligning my name with it and letting content speak for itself. It is a step up from anonymous blogging - but it’s much much less than I do here on ProBlogger.
If anything these days the names of other writers (those who I employ to write weekly posts) are more associated with DPS than my own name.
What impact has this had on traffic? Lets go to the stats (note, these are just for the blog and don’t include the forum stats):
- DPS started almost exactly two years ago (it’ll be our 2nd birthday later this week).
- As you can see from the Sitemeter stats it’s now over taken ProBlogger in it’s visitor levels with 8.5 million uniques in that time.
- It currently averages 20,000 readers a day
- It’s RSS feed subscriber numbers hovers between 41,000 - 44,000 readers a day
So despite it being a a younger blog with no one name behind it DPS has overtaken ProBlogger and continues to pull away.
Some might argue that if I’d associated my name more with DPS that it could have grown faster but I’m not so sure. My feeling is that some topics and styles of blogging probably do lend themselves more to associating your name with them.
I guess the point of this post is really to present the options and to point out that there’s no one way to building a successful blog in terms of aligning your own personal brand with your writing.
A Couple of After Thoughts:
As I go to hit publish on this post a few other thoughts come to mind.
An Advantage of Not Aligning Your Name with Your Blog - one of the advantages of not associating your name with your blog prominently that springs to mind is that if you ever choose to step away from your blog and sell it it can be quite helpful. One of the challenges facing many blog purchasers is that to buy a blog written by someone else is to transition the audience from one blogger to another. Obviously not having your name associated with a blog makes this easier.
A less Glamorous Pursuit - I always have to chuckle when I hear myself introduced as the guy behind ProBlogger. While this is true and I’m very proud of this blog DPS is obviously a blog that is doing better when it comes to traffic and readership. Choosing not to associate your name with your blog is not a glamorous approach. You might never appear on the top list of bloggers for your work or get written up in mainstream media… but then again that is something that I know is attractive to many.
Do You Associate Your Name with Your Blog?
I’d love to hear your approach to whether you associate your name with your blog. What do you do? How did you come to your decision? What are the Pros and Cons of the approach you’ve taken in your experience?
119 Responses to “The Choice of Associating Your Name with Your Blog”
Michael Beck
April 16th, 2008 3:53 am
Not only do I associate my name with my blog, my name IS my blog’s name.
* Miss Universe
April 16th, 2008 3:58 am
Sometimes having a ‘professional name’ - that is really colorful - will allow you to have the branding you need
but also have the privacy you need for those times when you want to be anonymous or you want to isolate your family from your work.
So in essence, you get the best of both worlds - having your cake and eating it too
DJ @ Fermentarium
April 16th, 2008 3:58 am
I guess the thing I take away from this is that it doesn’t matter. Looks like content is still King. It does give me hope about the niche blogging. I had no idea that DPS was on par with ProBlogger!
John Middleton
April 16th, 2008 4:05 am
Same as Michael, my blog is my name. I do that because I want people to think of me when it comes to web analytics for the small business.
However, I have found an opportunity in a niche area, and my blog has focused more on that in recent months. So now I am positioning myself as one with knowledge about comparison shopping engines.
Part of me wants to branch off the niche opportunity into its own website and keep more targeted on my initial focus. But I think I will just stick with my main blog, because that niche is contained as a part of my overall focus.
I’m not sure where this will take me, but I am enjoying the ride so far!
Herbert
April 16th, 2008 4:05 am
I personally can appreciate having my own identity mesh with my blog. I find it difficult to not relate to posts, or to hold back information from my audience - by being transparent, we can relate to each other.
For example, I never used to disclose that I was still a student; but as I moved on, I found it hard to explain or convey certain things (like my posting schedule, my quirky interests, my immature voice, etc). And if I hadn’t revealed that I was a student, I would never have been able to start videoblogging (which is a ton of fun).
Sorry, I might’ve went a bit off-topic there, but I hope some people can relate (har har).
Clif
April 16th, 2008 4:09 am
On Music In 2D, I follow the second option, which is to blog as myself, but not really promote myself. As a musician I have plenty of pages on the web that are all about me, and I wanted this site to be for other indie musicians.
I think the tone of the blog comes into play as well. A news or product review type of blog is usually impersonal and may benefit more from a non-personalized approach. On the other hand, a blog that is all commentary and opinion should probably feature the author’s name more prominently.
Gori Girl
April 16th, 2008 4:09 am
I post under Gori Girl at my blog, which goes by the same name. I have two reasons for this:
1) My blog topic (intercultural relationships) is not very close to my “real life” profession (economics), and I don’t want the blog coming up first when potential employers google my name. I don’t mind if people find out my real name (Never blog anything you’d be embarrassed for your Grandma to find out!), but I don’t want it too closely linked to my blogging.
2) Gori Girl is both easier to remember and easier to spell than my real name, at least for non-Indians. It’s quick, easy to say, and somewhat catchy - much more brandable, really.
Matt Farina
April 16th, 2008 4:14 am
I blog using my real name (the blog isn’t my name) because I started my blog and already had a built in audience from my podcast where they knew my name. The blog is about the same material as the podcast.
This is a great post as I am considering just using my first name and not having it very prominent on another blog I have been considering. It’s a niche that isn’t associated with the other stuff I do so the name recognition isn’t there.
K
April 16th, 2008 4:17 am
I associate PARTS of my name with my blog. (Grinning) Is that the same thing?
Seriously though, it depends on which blog and what purpose the blog has. There is no need for Clientk.com to be associated with me personally. It adds no value to the reader and no value at all to me.
However, my romance writing author blog is closely associated with that pen name, for obvious reasons. I want reader to not only read the blog but to buy the books and to do that, they need to know my name.
Communiteer
April 16th, 2008 4:25 am
On 2 of my blogs, I use a pseudoname. On one blog, I use my personal name. The choice is driven by several factors, but in part it’s also an experiment. On the blog where I use my personal name, I expect to get to know my community on a much more personal level. For the others, they’re currently more focused on a one-way conversation than generating community. If I choose to take them in the direction of community, I’ll make them more personal.
esvl
April 16th, 2008 4:26 am
I dont. I like to stay anonymous as much as I can. Only use my name where I have to.
