How To Choose That Special Avatar That Screams You!

There are countless ideas and suggestions about increasing the popularity of your User ID, eBay Store, your blog, etc. More or less, they are all concentrating on socializing, participating and of course creating quality content. Indeed, these are the most direct methods of getting you and your business noticed. These techniques are more or less taken for granted by everyone who has been a part of eBay or in the blogosphere for a while. But there are also more indirect, more subtle ways to increase your popularity. One of them is the way you manage to combine your Internet experience with your persona, your avatar is your persona!.

So....exactly what is it?

The avatar you choose to use is your face in cyberspace. It represents you in the networks in which you participate, it even says something about you: if you have humor, if you like cartoons, if you have artistic tendencies, what combination of chromosomes you have. It is only natural that you spend some time choosing this avatar....it can be quite personal. After all this is the first and last impression you leave on those you may run accross in cyberspace!

A more wise, careful selection of your avatar can significantly boost your position in the networks in which you participate and, consequently, the popularity of your eBay ID...eBay store...or blog. If you choose wisely, people will remember you, and lets face it...we all want to be remembered!

Let’s first see why and then concentrate on how.

Remember Pavlov's Dog? Ivan Pavlov’s famous experiment with his dog showed how animals (and humans) can be trained to respond in a certain way to a particular stimulus. I wouldn't go so far as to say that people just react on signals without any critical thinking, but there are studies that prove that people tend to categorize objects and information. One simple reason is that it helps them manage their narrow memory scope. The study of social representations is just one theory explaining this natural human function. In simpler words, our mind combines logos with products……ideals with colors……dressing styles with music…..and avatars with people!

That’s why if you make a very good selection of an avatar, it will help you increase your recognition and popularity.

How to choose an avatar:

So your purpose when choosing an avatar is to combine it with your business and personality. When people see your avatar, they should immediately think of YOU.  Many people are not comfortable with using their personal photograph as their avatar, so other than showing your image to the world, there are two main ways to accomplish that.

Consistency: Be consistent. When you choose your avatar, use it in every network you participate. This doesn't necessary mean using a logo. It can be representative of your style, your favorite colors, your pet, or even the type of images you use in your every day life. But when you choose this avatar, use it everywhere. Personally...I always use something pink. I suppose you can say it's my "signature color"...My twitter name or ID is pinkperf, my ebay templates are all pink ( In my listings, my eBay store as well as in my eBay blog)...and so on. Hopefully when my buyers and friends see pink they might think of me!

Difference: Try to be as different as possible. Choose an avatar that draws attention and says something about you...Look for something unique and unusual...Remember, an avatar is your face and a mirror to your personality; you really don't want to look like everybody else!