Pen Names in Internet Marketing?

[ruchirkc]

I've seen many Internet Marketers use pen names in some of their niches. Like Eben Pagan uses the handle David DeAngelo in the dating niche, and Frank Kern uses some weird pen name in the dog training niche. And many of the lesser known marketers do it too.

How is it beneficial to use a pen name? Pros/Cons? Should I use my real name for all of the niches I go in, or a pen name?

Thanks!

[sirkinm]

Originally Posted by ruchirkc

I've seen many Internet Marketers use pen names in some of their niches. Like Eben Pagan uses the handle David DeAngelo in the dating niche, and Frank Kern uses some weird pen name in the dog training niche. And many of the lesser known marketers do it too.

How is it beneficial to use a pen name? Pros/Cons? Should I use my real name for all of the niches I go in, or a pen name?

Thanks!

Great question. I've wondered about this (I'd like to write anonymously about some topics), and I've wanted to know what makes a good pen name. I've noticed that many made-up names use alliteration (like your example, "David DeAngelo").

[Vanessa]

The benefit of using a pen name for a niche is that you can group together all the information you publish in that niche. If you want to go across many niches, your name is not associated as the expert in any one niche.

If you'd like to maintain more privacy and go into a new niche, try it out. If you'd like to be publicly accessible for all the niches and projects you work on, stick with your real name, knowing that once its published everything can be traced back to your name.

For fun, I try to use a pen name when asked at restaurants. I get more a kick out of using a pen name in those situations than anything productive!

[Curtis2011]

Yes.

As both of the above people have said, it is not so much about "having a cool secret alter-ego" as it is for marketing purposes.


Even if you know that Eben Pagan is David DeAngelo, when you hear Eben Pagan you think "business entrepreneur and marketer" and when you hear
David DeAngelo you think "dating expert."

Also, I remember a video where Eben talked about choosing the name David D. He said it took him awhile to come up with something good that ended up as: David DeAngelo's Double Your Dating.

[ruchirkc]

Originally Posted by Vanessa

If you'd like to maintain more privacy and go into a new niche, try it out. If you'd like to be publicly accessible for all the niches and projects you work on, stick with your real name, knowing that once its published everything can be traced back to your name.

I don't get it how choosing pen names will give you more privacy? Seriously, if someone really wants to find about you, he/she will (and it's not that difficult).

Originally Posted by Curtis2011

Yes.

As both of the above people have said, it is not so much about "having a cool secret alter-ego" as it is for marketing purposes.


Even if you know that Eben Pagan is David DeAngelo, when you hear Eben Pagan you think "business entrepreneur and marketer" and when you hear
David DeAngelo you think "dating expert."

Also, I remember a video where Eben talked about choosing the name David D. He said it took him awhile to come up with something good that ended up as: David DeAngelo's Double Your Dating.

But can't pen names pose problems? What if you're an infoproduct marketer with products in, let's say, 5 niches. It'd be a pain to setup different businesses (and likewise, different PayPal accounts, emails etc)... Also, what if your business gets featured in the media? What then?

I know that pen names should be used in affiliate marketing, but I what if you're mainly dealing with selling infoproducts (as a vendor)?

I don't know, I'm still undecided on whether I should use pen names or not...

[Brutha]

I don't get it how choosing pen names will give you more privacy? Seriously, if someone really wants to find about you, he/she will (and it's not that difficult).

These days people who don't necessarily want to find out everything about you might still google your name.
Googling someone is an act that happens very often.

Someone who runs a very deep search will also act differently when the things he finds is one of many things that you do.