Killer Picke
April 16th, 2008 4:27 am
My name is Matthew Giovanisci. That name is way to long for people to remember let alone pronounce. So I will either post under Matt Gio or Killer Pickle (which is the name of my blog). But I find it is easier to post under Matt Gio cause it can be remembered pretty easy. But I never thought about the consequences of my Author name. I’m going to look into that more. Great Post!
Deb
April 16th, 2008 4:30 am
This blog label/identity issue is one that I debate with myself all the time as I look ahead to how I want to move forward as a blogger. I chose an anonymous identity initially because I wasn’t certain how safe I would feel out here (the Kathy stuff had just broken). I didn’t want to embarrass my friends and family if I did something really weird as a newbie. Also I often work for somebody else and would not really care to get fired for what I write online.
Now that I am thinking of using my blog as an addendum to a page about freelance/contract writing I wonder whether to keep the title, or change it, or start a second blog. So many decision, so little time.
I like G’s Cottage; it holds a great deal of meaning for me because a part of me wants to share with others the life lessons I have learned even if I’m not as eloquent as some high profile bloggers. The idea came from the last scene of the PBS series “The Scarlet Letter” where Hester is seen sitting in her cottage surrounded by women who had seemingly everything; everything that is but hope. I may eventually add a photo and my name in the profile but I think the emphasis will remain on G’s Cottage and not me personally.
Voyagerfan5761
April 16th, 2008 4:33 am
I don’t. I came up with a pseudonym many years ago and have been using it as its own brand. At some point I may decide to associate my name with it (anybody I know in real life who has my email address knows who Voyagerfan5761 is personally), but for now I prefer to remain largely anonymous.
Oh yeah, a couple of my classmates have seen my stuff on the Internet and didn’t know it was me until I told them. Amusing… I guess I’ve done well.
Jodith
April 16th, 2008 4:34 am
I do associate my name with my blog, but that is because I am using my personal work experience as the basis for my “expertise” in the subject of my blog.
I have a personal blog with which my name is not associated. It’s funny, because that blog is a lot more about me, but it could be about the person next door just as well.
Mr. SEO
April 16th, 2008 4:35 am
I choose to associate my name with my blog. I had a url that I wasn’t using and bam the idea struck me. Start a blog with my name.
I haven’t seen any effect one way or another using my name besides searching for my name. I believe that using your name makes it seem more human. Also it is a bit of an ego thing too.
Sudeep D'Souza
April 16th, 2008 4:38 am
There is always a debate between anonymous blogging and blogging with your name and I have written about my experiences sometime ago in a blog post on my blog - http://sudeepdsouza.blogspot.com/2008/01/anonymous-blogging.html
Trey Meier
April 16th, 2008 4:47 am
I post under an alias although my About Me page contained my real name as well as my other aliases. I left it to the readers to choose which they liked best I suppose.
Some of my posts are very personal and at this point I’m a little uncomfortable sharing too much about me online, so I picked an alias that was very similar to my name.
After reading this post I decided to change my About Me page to show only one alias and nickname, rather than many aliases. I also changed my template to include the author name at the bottom of each post. I made this change because I think it would be hard for readers to interact with a nickname or nameless person.
Great post! It definitely made me think and re-consider how I had things set up.
Karen Lynch
April 16th, 2008 4:48 am
Hi Darren. I think, for the most part, it depends on your blog’s topic. For instance, my blog is dedicated to raising awareness of “all things breast cancer” (http://www.pinkribbonreview.com); Using my real name feels authentic; I bare my soul on that site because I am a survivor, the topic matters to me greatly, and who I am give me credibility (I hope!)
It wouldn’t feel genuine and sincere if I used a different name. Ya know?
Wayne
April 16th, 2008 4:50 am
It’s funny. Your posts seem to follow my concerns as I get deeper into blogging. This is my biggest one. I have associated myself with my blog Url and title, however, I personally don’t like it. It started as a joke amongst friends as a place where all my non-techie friends can ask me questions (due to the amount I get each day) and I would promote the Q&A appropriately on the blog.
Well, turns out it isn’t as easy as I thought to get my non-techie friends into any type of pattern/routine to supply me with questions to answer. They all prefer to call me instead.
Also, the tone of AskWayne.net as a domain name sounds like I have all the answers, which I don’t of course. I might be able to find answers and perform quasi-fantasical things on computers, but I feel uncomfortable with the whole ‘Ask Wayne’ concept now.
My thoughts were to transfer my blogs to other domains I own such as waynejohn.com (again, personal, but not as ‘know-it-all’ sounding, or establish BlogChronicals.com, where I can involve other writers with more ease perhaps due to the generic nature of the domain.
I would love some constructive criticism from anyone on this. I’ve been battling my next move in my head for about a month now, and I’m still not closer to making a decision either way. I have no problems taking a hit in traffic either, but like eMomsatHome, I too feel I’m limiting myself with my name.
Advice? Always appreciated!
Darren, yet another great, though-provoking post that was as timely for me as the sun is for morning. Thanks!
Shahar
April 16th, 2008 4:52 am
I don’t associate my name with my blog. The biggest advantage of this decision is that we are now 3 people writing and owning Dev102 blog. Having a name associated with this blog would have prevented us from joining together. We do have an about page but the general approach is like “Digital Photography School”.
Chetan
April 16th, 2008 4:54 am
I normally associate my name with my blog but didnt have my name in the domain http://www.thewwwblog.com/ . My other blog http://www.drchetan.com/ is related to my name as i think about its future and my dentistry career.
I have mostly seen having your name in the domain name had helped a lot for most of the bloggers like john chow, skellie, matt cutts etc. And this blog’s content speaks mostly for the blog and no association with the name makes no much difference.
Thinkjayant
April 16th, 2008 4:54 am
Great topic to start with. Well i had my thoughts on that. Since my blogging age is less than a month as of writing this comment, even though when choosing among other thing i came up with this question. Should i link my blog to my name? Here is what i thought about it…
1. Linking your name to your blog gives a personal touch to the reader. But as you argued, there are the four categories and different people have different preferences. Like my personal choice would be option 2 by keeping my name but not really promoting it.
2. Your comparison is not exactly fair. Reason being both blog cater to sample population of different interest / criteria.
