Niche marketing: do you use your real name?

Many Internet marketers also participate in other non-IM niches and create affiliate websites or even their own products about them, because there's less competition and they can use their marketing skills to stand above the crowd.

So when you create a website about another totally different topic and write articles about it, do you use your real name? Or do you use a "pen" name (i.e. a fake name that you use to sign your websites and articles)

Because for example when you submit your articles in EzineArticles.com under your real name, it won't look very professional when someone reads your article about "copywriting" and then sees tens of articles about cooking, golfing, and other unrelated topics in your author profile.

Or when they search for your name in Google, they will find all types of websites from you about all types of topics. Now that is really un-professional.

So what do you suggest to do?

Thanks,

Ladan

 

Lots of authors use pen names for this very reason. There are probably about (at least) 5 times more personalities online than actually exist, it's very common.

Personally I don't think it's unprofessional for a writer to work in various fields, and I wouldn't think less of them for doing so. But that's just my take on it, and there are always people who will consider it unprofessional. On the other hand, it may help you to use your real name if you have an established personality and a reputation for trustworthiness which can easily translate between subject areas. There are also some areas of writing where it can help to put up a photo of yourself, to add personality or to suggest sincerity.

I guess it depends on the subject. A children's author wouldn't want to be known for writing adult erotica. But a gardening writer might want to associate that with their writing on ecology, or cooking with herbs, because the one specialism reinforces the other related one.

 

I think if the writer can write wonderfully on different topics it is sign of professionality, so why not to use a real name or a "stable" pen-name. Of course if it's not an article he/she wants to hide, as in good example of children's author.
It's not bad to be good in fifferent fields

 

But it does say you're not an expert in one field, but rather a dabbler in many. There are a few ways using their own name could hurt them:

1. If they ususally write in a very highly paid niche, b/c they've built a reputation as an expert in that field, writing articles on other subjects can hurt them - then they just become classified as a general writer, and not an expert anymore. Big difference when it comes to pay scales, and it could cost them clients in a lot of cases.

2. A lot of people using article directories are professionals in their field, and doing it to build their reputation and link to their business site. Again, you can have an issue of it hurting your credibility depending on the topics you write about. If you're trying to appeal to a large potential client-base, you absolutely wouldn't want your name on any controversial articles out there (let's say political for the sake of arguement) - it's most likely unrelated to your business, and can alienate potential customers.

3. For professional writers who earn a reasonably high fee for their writing, submitting to article directories even when staying in their main niche, in their own name, can instantly diminish the value of their other work. If a client is paying you $200-1000 per article, and then they see that you're giving articles away on the same subject matter and around the same length, you'd better believe quite a few of them won't be hiring you again when they know they can get something similar for free.

4. A lot of people have a negative view of article directories in general (such as them being populated with only wannabe writers who can't get paid for their work, or them being filled with nothing more than promotional pieces, just as two examples). And again, if you're trying to compete in the writing world on a professional level, you need to worry about reputation. Submitting a lot of articles to places like that can cost you more clients than it would potentially get you (especially the highest paying ones).

I'd suggest the pen name route. You can still use it for publicity purposes, but you don't run the risk of it negatively effecting your reputation.

Jenn

 

If you are professional content writer you should use your real name.

 

Thank you Obelia, Toe, JHmattern, and eTechSupport for sharing your opinions.

I agree that it's rather good for a "writer" to be able to write helpful articles about various topics, but what if s/he is a well-known respectful expert in his/her professional field.

For example let's say he is a professional lawyer who is known for his great legal advice and professional services. What happens if people see he has written articles about gardening, cooking, fitness and so on.

Don't you agree that it will make a negative effect on his professional reputation?

Well, I'm not a lawyer, but I'm NOT a "content writer". I'm consirederd an expert in my professional field. So I'm concerned about hurting my reputation with containing some unrelated articles in my author profile.

 

I share your concerns completely for the reasons I stated above. Just go with a pen name, and you don't run the risk... especially since you're not trying to market yourself as a content writer anyway.

 

I use a pen name for pretty much every different site I run. That is the ones that I don't interlink.

