Using your real name

[Temporary]

Do you use your real name for submitting to Article Directories, or when writing a Review Site, Blog Comments, and a thousand other locations.

The point being that if I was to use my real name in the above places, then a simple Google search on my name will reveal, piece by piece, my marketing strategy.

Or another likely situation: I have an email list for product x, and on this list I use my real name. I'm known as an expert in product x to them. Know they could easily look me up on Google and find out that I also write about product y.

Is that a big issue? Should I use an alias in different places? Seems unethical.

[LOAMarketing]

Hmm... as far as people on your product x mailing list discovering that you also write about product y, I'm not sure I see the big concern... many internet marketers promote a number of different products/services, related and otherwise so I don't think anyone would fault you for that.

Now, I suppose if product x and product y are direct competitors then you might have a conflict of interest from the vendors' points of view but still not from your readers.

As to worrying that someone might steal your marketing strategy, that's true of any online marketer isn't it? And in fact, aren't we all doing many of the same things anyway?

I think you have to let that concern go... it's not healthy and certainly not productive to stress over every move you make with the idea that someone might copy you.

Imitation after all, is the biggest form of flattery and there's plenty of the internet pie to go around for everyone.

Just my two cents

[wbakhos]

Its a grey area I believe.

I don't think there is anything wrong with using a Pen name especially if your product is more suited to a particular demography. For example I'm a guy but if I got into the make-up and beauty niche I would think people don't want to hear about applying lipstick from a guy.

I have a couple of pen names but as an Internet Marketer I am who I am.

Just depends on how you feel about it and whether it will be beneficial. Nothing wrong with it and its not exactly being sly. Think of it as your stage name.. I think if Eminem used Marshal Mathers he'd prob not be where he is now!

[JeffMitchell]

Just imagine this: you are promoting xx product and you are building a list to market to. If you are going to be serious about building a list you are going to want to dominate you name in the 3 key search engines, google, MSN and Yahoo. (all of which I am still working on) If you want to be successful in this industry you have to be in control of the conversation going on about you....

How do you do that..

Control the search engines.

All of you profiles from Myspace, Twitter, Facebook, Ezine Articles, Digg, LinkedIN need to be prominate in the top 10 of google.

It is all about social belief....and social proof.

You are the business, not the product, not the links...you

so yes, you should treat your name as the brand that you are selling. In the long term you will be more respected and your promotions will be more prominate.

Jeff Mitchell

[Temporary]

@LOAMarketing: I'm in the same frame of mind really. I can just envision typing my name into Google and coming up with every article I've written, every blog I've commented on, etc.

You see, I just typed in your name, and your nickname in Google. Came up with your internet footprint.

Eh, you're right. So what. Even though I really like the name "Joe Bloggs" and "John Citizen", I think I'll leave them for another occasion.

[Temporary]

Originally Posted by wbakhos

...I think if Eminem used Marshal Mathers he'd prob not be where he is now!

Good example. That makes a lot of sense.

Originally Posted by JeffMitchell

... you are going to want to dominate you name in the 3 key search engines, google, MSN and Yahoo.

... You are the business, not the product, not the links...you

Jeff Mitchell

That reminds me of an article written by Julie Ross on Online Reputation Management (ORM)... I can't insert links into posts yet. (new member)

[Marian]

I've no problem with using my real name... at least so far. :-)

Marian

[John Dufresne]

I use my real name.
I've only used a pen name on articles that wasn't very good.

[Matt Wolfe]

I use my real name but I don't think it matters between a pen name and a real name. I do think you should be consistent though. I don't think that you should worry about your name showing up for different products or in different niches.

I think using the same name everywhere will only solidify your expertise in your market. If you search my name on Google you will probably find my Myspace, my facebook, my twitter, my linkedin, my blog, etc. ect. I do this on purpose. If I ever decide that I want to release a product about how I got where I am, I want people to do a search for me and see that I am a real person and that I am accessible. I believe it is part of my marketing strategy, not a detriment to it...

Matt

[Aimee_91]

I do use my own name in some cases, however if you are writing the for someone elses website then they may change the name anyway. Its all down to personal preference apart from that. Some dont like giving out personal info and many dont mind.

Mel

[midasman09]

Since 1989 I've been selling my "Midas Reports" (a group of money-making reports)

I'm getting ready to update these and have chosen to go with a name that coresponds with these reports.

"Midas Man"

[DogScout]

Real name = real credibility

All the successful people I know use their real name. (which doesn't mean there are aliases out there that are not successful, just that I have not met any.)