3. The aging of the blog is also different. DPSchool was started when you already had established your name in the Blogosphere.
4. Another thing i would like to focus on is the spill over effect. You would agree that there has been occasions where you have knowingly or unknowingly promoted DPSchool, maybe just by referring to it.
5. Finally, there is advantage to sell the blog. But it would be really difficult to decide while starting your blog, whether you would sell it or not. I can say that for people who enter into blogging by passion. People like you.
Would like to hear on it from you.
Tajim
April 16th, 2008 4:58 am
Yes, i do associate my name prominately with all the blogs that i write. I try to promote my own personlaity through the blogs.
David Cheong
April 16th, 2008 5:00 am
yup. My blog have the same name with me :) http://www.davcheong.com, which is a short form name for me, and in which i was known as davcheong all this webmaster while.
sarah
April 16th, 2008 5:01 am
my blog “sarahspy” features my first name pretty prominently, i’d say. but i keep my last name out of it for my own safety/peace of mind.
Make Money Online
April 16th, 2008 5:02 am
I believe associating your name with your blog can be very helpful and provides the reader with a better more comfortable experience, but then again DPS is doing better then Problogger is so it leads to the fact the what really matters is quality content.
Make Money Online
April 16th, 2008 5:04 am
Sorry for posting twice but another thing is it can be is that you can’t compare the 2 problogger and dps have a totally different topic they cover, so it might just be more people are interested in digital photogrophy then making money online, just a theory.
SpaceAgeSage
April 16th, 2008 5:06 am
I just started a blog in February with the desire to pass on wisdom and thoughts gained from years of teaching personal growth via the martial arts and from tons and tons of reading on personal change that starts in the heart — from the Tao Te Ching to Wayne Dyer to Dr. Seuss. I wanted the information to be the focus, not me, so I went with SpaceAgeSage.
Andre Natta
April 16th, 2008 5:07 am
I started out with my name as part of my first blog, and it seemed that people wanted to know what I thought about issues. I still never said much because of what my job was at the time. I’ve since started a hyperlocal blog called The Terminal and did not associate my name with it in the beginning.
What I found was that as more people found out that it was me being the lead blogger on The Terminal, our numbers went up. It also seemed to have an affect as certain writers started posting for us. People still call the site Andre’s though and I’ve been trying to figure out just how to get them to start saying “ours” instead…
Trisha
April 16th, 2008 5:18 am
This is a very timely post for me as I was just thinking a few hours ago about what name I should use for the blog I’m working on.
I thought about using a nickname instead of my real name, and then mentioning my real name in the about page. Why? Because my nickname sounds more appropriate for the blog, and because I may want to sell it someday. This isn’t the Trisha Bartle show. It isn’t about me, it’s about makeup. You know?
We’ll see what I do. The site isn’t even up yet.
Hughes ap Williams
April 16th, 2008 5:19 am
Due to the nature of my work I use a “nom de blog”.
After years of self employment working with local politicians, lobbyist types, PR people, power brokers, etc., I found I often had opinions that would not endear me to my contacts, so I started a local placeblogger where I can say what I think.
Frugal Dad
April 16th, 2008 5:21 am
Most people in my niche (personal finance) blog anonymously if they share any personal statistics on their own financial situation. I can certainly understand doing so. I started blogging behind the “Frugal Dad” name myself, and occasionally referenced my first name in comments, etc. It wasn’t until I started getting some media attention that I had to reveal my full name for inclusion in a story. Because I had not revealed anything overly personal I didn’t have a problem doing so. My guess is that at some point all bloggers must make a decision to fully brand themselves and their blogs, or just continue to be the “man behind the curtain.”
Brad Brown
April 16th, 2008 5:22 am
I thought I had covered all the bases with regards to separating my blog and my personal life. Recently, I had an interview for a programming position at a bank. I forgot to change the email address on my resume to an account not associated with my domain. Luckily, the interviewer was a friend of mine, because at the end of the interview, he said “So, is there anything on BradBrown.com?” I sheepishly said “Maybe…” - at which point he brought up his browser and went to my site. I was slightly embarrassed, since the blog is a) oddly humorous and b) pink in color. It turned out ok, because he chuckled a bit. However, I realized that when it comes to exposing myself to the conservative public (in particular, employers), I need to dis-associate myself with my blog - at least until the blog brings in enough income that I don’t have to worry about the conservative folks.
Rachel Keslensky
April 16th, 2008 5:37 am
I see it as the “Professional” thing to do - i.e. since most of my work is freelance and more or less tied to me whether I like it or not (my comic and its art style, for example, are not just unique but also a key selling point of what I do), using my name lends a level of professional authority.
Also, as a webcomic artist, revealing a certain level of personality behind my work is just plain good for business.
Barbara Swafford
April 16th, 2008 5:42 am
I used to just use my first name, then more “Barbara’s” started appearing in blogopshere, so I added my last name. I think using your real name adds to the credibility of your blog, and shows your readers that you stand behind your words.
But I also understand why some with use pseudonyms (due to the subject matter, e.g. financial),
I had to chuckle at Brad Brown’s comment, and how he could have been “outed” due to what was on his blog. With more employers Googling prospective employee’s names, it’s all the more reason to be careful what you post in cyberspace.
Andy
April 16th, 2008 5:45 am
I use my name (first at least). Food is pretty personal subject and I think it lends itself well to knowing the people behind it, likes, dislikes, talents, etc.
T.C.
April 16th, 2008 5:49 am
I blog anonymously in order to be able to reveal more about my chosen topic. I don’t want to burn any bridges in my industry because of what I wrote on my blog. I can say things and report on stuff that may get me into trouble if I were to be open about my name. I do have an about me page and try to reveal a little just to give my blog some level of credibility though.
Pádraig
April 16th, 2008 5:50 am
Darren,
Do you feel that using only your first name can have the same effect as using your second name?
