Using your real name online - Yay or nay?

I use my real name on Twitter and Facebook; but that's about it.

Google my name, you tell me if it's a good idea or not

Mind you I'm in the publicity business so of course it's a requirement for me:
I do local SEO=> if you can't find me, I've not done my job.

Google

I've got some pretty famous ancestors who I share this name with...

Depends on the situation, I generally keep my real name off of certain things but if I am working with someone and know someone I just give them my real name for work, especially since those dealing with me financially will see it on my paypal account.

To be honest, I'm not sure why not. I use my real name for everything, except here obviously only because I was asked to choose a user name.

But that aside, I'm proud to have my name associated with my work.

Unless I'm missing the point here.

I currently use an alias other than when I'm transacting. Curious to see how others have done this...

It depends on your personal preferences but if you are an new affiliate trying to promote multiple products, you may want to use a "user" name for each category.

If you are really good at many disconnected thing I noticed it makes it really hard for the people to believe you. I know, most people are not, in which case real name should be ok, but if you are good at, say, two totally different things people sometime won't believe you are good at either. Alias makes you more targeted.

Also, if you develop a niche site and plan eventually sell it, alias may be a part of an asset. And, of course, those of us who are still on 9 to 5 may not want the employers to find out about their night life. Depends on the job, of course.

About PayPal and clickbank, that's not completely true. They'll only see it if this is a sole properietorship. Otherwise they see the name of the company.

Hello Sarah,

I always use my name with my established niches

For selling eBooks in different fields a pen name works well

This situation and need will vary form person to person.
There is no right or wrong, just what fits the situation best.

Even changing gender for certain niches could be advantages for increasing sales.

Best Regards

I'd start with assumed names, then brand myself once I knew where I was staking my claim. You don't want to plaster your real name all over (say) yeast infection sites, and then go into some kind of classy niche like public relations. People will dig up your yeast infection sites and post them on message boards, then giggle hysterically.

Well I guess it depends if you are running an honest business or not. If you provide good products and services then your real name is asset.

Quentin

I use a pen name usually

Hi - I mix and match depending on my products. I use my real name for business products but pen names for non related products. I also set up pen names with a gmail address to keep things separate.

Unless you are trying to be deceptive I can't think of how not using your name would be a benefit.

Ideally, you want to brand yourself and your name and build trust in the marketplace.

I'd go a step further and would use a picture of yourself as well as your name.

In addition, if you were to say build a content blog filled with nothing but plr articles, scraped content and such and were to use it just for perhaps adsense/CPA/clickbank products than I could see not using your real name if any name at all..

Good luck..

In some industries there is something called moral turpitude. So it stands to reason, you would not necessarily want to be a teacher who was also an expert on drug abuse from past usage, even though your intentions might be honest and even though you might be sharing your story to help students choose a different path. (And no, I'm not that teacher ) For instance, in using the name A. N. Roquelaure, it was most likely the subject matter written about that caused Anne Rice to use it. Now there's one instance where the writer understood branding!

And with all this "company doesn't like your blog so you're fired" stuff I've read lately, maybe a pen name is not such a bad idea. It's your life and your choice. My only advise is, sit down and write out a plan before just using an online persona, whether your real name or a pen name. Otherwise life just might get a bit confusing somewhere down the road.

P.S. Michael Keaton's real name? Michael Douglas. He couldn't use it because SAG already had a Michael Douglas listed! Michael Douglas' real name? (I don't remember it, but it wasn't Michael Douglas.) And Martin Sheen's real name would have likely kept him from getting good work when he started his career. My point? Why does it matter about the name you use? Just go do good work and be consistent under the name you use!

always use my first and last name always. But I think you can use any name you want. Why would you not want your name on something you did?

there are many marketers that use pen names in each and every niche they sell in. i feel its a good thing. the main reason marketers do this is to keep people off their trail from finding out everything that they are doing in the market

I dont like using my real name as I don't want people googleing me, finding my personal facebook page (which contains photos of my family and my house), etc. My opinion? it's best to separate personal life and business life, and the only way to do that on the net is by using pen names.

Here's my two cents worth. I agree that it depends on what you are trying to accomplish. There is no right or wrong way.

If you are in several different niches then it is ok to use a pen name. For example, if you were a lady and was writing as an expert in a male dominated sports, then you may not be perceived well.

A little exercise maybe to sit down and ask yourself what are the disadvantages of using my real name? What am I trying to accomplish?

Hope this helps.

On products I create and when posting on forums such as this, I use my real name. On my landing pages used for PPC, I have a username.

I use my real name for my writing business. However, when I build my niche sites, each niche has a pen name. Why? I still work in a vet clinic, and I prefer to keep my online work completely separate. It makes it easy to flip the sites if I decide not to keep them for any reason.

I was recently asked to rewrite an ebook, the client found me via my website, and it turns out it's a lady I knew many years ago, when my daughter was a baby. The internet can be a small place.

Hi

I use my real name in the forum and on my ghostwriting site but I use a pen name for niche sites.

When I submit articles to directories I can use my real name or pen names depending on what the article is related to.

You just need to make sure you don't get confused as to who you are.

Mary

I use the same screen name everywhere, real name in bio boxes etc. The only problem I have had with this is that I have been stalked on line. Anyone can google my screen name and find out everything, including any man that may be in my life (I am single). That being said, men have shown up on forums that I post on with an alias and this has been an issue, but I have to deal with it because my screen name is my online presence. Lost a good man when he googled my name, but oh well. Guess he wasn't so great after all.