[Steven Carl Kelly]

I never use my real name online if I can avoid it.

[embrown]

If you are trying to build a brand with your name, then I'll say include your real name, or whatever pen name you are writing under.

I use my Pen name, which is my middle and maiden name (my favorite names ) in almost everything I do. I figure that if someone were to Google you, their would find that you not only know what you are talking about, but you are everywhere talking about it. Which adds to your niche authority.

On the other hand, if you are just testing out random niches or whatever, maybe use a different name until you want to start establishing yourself?

[CDarklock]

Originally Posted by Temporary

The point being that if I was to use my real name in the above places, then a simple Google search on my name will reveal, piece by piece, my marketing strategy.

Well, yeah. That's what the smart players do: reverse-engineer what the successful people are doing.

I've been on one particular marketer's list for two years. I've watched his newsletter series recycle several times. The fun part is that it's not exactly the same... he makes changes, adds new things, deletes things. And since he's over there collecting data and doing all kinds of work, you can figure things out without doing all that work yourself.

For example, he sent out some long sales copy for a product, and a couple weeks later he sent very different copy for a different product. Fast forward a couple months, and here comes the first product again... but the copy is altered! It looks a lot more like the copy for the second product, and sure enough, a couple weeks later here comes that product again - with the copy virtually unaltered. A couple of months later, here's the first product a third time... largely unchanged from the last cycle.

It doesn't take Einstein to figure out that the sales copy for the second product performed better. And while this marketer invested over four months in emails to a large list to figure that out, I got to learn it for free.

But here's the crucial element of this: when I use that type of sales copy, I probably won't use it on the same product. I probably won't use it in the same niche. And even if I did, I probably wouldn't make a dent in his sales.

There's more than enough room out there for everyone to make a lot of money. Don't sweat the technique.

[vicerex]

I used my real name in Article Directories and Blog.

[Damz]

If your Name is not an English one, Is it affecting to your sales..?
Eg: Let's say you have a Arabic/ Some other odd name...You are blogging for English people...Would they buy from you? Should I use my real name on Blogging ?

[Alexa Smith]

I use my real name in forums (in which I don't at the moment disclose the niches/products for which I'm an affiliate) and for my writing business.

For affiliate marketing, I use one pen-name per niche (not per product) and take care to use the same name for all articles, blog-comments, press releases, reports and other content put out to promote each niche.

Rightly or wrongly.

[kendrickyi]

Can someone tell me why Beyonce is calling herself Sasha Fierce?

Anyway, EzineArticles gives a good example. I'm their mailing list you see, and I got an email that went like this.

Do You Write About More Than one Topic?

You may have a main area of expertise, and then multiple sub-topic or different topics that you write articles about (some to pay the bills and others to feed their creative spirit). To avoid personal author brand erosion and solidify your expertise in front of the target niche that you write about, you must come up with a strategy to separate your various article topics.

A solution is to create multiple versions of your name or pen-names that you write under so that each one is locked in on a particular area of expertise.

Here's a fictitious name I picked out of the air to illustrate an example as to how many separate author names could be created out of a single persons name:

* Suzanne Jo Parker
* Suzanne J. Parker
* Suzanne J.P.
* Suzanne Jo P.
* Suzanne P.
* Suzi P.
* SJ Parker
* S. Parker

You get the idea. Each of these author names is STILL the same person, yet you can choose to lock each variation of the name to a separate topic to write your articles about. When using this strategy, a person reading your article may attempt to read others that you've written, but they will only see your other articles about the same topic. There will be no author brand erosion.

P.S.
@CDarklock wow I guess that's what's meant by recycling content?

P.P.S.
@BenFedrick I've seen some slavic/scandinavian/long names used. I don't think it matters what kind of name you use. Each person has a name. Nobody has a right to discriminate you for having a name that is difficult to pronounce or isn't english.

[zcrafts]

Originally Posted by Temporary

Do you use your real name for submitting to Article Directories, or when writing a Review Site, Blog Comments, and a thousand other locations.

The point being that if I was to use my real name in the above places, then a simple Google search on my name will reveal, piece by piece, my marketing strategy.

Or another likely situation: I have an email list for product x, and on this list I use my real name. I'm known as an expert in product x to them. Know they could easily look me up on Google and find out that I also write about product y.

Is that a big issue? Should I use an alias in different places? Seems unethical.

Normally most of the people dont use real name for the situation you stated here..I dont think thats going to help you.