Abhijeet from Jeet Blog
April 16th, 2008 5:50 am
I think if you approach your blog as a business then in this world there are various businesses which started with the owner’s name in the brand and have been immensely successful. Hence including your name in the brand may not be a deterrent in your blog’s success provided you are able to market it well and write good content. I started ‘Jeet Blog’ which includes a part of my name. Although that was primarily because I couldn’t decide on any other name but later I thought that this name has the potential to establish itself as a brand if the blog is a success. So I’ll have to wait and watch. :)
CK
April 16th, 2008 5:50 am
In my little blog world, the mom’s are posting photos of their children and blogging about going to Grandma’s for the weekend, so it makes sense to not use our real names.
If I had a business blog, or if I was establishing myself as a consultant in some area, I would use my real name.
plonkee @ blogthority
April 16th, 2008 5:54 am
Like Skellie I use a pseudonym and promote it. I’m starting to find that it’s more me than my other name. A couple of the topics I blog on are reasonably often blogged anonymously, so it’s not like I stick out or anything.
Also, I have a day job that I really love, and I’m planning on publishing papers so I’d prefer people to google me, and get that, rather than a whole load of blogging stuff which is likely to have better ranking.
Mike
April 16th, 2008 5:59 am
When I started writing I’m used to write my real name,but it wasn’t a good choice.I was lucky when I tried to choose another one becase the Mike was manifested.All of my friends call me Mike.The only problem with my nickname that is very popular.I don’t care.This name’s easy and it’s mine :)
Maria Reyes-McDavis
April 16th, 2008 6:07 am
I only associate my name with the blogs that are focused on building expert status/authority as an expert, particularly those blogs that associate with my professional-service side of my online business.
I love your points in this post, it’s a great thing for people to consider from the start… especially the name/selling blog later issue. Super point!
Maria :-)
Dr. Nicole
April 16th, 2008 6:25 am
I like associating my blog with my name. I have stumbled a ton of different alternative medicine websites and wondered who was behind the information…what their motivations were for their websites and what not. Although I may recommend products on my site, I am recommending them as me. Dr. Nicole. So if I say that something is good, or I approve of it, I am forcing myself to take the time to do the research behind the product or food or diet or herb and apply the ten years of post secondary education I have acculmulated to form some sort of expert opinion. If people want to disagree they are welcome to, but there is so much hype out there in my field right now it makes me feel good to actually help steer people in the direction of the things that work. Step aside Dr. Phil…there is a new doctor in town. LOL
Dr. Nicole
April 16th, 2008 6:27 am
Oh yeah and one more thing. As a woman on the internet, it is terrifying to put your name out there. The first few days my site was live I worried that stalkers were going to come chop me in to pieces or be following me around in windowless white vans…but so far so good. To me that is the only real downside of putting my name and pic out there…SAFETY!
Diane Aull
April 16th, 2008 6:31 am
I work within a certain industry, and because I find it interesting, I write a blog that covers news and my personal opinions on subjects related to that industry. I have my employer’s permission to keep this blog, but I don’t want to associate it with them. It’s my blog, not some official (or even semi-official) corporate blog. So I post on that blog under a pseudonym.
But for my other blogs, I tend to either post openly as myself, or at least include my name on the “About” page.
Amanda Fazani
April 16th, 2008 6:42 am
Back when I first began blogging, I blogged under a pseudonym (mostly die to the subject matter of my blogs!). But I always felt disassociated because of this. Never using my real name or revealing myself eventually caused me to abandon these blogs.
Now I blog as me, full name and all. I don’t have a problem with this at all though as Dr. Nicole mentioned above, I was a little anxious revealing myself as a female blogger at first!
I also think a name adds credibility to a blog, and helps readers relate to the author (whether the author uses the Problogger or DPS method). But it’s understandable that some would prefer to remain anonymous or be associated with an alternative persona, especially if using their real name could result in employment problems or personal issues!
Chris Marshall | Martial Development
April 16th, 2008 6:46 am
Con: Immoderate and impolite posts may come back to haunt me personally, in real life.
Pro: I have no choice but to “own my words” and mind my manners, points that writers with pseudonyms often forget.
Con: I don’t want the search engines to think my blog is about ME–but my name is inevitably one of the most frequently occurring “keyword phrases”.
Pro: Hopefully, I am building both online and offline trust by using my real name.
RJ
April 16th, 2008 6:46 am
I’m mulling this very topic right now. I’m only using my first name on my newly built PF bog. Maybe I’ll do full disclosure in the future but I’m keeping mum on it right now, lest I have family and friends hit me up for money. Not that I have any to give out at the moment :)
Princess Ivory
April 16th, 2008 6:48 am
My blog is specifically about my life in Second Life™ and the metaverse, so I use my avatar’s name, Princess Ivory. I write as her. She is me. She is just my virtual self. I have found over time that the blog has evolved (this is actually it’s second incarnation, as one that existed under a previous name became too personal), and I do write about things outside of Second Life™ specifically, including my personal life. But I try to keep it relevant, and I do not use real life names, to protect myself and others from the wackos out there.
So, Princess Ivory IS my name, and that is the name that people know me as, whether through blogging, Flickr, Second Life™, etc. If you meet me through your computer, that is who I am.
next STEPH
April 16th, 2008 6:53 am
next STEPH is my business name. I first came to the decision of the name because I got tired of people teasing me about my real name. Most people can figure out that its me.
alex
April 16th, 2008 6:53 am
I didn’t use my name on my first blog, which was just a personal blog, but on StudentBloggers.org I have. The site encourages community and bloggers who identify their college are listed higher on the directory, so I figured I should lead the way with openness and disclosure.
Mike Ramm
April 16th, 2008 6:59 am
I have several blogs and I always use my name on all of them although Mike Ramm is not my real name. But on my personal blog (mikeramm.blogspot.com) I promote my name more prominently than on my professional blogs like PM Stories where I try to build a community in a specific niche. So I make use from “the best of both worlds” :-)
marti garaughty
April 16th, 2008 7:19 am
Hi Darren, since many of us do multiple things (especially online), I guess we all have to think about this eventually.
Actually I’ve been thinking about it for the past few weeks now because I have an art website, a marketing blog and I’m in the process of launching 2 more sites and a 2nd blog.
The thing is, they’re all in some way interconnected so I’ve decided that the one thing that will never change is me, my name so…
I’m following you’re lead and branding myself under my own name, everything else will just be a tag associated with or added onto my name. It took me awhile to figure this out but it feels like the right thing to do.
