Several years ago, Prince made a major branding decision: he decided to be known as "The Artist formerly known as Prince" and to use a graphic symbol for his branding.
If you want to be found and known, following "the artist's" lead is a good strategy for managing your online presence. Here's why: If I "Google" you, I should--theoretically--only find hits that relate directly to you. Strive to develop and use your name consistently across platforms--i.e. don't sign up with one name in LinkedIn and another on DIGG unless you don't want to be found in both.
You want to make it easier for potential employers to connect the dots and learn about you.
Some of us are lucky, we don't share our names and don't have to create our own unique moniker. For example, I have only met a handful of people with the name Chandlee in my life. Most of them have Chandlee for a last name (I was given the name Chandlee in honor of my ancestors, the Chandlee family of Quaker clock makers)...I don't know of anyone else named "Chandlee Bryan." So if I post anything online or find anything online under the name of "Chandlee Bryan," it's typically about me. (This, is--mostly--a good thing, though it means I run the risk of also being easily found when I make a mistake!)
If someone else has your name, consider using a variation of your name to present yourself--i.e. you might use an initial, your full name, etc. Then use the same exact name across website and social networking platforms...and check your search results. You'd be surprised how much this simple change can increase your ability to be known.
To your success,
Chandlee
P.S. Of course this also works in reverse, too: take care to not be known for the things you'd prefer to stay in the background...
Great post! I love the link to Prince. It is so much more interesting to read and learn when you find an interesting analogy. Creativity works!
Posted by: Tim Tyrell-Smith | November 23, 2008 at 01:33 AM