Let’s say you didn’t get to buy your domain name like I told you and you have to be YourNameWrites dot com. But you already had a Twitter handle that is @YourName. You have 8k followers, so you aren’t rebuilding THAT. You know what helps people recognize your brand? YOUR FACE. I’m talking about why you need a great profile picture.
Don’t be an egg. Don’t be a cartoon or a picture of your dog or a picture of your kid. Unless you’re Prince during his Artist Formerly Known as Prince Days, people are not going to know you by a symbol. (They really didn’t know him as a symbol either.) Be your face and be your face everywhere.
Your face is your brand.
Your website, blog, Twitter, Facebook, LinkenIn, Pinterest, GoodReads, YouTube, Tumblr, Instagram and your Google Plus (while it lasts) should ALL have the same photo. Of your face. Any platform that people MIGHT find you on and associate with your professional writings and actions should be consistent.
My exception to this is my personal, private Facebook profile. Exhibit A. On your left is my (2015) picture for all my platforms. On your right is my personal Facebook profile picture, complete with my Mom’s 1988 glasses and my half-crossed-eye trick.
Be professional. Be personable. But also be MEMORABLE. I love a quirky profile picture. Exhibit B: Eric T Tung, #33 Global Social Media Influencer. (Did you listen to the podcast episode where I talk to him about Twitter?)
Are you going to forget that face? NOPE. The tie gives him a semblance of professionalism and the great expression shows his personality. This is very much his BRAND. He is smart, savvy, and FUN. Think about who YOU are and what you want people to see. Take THAT photo.
What’s your brand? What is your photo saying about YOU? Let’s talk like civilized people in the comments.
Some other lovely people have similar thoughts.
Does Your Profile Picture Matter? by Social Butterfly Guy
The Science Behind the Perfect Profile Picture by Buffer (and if science says it…)
How to Take a Great Social Media Profile in 4 Steps by Digital Photography School
And if you change you photo on one platform…change it on all others, too! Will you be talking about the importance of Gravatar, too?
Um..make that “if you change YOUR photo…” I’m stuttering all over the keyboard this morning.
Hey man. I’m stoked on this blog, if you and yer girl get some time off from being pantres, we should grab a drink during sxsw. As for the header, I like the third one.
It’s much easier to untdsreand when you put it that way!