Matt Tuley
April 16th, 2008 7:25 am
I have a couple of humorous/frivolous blogs that I run anonymously/on the downlow. But my professional blog is one of my ways of building my brand, so it features my name prominently.
May
April 16th, 2008 7:54 am
I use my first name as part of the title of my blog. I like using my name to underscore the fact that it is full of my thoughts, point-of-view and interests.
Erik Soderblom
April 16th, 2008 7:55 am
I’ve got two blog’s !
And since Soderblom ( http://www.soderblom.dk )is not Smith, it’s pretty personal…
Even though freedom of speach is Fundamental, and not ever to be lost I hope, there are topics that ignites acute aggression in some people, if you write in a way those poor bastards don’t like.
And since those people don’t distingues between me, my brother, my father or any other with the same last name, there are topics that I dare not write about on my personal blog.
Thats the reason I have another anonymous Blog, to deal with controversial political, religious, environmental and so on, issues…
Hugo
April 16th, 2008 8:02 am
I do have my name on it, but only my first name. I’m not shure why, but I just started my blog and I think I want it to look a bit more mature first, and then I’ll tell my friends about it and put a link on my other website. Until then I’ll just see how it slowly grows. I’ll just wait till I feel a bit more confident about it.
JoLynn Braley
April 16th, 2008 8:03 am
I do associate my name with my blog and I did that because I think it makes it more personal, esp. since much of what I blog about is based on my experience, as well as research and such.
I think a main reason for this was because the first time I really started interacting online was in a weight loss support forum, and I didn’t connect so much with folks who didn’t use their name. I’ve wanted my readers to feel like I am a real person (which I am, just like anyone else) who they can relate to.
I also don’t feel as much of a connection with bloggers who don’t use even a first name, but maybe that’s just me and it’s no big deal to anyone else. I simply want to relate to people as much as is possible in this online world and knowing a person’s name makes it easier, but again that could just be me. ;)
Kelvin Kao
April 16th, 2008 8:53 am
My answer is: yes and no. My site is called Puppet Kaos, where “Kaos” can be interpreted as a variation of my last name “Kao” or to mean “chaos”. I also happen to like the real name approach though. For example, when I leave people comments, I use “Kelvin” instead of “Puppet Kaos” as my name. And when I subscribe to feeds, I mark them as “Wendy Piersall” instead of “eMoms at Home” (well… not anymore), and Kelly Phillips Erb instead of “TaxGirl”. I guess I like to associate the actual human names.
Sean-Fu
April 16th, 2008 8:56 am
I use my name, no my last name isn’t “Fu” lol. That’s a play on my name, basically a little nickname I had back when I was younger, sorta playful. My last name is just a bit too long to use for a .com.
Although, I do use my name on my main site (other than that .com), yet I leave my other blogs nameless due to being a bit paraonid. Short version, they are quasi-successful, making some nice pocket money, but they are in medium sized niches that don’t have a lot of that particular site type so it’s not congested, which means it’s making me some nice money from that. I just don’t want other people tracking my other sites down. I just don’t want to mess with a good thing.
Brooklynne Michelle
April 16th, 2008 9:05 am
I use a combination, my real first name and then a psuedonom for my last name, this is mostly because this is my bussiness name. The nice thing is people can connect to me as Brooklynne IRL, but my last name is still kept anon. I like it…
The Internet Apprentice
April 16th, 2008 9:19 am
One thing that I’m curious about when comparing the success of problogger vs the photography blog is the level of competition in the two niches. I suspect there are many more money making/copywriting blogs out there than ones dealing with digital photography. I suspect this is the main reason for it’s success, as opposed to the lack of having Darren’s name.
I think it pays to have your own name associated with your first blog. Blogging is personal, I think, and people want to get to know you. The only advantage I can see to not associating your name is if your long term plan is to sell the blog.
Thanks for the post!
- Dave
Allen
April 16th, 2008 9:31 am
My personal blog AlleNation obviously carries my name.
Because I previously launched 3-4 blogs before that and had 2 years of experience in blogging, I was well aware of the consequences, such as the inability to possibly sell this blog in the future, even though it does contain some worthwhile content.
As for identifying yourself or blogging under an alias, I’m strictly against that on a commercial blogs, supported by ads - you really don’t know when you’re gonna lose interest in a specific niche…and of course after blogging for months your visitors are going to relate this blog to you, which can harm the new owner if that’s the reason they’ve been sticking with the blog.
I think that’s one of the obstacles the new owner of JohnCow.com will have to deal with when he first gets into John’s shoes; It’s a prefect example of a wonderfully branded blog that’s been enjoying a huge success, mostly I think due to the laid-back style it’s written with, but the fact that John’s writing style is deeply embedded in the blog’s posts may come as a boomerang for the new coming owner.
Cheers,
Allen
Spanish Fry
April 16th, 2008 9:36 am
I use a pseudonym much like young Skellie.
Spanish Fry’s the name…
Zopito DiGiovanni
April 16th, 2008 10:00 am
Darren: Thanks for your insight on the commercial pros & cons of associating your own name with your blog.
I struggled with the idea of having a blog with my own name. I have a very unique name. On one hand, I wanted to use my name for branding purposes because I plan to be an author and a speaker in the future. I plan to do many great things and want name recognition. On the other hand, I knew that if I associated my real name with the blog, everyone who knew me could find it with very little effort (google my name and it is the first result). I know that all this information will be archived somewhere and will be cached and attributed to me even if I delete it from my website.
I weighed the pros and cons of this. I thought about it for awhile. In the end, I decided to use my real name. I’m not talking about anything bad or negative in my blog, and I don’t mention people I know by name in the blog. Maybe this is being over-cautious, but I know I’ll alienate some people. It’s inevitable.
I want to have a forum to say what I have to say, but I know that all of my friends and even enemies can find it easily anytime they want to. It’s a double edged sword. A great tool for promoting myself and what I am about, but it could also hurt me if I am not careful. People I meet or people that I go on dates with (I am single) will find it and read it, I am sure of this, and people have told me they have. I’m no longer anonymous, anyone in the world who wants to know what I am about can find out in a matter of minutes. I don’t have any delusions of being a celebrity, but for all intents and purposes, I am a public figure now.