 

Thanx, Jenn, now I see where I was wrong

 

You weren't "wrong." We just had different opinions.

 

I just didn't think about this globaly (if it's good word), of course you are more compitent in the question. And now I understand why it's important to have pen-names if you are going to write on different topics

 

I use a pen name and hate when a web search for my real name brings out bruce lee books...

 

Pen name is just there to protect you. Thats how I feel. It's kinda like your handle on forums and such in a community where people that knows each other only through the forum.

 

I have never used a Pen name for anything but I can see where it might come in useful... I am fine with people knowing that I might not be an "expert" in any field, although you will obviously get more attention by being one. I have studied PHP for 2 1/2 years and been in Marketing for approximately 10 years now but never consider myself an expert in either or... so therefore, while I do "dabble" (as Jenn says ) in other areas -- I haven't had the mind to use a Pen Name/Alias, yet.

I DO see where it can be useful though.

As I've seen today - some people will stalk you from Forums and if they know your real name - they might try to bash your integrity and/or knowledge on any subject and it could definitely save you from having these stalkers appear around anything you write.

 

if you want to dominate any niche...i think honesty from the start counts. You should really use your name.

but i understand why people dont do it. so there are both pro and cons that out weigh each argument.

 

So, why can't a lawyer be a gardener too? A lot of highly educated people who work in one field have hobbies where they could also be considered an expert.

I worked with a COBOL expert who heavily participated in Civil War Reenactments. Why would writing about the Civil War diminish his earning ability as a COBOL expert?

I disagree with hiding secondary sites behind a pen name - assuming, of course it isn't of a questionable moral or ethical nature. Why can't my programmer friend also have an elaborate site on the Civil War? Or make free presentations on the period? What does one have to do with the other? Is it reasonable to say because he will come to a school and give a presentation for no compensation he will repair the accounts payable application for free too?

Why can't a writer who loves to garden also have a gardening site? I would think anything on that site could be considered additional writing samples.

If Rosie Greer wrote a book about needlepoint, would that decrease the value of a book he writes about football?

All that aside, the problem with hiding is that eventually someone will find you.

 

It's not an issue of being dishonest at all. It's a very common professional practice for promotional purposes. And yes, writing about one topic when you're trying to build a reputation as an expert writer in another field can in fact cause problems, and I already demonstrated several examples previously in this thread, so I won't waste time repeating them.

The fact of the matter is that the big money in writing is in niche specialties. What you write creates your "image" in a professional environment. Writing about a subject that conflicts with that professional image you're trying to convey to potential clients in your primary market can be a problem if they come across your other content. While there are obvious problems with writing on controversial issues under your own name in those cases (not directly affiliated with the expertise you're trying to promote), seemingly "innocent" side niches can also be as problematic. For example, if you have a writer who specializes in sports, men's relationship issues, or anything where they work to build a "man's man" image, and then they start writing under their name about something like wedding planning... well, it's going to cause an image clash.

It's not impossible to write in multiple niches and make it work. But you have to acknowledge potential problems, even when two subjects seem completely innocent and unrelated, when you're making that choice in your career's best interest.

 

It's a matter of degree and perception. Whilst having two specialities is perfectly credible, how many people can be expert in five, or ten? You might be a voracious learner with deep knowledge of a lot of fields, but clients won't necessarily believe that.

Or you might have a history of being an expert in a couple of fields a few years ago, but your interests have changed. People might still consider you as an expert in your old fields because your articles are still around, perhaps in books or archived around the web. And maybe you no longer keep up to date on these subjects. If you don't use a pen name, you will keep having to explain to people that you now devote most of your time to researching and writing about different topics.

 

I use a pen name for my every other niche....I mean...I do a lot of different things and I can see one niche hurting the other...it's not being dishonest for me, it's just there to make sure I allow room for myself to make mistakes and so on. Although I have to admit I sometimes tend to sign off blog comments with my real name "Ana"...creates a bit of trouble at times.

 

I tell my real name only to people I know or if they need it to pay me. yutewa00 is not my nick also.