Do we select our friends in the on-line world by what their avatar looks like? You bet we do. What does your avatar say about you to the world? Are you projecting what you had hoped?
Your avatar is that postage stamp image you pin directly to your name. It’s your welcome wagon, your greeting, your handshake, your first impression and everything else that comes with a non-verbal greeting. Even if your self-esteem could withstand a small tornado, uploading and embracing the right photo can bring even a supermodel to their knees.
The Selection Process
It’s the moment of fret. You’ve just joined the latest and greatest social site (insert spunky name here) and while customizing your profile, you’re asked to select an image from your desktop that represents you… the dreaded “profile picture”. You quickly rummage your flickr memory, and come up with your selections. You wonder who will happen upon it, maybe an old flame (do I look fat?), maybe an employer (do I look responsible?), maybe your kids (will they laugh?), maybe a current friend (is this how I REALLY look?). The list of doubts between you & your ego could go on forever.
These random selections are more important than we realize. Many people stick with the idea that something professional on Linkedin is appropriate, and something more anonymous on Yelp is a good idea.
Your avatar is your passport to the online social world. When others see your name (mine is typically birdsall when it’s available), they make an instant connection. I connect my user name with the same profile photo/avatar on each site. When people see me pop up on Twitter vs. Facebook vs. Shelfari vs. Yelp, I am instantly recognizable as someone they already know, and have a relationship with.
Changing Your Avatar
When you change your avatar on a site like Twitter – you confuse the HECK out of everyone. People know you mostly by your tiny smiling square, it’s your “hello, I’m saying something”, and your followers take notice. When you change your avatar, your voice is no longer recognizable, and you may be shunned by your friends. That’s not to say that you can’t change your profile photo, but switching from your smiling mug to your pet fish could be the difference in being heard, and being recognized (unless you’re in a fish bowl).
One very clever Twitter user, social media guru Mari Smith has come up with her own solution. Mari takes her widely recognized image and drops in the desired elements to reflect seasonal changes & celebrations. Here is a sampling of her avatars, which she graciously sent me for this article. Mari is always current, hip and changing, but she never loses her voice. Regardless of how she changes her avatar, I always recognize her when she pops onto my screen with something to say. If you’d like to view all of Mari’s avatars, you can watch her fun animation here.
A Sampling of Avatars & What They Project
Here are a sampling of avatars from Twitter that I have selected (user IDs have not been used – to protect the innocent). What do these profile pictures say to you? Would you follow them? I’ve selected them randomly without reading any of their profiles or updates. This is what they say to me at a glance. See if you agree.
Spiritual - I am expecting kind and inspirational content and quotes. I am not expecting them to entertain me, or really be sending me content that I’m looking for. I won’t check them out any further.
Creative - these are my peeps, I’m instantly intrigued and want to check them out. I’ll read through their profile and hopefully find some good matches for myself.
Family Oriented - I get the vibe that there are a lot of family connections here. This is not generally an area I am looking to explore. I have a wide circle of family and friends that I converse with on Facebook.
Funny - I am thinking I’ll be getting some very funny blips from these users. I’m attracted to wit, and entertainment, so I’ll check out their profiles. Whatever their professions are, I’m betting they’ll be talking about it in an interesting way.
Hobbies and Interests - This is a great way to project something about your interests at a glance. I know who attends Burning Man, who digs Apple products, who blogs, and who likes to take photos. All people I’d like to connect with.
Locations - I generally know where these folks reside. I may still take a peek at their profiles, but I’m not really drawn to locations.
Animal Lovers - what’s not to love about any of these? I bring my dog Millie to work every day, and will read these profiles. Fido’s mug popping onto my screen is welcome if your interests match mine.
Creepy - No thanks, I don’t want any of these popping into my conversation stream.
The Eyes - I’m not a big fan, but a lot of people do this. I feel like you’re spying on me.
The dreaded ZERO - the worst offense. I will not view your profile, follow you, or be your friend. You are an empty square.
Me - happy, creative, looking for stimulating content relating to social media, art, wine, travel, entrepreneurship, Lupus, entertainment, pop culture and technology (to name a few).
[...] Print CEO wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptDo we select our friends in the on-line world by what their avatar looks like? You bet we do. … Your avatar is your passport to the online social world…. [...]
Nice post you have done. As for my avatar, it’s for hobbies and interests! :)
AWESOME job, Maureen!! Wow, you really put some research into this. Cool post - & thanks heaps for the props. hehee!!! I like to see how I can outdo myself. ha!
Cheers,
@marismith
What a fascinating bit of research. I love your classifications Maureen and they really seem to make sense. There is one in your family section who I know to be an SEO expert in the UK, he might of course be a family man and he is also a serious blogger too. From a semiotic point of view Avatars (the signifier) will certainly contain an implied meaning (the signified) and so deriving ‘meaning’ from something apparently simple such as an avatar has huge implications. They are a sort of visual ‘heuristic’ that allows us to cut through the ‘noise’ of the thousands of avatar images we see and give a quick impression of the person and their likely style and interests. The cat in the hat works for me!!
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Great post. I use my business logo except on FB. I took this approach to build my brand and I like my logo better than my pic. But you are right, everyone recognizes the avatar instantly.
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