Deciding weather or not to post in your own name is a very personal decision. The topics you decide to write about will also influence your decision greatly. You must analyze all the pros and cons of the situation, think about it and decide what is right for you.
Robin
April 16th, 2008 10:46 am
I use a made-up name on my Nine Clouds blog - for fun, really.
But I use my real name on my main blog - partly because the topic is relatively weird, so it needs a “real person” behind it to give it more substance, I think, but mainly because I am very new in the blog world and need to use my real name so I can connect with people.
Brad V.
April 16th, 2008 10:49 am
I associate my name with my blog (heck, my name is in the url). I made this decision because I figured that this will help me in “branding” myself on the blogger. While it has been a great decision, I do have to be careful.
If one were to Google my full name, my blog comes up in the top search results. So I try to avoid writing things that might offend my current/future employers and others.
skykid
April 16th, 2008 10:54 am
When I first start blogging I decided to use an alias instead of my name for it. I use the same alias for many other services online and it is integrated in the url of my blog. I am satisfied with the results I achieved that way.
At the same time using an alias gives me some privacy - which I think is useful especially if one blogs about personal things .
jhay
April 16th, 2008 10:56 am
My blog started out as a personal blog so my name has been associated with it from the beginning. Besides, we Filipinos prefer to call each other by our nicknames or first names so we often associate names with the owner’s respective blogs.
squawkfox
April 16th, 2008 11:10 am
I thought long and hard before writing under my alias “squawkfox” at http://www.squawkfox.com. My name is really common and therefore forgettable. It’s hard to forget about a squawking fox. ;)
I also decided to go the alias route since I didn’t want a bad google to haunt me one day. Excellent post as usual Darren!
Geek's Dream Girl
April 16th, 2008 11:14 am
I blog under my nickname, “e”, which is enough for me. I am a high school teacher, so I try to keep the blog as far from my real life as possible. Even tho it is PG in every sense of the rating, the media is always looking for ways to slam and degrade teachers, and I don’t want to give them any ammunition. :-(
angelle
April 16th, 2008 11:29 am
Weird. I commented earlier today on this but it appears it was eaten.
I don’t use my real name. I prefer the option to remain anonymous. Plus, I seem to attract too many weirdos online that I don’t particularly want to know any more than I already put out there.
Working Rachel
April 16th, 2008 11:40 am
I would love to blog under my full real name, but I write about personal finance and I don’t really want anyone who googles me to be able to find out the financial stuff I post on my blog.
I started out using my real first name, but soon after launch got a link from a site that was closely related to my day job and decided it was safer to blog under a pseudonym.
John
April 16th, 2008 11:59 am
I run a political blog and I use an alias for personal reasons, but I think there are advantages to using your name but also advantages to staying anonymous. In the political arena, it’s more advantageous to remain anonymous until one day I am fully involved in politics in which then I will go public.
Chris Guthrie
April 16th, 2008 12:16 pm
In my opinion, DPS will always continue to outpace ProBlogger because there are for more people that take pictures than try to make money on a blog.
I think it has nothing to do with your name association.
Harmony
April 16th, 2008 12:19 pm
If you intend to use a blog’s content for further marketing, ie for sale in one capacity or another, it certainly helps if you have made a name for yourself with the intellectual property.
On the other hand, the anon approach offers our ego some time off and the opportunity to serve.
I have my name on my page, but not in the title of the blog.
Thanks for a great discussion everyone!
jeff
April 16th, 2008 12:47 pm
No right answer (I’m marketingbean), although I’ll say that Seth Godin’s blog got my attention and I remembered his bald dome after my first visit there. At the time, I didn’t know how much stature he held in the blogsphere. I just liked his posts — and (key) remembered his name. Great content+memorable touchstone(s) = an RSS subscription. Same holds true for your blog Darren. Very topical, timely and enjoyable.
Ken Stewart
April 16th, 2008 1:03 pm
Darren, the time of this post is uncanny. I just had a conversation about this very topic today with a fellow blogger who is at times a source of very valuable wisdom. He just changed his blog name to his name and actually saw his rankings go up in search engines with a corresponding jump in traffic.
The question I was unsure of was conversion, but traffic is most certainly not a bad thing provided you continually adjust to achieve conversion.
Great post and always a little thought-provoking. I suppose to your point there are more photographers in the world than bloggers ;-)
Warmest Regards,
Ken Stewart
ChangeForge
Waggdogg
April 16th, 2008 1:14 pm
I think your blog name should be something people will remember, so when you post at other sites they are familiar with your name. Maybe by doing this they will come and see what you wrote. I have a hard time remembering people’s names but I remember nicknames, that is why I call myself Waggdogg.
QuietRebelWriter
April 16th, 2008 1:16 pm
Hi Darren - great topic, as evidenced by the big response. I have a website that’s my name, and then a blog that’s QuietRebelWriter. I did this for a couple reasons. As a professional writer without a company name, my name is where people will search for a writing portfolio and other hiring info. My blog, on the other hand, is more writer-oriented and personal. Within my blog, I have my name and website, but I don’t feature it too prominently. There’s the dual issues of protecting oneself (especially for women, as others have said here) and authenticity. I think I tackle the latter with good content, and address the former with a blog not named specifically after myself.
Thanks Darren!
Aaron from Webspear
April 16th, 2008 1:58 pm
Right now I am in category 2, but I want to move to Category 1 when my blog gets some traction. My blog is still at a very early stage.
In my view, the decision to publicize your name on the blog depends heavily on the topic you write about.
I have complied some of the Pros and Cons of each type, in post at my blog
http://www.webspear.com/blogging/your-name-and-your-blog/
Charles Smith
April 16th, 2008 1:59 pm
I associate my name with my blog and so does my partner. That is because we’re trying to get people to connect with us and I think that happens more if they know you’re name (or alias).
I’m also setting us up for our, hopefully, more public racing careers.
I think putting your real name out there makes the readers trust you more as you’re willing to try and put a face to your content too. Intriguing post (I am one of those 14,000 a day).
Aaron from Webspear
April 16th, 2008 2:00 pm
Right now I am in category 2, but I want to move to Category 1 when my blog gets some traction. My blog is still at a very early stage.
