[MyBlogLog](http://www.mybloglog.com) is an essential social networking tool for bloggers to get in touch with their readers as well as other bloggers. The site “enables you to take advantage of your existing presence on the Web and ties it into communities of like-minded readers and authors to add context to the conversations in which you take part.” The potential for you to market yourself through the site, though, reaches beyond that.
Look at the average blog community member’s avatar and more often than not you will just see the person in the photograph. If you are going to use your photograph as your avatar, keep one thing in mind, sex sells. While it may not be the most targeted way to attract people from other communities, having an attractive photograph in place of your avatar is more likely to get people to click on your profile and therefore be linked to your blog or site. Look at the following pictures for example:
While using your photograph as your avatar does add a personal touch to your profile, you don’t necessarily have to use it. You can leverage your visibility in blog communities on MyBlogLog to further market yourself and your blog by using an avatar that displays your corporate logo or simply the url of your site.
Take it one step further and you can use a corporate avatar as your image for your instant messaging client as well. This way, every time you are talking to anyone, they are clearly made aware of your corporate or blog-related affiliations and might even pay you a visit.
Keep in mind that while changing your avatar to reflect your affiliations to others in the communities that you are a genuinely interested member of is one thing, but doing this for the sole purpose of spamming other communities is completely unacceptable.
Michael Jensen explains how this flaw in MyBlogLog can be exploited to spam communities and websites that use the MyBlogLog widget.
Two Ways to Market Yourself on MyBlogLog
Sadly, the girls just don’t do it for me. Can’t quite figure out why… maybe there’s something wrong with my eyes?
Ah Ha! I thought you looked different than I recalled from ASW, Joe. We didn’t meet, but I was at the Super Affiliates session where you asked the questions about an overly competitive affiliate marketspace. When I saw your MBL avatar I thought it was just my beer goggles at the time.
I wonder how well it works because you didn’t even try to spell your name as “Jo”.
LOL beer goggles!! The photo is an eye opener right? Thats classic jason!! I’m sorry we did not get a chance to meet at ASW. I had a blast in vegas how about you? Did you like asw?
I’m sorry wendy I totally forgot about the female demographic when considering a mybloglog avatar. Maybe a post of some muscle bound hunks could help draw traffic as well its just not my style ;-p.
lol, this is ticklishly true and would be tantalizingly tempting for any new blogger and old-but-dusty to try out.
I use my corporate logo everywhere, including MyBlogLog. I like the idea of people instantly recognizing me on various services. I can understand the usage of “hot girl” avatar, but I would never do it myself. My recommendation to users would be to choose something clear, recognizable, and simple and stick with it.
Everyone has been replacing their avatars with pictures of girls. It’s pathetic. I was under the impression that blogging was the one type of website where the webmaster was truly transparent (in most cases) and actually tried NOT to actively deceive his members. Are we trying to make MyBlogLog just another MySpace marketer’s playground?
Gregg, of course I would go to a networking event dressed like woman, what kind of weirdo do you think I am?!
Sorry, although there are some great points being made here, I can’t help but find the funny side to all of this
LOL, thanks for the laugh Wendy! Hilarious! Its funny how fast people can forget that their are women in this industry.
Damn, I thought blogging was becoming a passion of really hot women! In all seriousness, sex definitely sells and an attractive image will increase your CTR. This is an old tactic and we see it in all forms of advertising from online media, print and TV.
Avatars are a form of self expression and should some how represent you. So I’m in the present oneself honestly camp.
One of the first features the MyBlogLog folks added was a means to ban people from your site — you can see the little “x” on any photo. I think gaming your avatar would cause you to get banned from many sites. Also, they have an abuse reporting mechanism.
As much as I appreciate some quality cleavage in spreading the word about my latest aerodynamics physics post, I’ve (rather appropriately) opted for a gore laden avatar of a man getting his arm ripped off (animated gif). Really helps drive home bernoulli’s principal.
I feel a little dumber for having read this post. Thanks for making me think though.
LoL!
That’s certainly true. I’ve experienced it myself. Where ever some with those avatars come to my blog. I tent to check out their profiles