In my view, the decision to publicize your name on the blog depends heavily on the topic you write about.
I have complied some of the Pros and Cons of each type, in a post at my blog
http://www.webspear.com/blogging/your-name-and-your-blog/
The Masked Millionaire
April 16th, 2008 2:33 pm
I made the decision not to use my name on my blog. I am a very big believer in branding. My brand is “The Masked Millionaire.” Easy to say…Easy to remember. And a little quirky.
I don’t think my name would make much of a brand. In truth I don’t think Darren’s name is what makes this blog one that people remember. I believe it is “ProBlogger”. Great name and people remember it.
Ryan
April 16th, 2008 2:36 pm
I like being anonymous. It’s a feeling of complete freedom to say what I need to say. That being say, it’s harder for me to change the names of people I’m talking about and keeping them constant, but I feel it’s worth it.
At the same time, I suppose placing your name to your blog could make it feel more yours. I’ve never had a blog with my name on it, though, so I wouldn’t know.
Pablo Matamoros
April 16th, 2008 3:57 pm
I associate my “profile” with my blog, but not my name. My blog is called CodeSpanish. It makes sense as I am a software developer with Spanish background. The main idea is to promote the work of Hispanic IT professionals in English.
I recently started the blog, don’t write much myself. It is a kind of hobby/business at the moment.
In regards of associating your name with your blog, it depends on your goals. If you are pursuing financial goals, it is not advisable to use your name. You can sell your space, get a business partner, etc, with ease if the name of the blog refers to an idea and not to a person.
In the other hand, if you want to promote yourself for career purposes outside the online world, it is better to use your own name. For example, if you are a researcher in science, you might want to promote your own name.
Stefan Waidele
April 16th, 2008 6:01 pm
In some countries, you have only a limited choice.
Here in Germany, you might blog under a pseudomyn, but in the aboutpage (”Imprint”) you need to give away your real name and adress.
So, you have to associate your name to your blog/website. Your choice is how strong you associate them.
Carl-Johan Hunefalk
April 16th, 2008 7:01 pm
I use my own name for my personal blog. However, I also run two other blogs, where one has a pseudonym associated with it, and the other is anonymous.
For me, the blog with the pseudonym gets way more traffic than the other two, but that is also due to the focus of the blog. I think you can’t compare blogs on different topics based on whether or not you use your personal name associated with it. It’s more important with the content and value you provide your readers.
On my personal blog, I write about my professional experience in Internet Marketing, so it gets less frequently updated (a few times a week, based on my spare time) than the more focused blog where I use a pseudonym.
Kreef
April 16th, 2008 7:36 pm
This is quite a relief. I want to start blogging but cannot afford that my current employer spot me as a regular blogger. Now to find a good marketable anonymous name!
Steven Lohrenz
April 16th, 2008 9:24 pm
I use my name for my internet marketing blog. For my other blogs I use a pseudonym. The internet marketing blog is just my journey to financial freedom and independence, so I can blog about anything there - and stop at any time.
I think using your own name is good for building your personal brand but probably bad for building traffic unless you’re already well known.
If you aren’t known, then the question arises: “Why do I care who you are? Just show me what I want to know!”
xlt
April 16th, 2008 9:41 pm
i don’t hide my real name. though on the internet i use my nickname and i asociate my blog with it.
Alan Hocking
April 16th, 2008 9:43 pm
I blog using my real name and I have a brief about me page with a photo of me and the twins but the blog title that I hope is catchy enough to be remembered is “In between The tapas and Tantrums” as it sums up the content of my blog. A light hearted mixture of short stories about life on the Costa del Sol and the ups and downs and so often funny side to Raising Twins as seen through the eyes of a devoted but very tired father!
Tyler Michael Jonsson
April 16th, 2008 10:58 pm
Since my blog is about my experiences as an actor living in Hollywood, the name is my blog *IS* simply my name. I felt this was a better way to get my name out there and could serve multiple purposes at the same time.
Lily
April 17th, 2008 2:56 am
Interesting to see what other people do regarding this. For many years I’ve used my own name (Leah Whitehorse) on the net because of being published under that name. When I started In Love With Lisbon however, I wanted to make a distinction between that and other projects so used ‘Lily’.
On my other blog (This Dreaming Heart) I use my own name as I do on various social media sites. I prefer being known by my real name - except in the day job where I asked them to remove my surname as I am too easily traced on the internet!
Ray Fowler
April 17th, 2008 4:15 am
I blog using my real name and use my real name for my blog. As a pastor sharing my thoughts on God and life, I believe this adds a healthy level of accountability to what I write that would be missing if I remained anonymous.
Reginald
April 17th, 2008 7:46 am
Logically, the answer to this question will have to do with each individual creating a blog.
However, it should not be underestimated how much care and consideration should be placed in the decision making process of this question.
The consequential impacts to turn out to be either beneficial of detrimental.
Cynthia
April 17th, 2008 8:15 am
I’ve made a move away from my name recently for a different reason than most. As a writer, I used to work everything under a URL that was my name, but since I write mostly about TV, it only made sense to develop a TV brand (TV of the Absurd). Originally, I highlighted the fact that it was all me, but it felt too personal and I thought studios, etc. would take me more seriously if if felt like a TV Blog and not Cynthia’s TV Blog.
I’m not sure I made the right move there because I recently saw a discussion of a popular interview I wrote and they were saying, “whoever wrote this” and “he” and “I wonder.” Even though my name was on the article, obviously many people missed it.
stupideststuff
April 17th, 2008 10:08 am
Nope. My blog takes view points on current events and issues that aren’t popular sometimes and adds satire (on purpose) in the hopes of generating dialog amoung readers. I’d rather not have people easily looking me up— even though I know they could and how they could do it. ;-)
guardian angel
April 17th, 2008 10:49 am
Nice comparison, Darren. I personally think that your name does not relate all with the amount of visitors. It’s really the impact that we create that matters most.
I do not use my real name on my blogs because I want to feel some some privacy on my records. However, just like you i had my face on my blogs. Anyway, my pen name is related to my real name. No, not Guardian of course. It’s the Angel. It’s my real nickname though and I find my pen name attractive and related on how I blog.
By the way, I think I’ll be the 100th commenter. Wish me luck.
Thanks.
Lubel
April 17th, 2008 2:05 pm
Hi!
My blog’s name used to be “My Retirement” and its URL included my nickname, separated by a hyphen (lubel-retirement). I encountered problems like mistakenly replacing the hyphen with a dot, and I was not so comfortable with the URL because I am known for a different nickname by non-relatives (officemates and schoolmates). Worst was I think I was psychologically affected by the title because I’m not really too old to retire. I changed everything except the contents, so I’m now more energized and inspiring. The URL is now
http://idontwant2retire.blogspot.com
Seduction
April 17th, 2008 8:04 pm
Loosely…
Reginald
April 17th, 2008 10:26 pm
I agree with Cynthia. I think the ambiance or type of blog that is being created should determine whether a name should be associated or a brand.
Sandie Law
April 18th, 2008 2:53 am
I use my real name. I tend to write a lot about my personal life and experience, so it made sense to use my name. Plus, I want to develop a relationship with people and I find that’s easier to do when you’re using your real name.
mr.eims
April 18th, 2008 2:59 am
I use my name “eims” . well..its not realy my name but thats what they call me “im”. and I think name does some impact on visitors since its better if we have keywords of what people are searching. let the domain name speak the keyword is better actually..
Sammy Russo
April 18th, 2008 1:53 pm
I almost always try and associate my name with my work, my blogs, my everything. I’m proud of what I do and what I publish and put my name behind it all. My name is my integrity and I’m proud of that.
flo
April 18th, 2008 11:53 pm
No, I just go by my nickname/the variant of the name of my blog.
Jordan Loehr
April 19th, 2008 11:08 am
I use my name on both of my blogs, but i don’t really promote it overly.
The Home Crowd
April 19th, 2008 7:06 pm
I think this is a great topic, and with The Home Crowd being a month old today, and me, a complete newb to the blogging scene. I’ve found that my initial decision to hide away my identity is the best choice for myself. Blogging is my hobby, and a ‘come as it may’ secondary income, but by day, I’m an architect in a high profile firm. My life is all about homes, as is my site, and I have no intentions on selling the site in the near/distant future.
Here’s the issue: Professionally, attaching my real name to my site puts me in an awkward position should my firm discover it. I strongly doubt I’d be fired, but the site would be much scrutinized by those in power at my office. I work for a great office and love the work I do, but come closing time, my time is mine. I’d rather not feel obligated to put in plugs/free press on the site for the firm or our clients just out of a “conflict-of-interest” point of view. Some content may find its way in, but not with any sort of agenda.
Also, after reaching my decision and re-thinking whether or not I made the right decision (Whose name is really ‘Home’ anyway???), I realized that I in my position I am privy to certain information about projects I know better than to make public. But some information, which does not seem to be important, could foul things up. I discovered this recently on an international project as one of the consultants had leaked seemingly unimportant info to the press, and suddenly, the whole project went on hold. I’m not sure if anyone was fired or laid off because of this, but I’d rather not have that weighing on my conscience due to a post I’d written.
I still haven’t touched on posts like these, but will in the coming months. And by keeping it “out of the family”, whatever ‘leak’ that’s out there will be public record anyhow. Kind of how we’d all like to have someone on the inside over at Apple, to fill us in on the top secret gadgets they’re working on. If there is any of them out there, I doubt they’re using their real names.
As I’m relatively new at this, please let me know if I’m barkin’ up the right tree. My name is “Home” at thehomecrowd.
Paulo Martini
April 20th, 2008 5:27 am
I use my real name as my blog’s url and post using it, but I decided, at the very last minute, to gite it a name. More than 3 months have passed, and I’ve noticed that most people mention it by my name, not by the blog’s name. Something that got me thinking… :-)
Jeff McCord
April 21st, 2008 9:28 am
What a fantastic article. As a new blogger, I couldn’t decide what to name my domain or what to call my blog. After just a few days of thinking, I decided to just go with my name.
http://www.jeffmccord.org isn’t catchy, and it’s taken a few months to get some traffic, but overall I wanted it to be something I could call my own and well there’s really no other easier way to do this than to use your own name.
Just my 2 cents…
Jeff McCord
Jeff McCord’s Blog: Defining Moxie in a Digital Age
http://www.jeffmccord.org
tito mambo
April 21st, 2008 1:43 pm
I am a new blogger and I made the very conscious decision to not associate my name with my blog. My friends and colleagues know I’m the author. My decision was not based on any traffic rational, but for the simple, personal reason that I prefer not to bring attention to myself and feel more comfortable with an assumed nom de blog.
-tito mambo
Michael
April 24th, 2008 10:28 am
I don’t really promote myself with my blog, I do write under my actual name but the name of my blog is different and I don’t really talk too much about myself.
All my information is on the about page, the only reason for that is because I feel that to have a successful blog you should at least let people know who you are.
Reginald
April 26th, 2008 3:04 am
I thought I might add that a name has substantial importance in every case in which it is used.
Hence, very careful thought should be placed on the name chosen for any venture or issue of any kind.
Charles
April 27th, 2008 1:11 am
It is a tricky one but I’m planning to start a blog soon which won’t be under my name. The main reasons for this are that I feel that going under a business name leaves further room for growth into other non-blogging areas in the future and also, as you say, selling or stepping down from a blog which is associated with your name is much harder.
Reginald
April 30th, 2008 10:48 pm
I appreciated Michael’s sentiment, especially that he keeps very little personal information about himself on his blog. However, he still provides personal information in an appropriate place, the About page for his blog.
I genuinely wonder how many people make it a point to go to a blog that is just about an individual?
It can happen; but the ratio of failure to success couldn’t possible be lower.
Reginald
April 30th, 2008 10:48 pm
I appreciated Michael’s sentiment, especially that he keeps very little personal information about himself on his blog. However, he still provides personal information in an appropriate place, the About page for his blog.
I genuinely wonder how many people make it a point to go to a blog that is just about an individual?
It can happen; but the ratio of failure to success couldn’t possibly be lower.
Reginald
May 1st, 2008 12:28 am
Charles, with regards to choosing a name, I think that it is still very important that the title of a blog makes it discernible among the ocean of available blogs online today.
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