Looking back to 15 years ago, could you have imagined that instead of Big Brother taking over the world and turning it into a dystopian sci-fi story, we would actually do it to ourselves?
Seriously, look at how many of us are identified by an @ symbol. Take a look at Instagram, or any other social media or content-sharing platform. We’re no longer Jane, Kimberly or Danny. We’ve become @sunshinebutt or @sluttypickels or some other @goofy_descriptive_sexually_infused name we’ve conjured up.
There might be dozens of legitimate reasons why you wouldn’t want to use your real name as your social media handle or career name, so I’m not advocating that.
Humor aside, it’s safe to say there are two categories of hounds among creators. In the first group are folks only trying to gain a little attention, build up some followers and feed their casual OnlyFans account for some quick cash, not really thinking about the future or a career in adult. In the second group, there are people who are 100% trying to build a long-term brand with every intention of making a career out of their modeling and/or social media presence.
If you’re in group one, you’re not really going to care about this article or the advice herein, but if you fall into the second group, read on and think about your next move carefully.
Look at some of the most recognizable industry influencers over the past three, five or even 10 years, with names like Nikki Benz, Sophie Dee, Ava Addams and Kendra Sunderland. You’ll notice there’s a first name and a last name, and that you can find them on Instagram, OnlyFans, Variety, IMDB, Huffington Post, XBIZ and any other site under those same names — not some weird symbol followed by something you would not expect to be called in 10 years. While using a cute or seductive @handle on social media might seem to offer endless possibilities as you’re thinking of creative ways to use it, it’s definitely not going to benefit you in the pursuit of a bona fide career.
Think about it like this. If a major sponsor wants to hire you as the face of their brand, meaning they want you to be in their print ads, streaming ads, TV ads and everywhere else they can possibly advertise, do you really think they’re going to feel comfortable parading you around as their brand ambassador under the name of @GangsterGingerBabe? Forget the fact that you have 3 million Instagram followers; it’s not going to matter if your social media handle is @GangsterGingerBabe. There are exceptions, of course, but generally brands like people who sound like people.
Famous celebrities use pseudonyms all the time. Do you know the birth names of Marilyn Monroe, Elton John, Lady Gaga, Olivia Wilde or John Legend? Maybe you do, maybe you don’t, but they didn’t change their names to @anything. Instead, they changed their names to something that would follow them for the entirety of their careers. Now, at the ripe age of 60, I might be a little “old school” with some of this advice, but I promise you this: you’re going to go a lot further in your career by using a moniker that can follow you easily for five, 10 or 20 years without you growing out of it or one day regretting what may have seemed clever in your rebellious youth.
There might be dozens of legitimate reasons why you wouldn’t want to use your real name as your social media handle or career name, so I’m not advocating that. After all, you may have family concerns, fear of stalkers, a complicated name that isn’t easy to pronounce or spell, a day job requiring some anonymity, other celebrities with the same name or maybe just a super-boringly common name that would get lost in a search engine.
So change your name, but be smart about it: @JennyIndiana is much more forward-thinking career-wise than @NakedIndianaChick.
Maybe you actually do want to use your real name, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, but if there are a million profiles under “Kelly Smith,” you may need to be a little creative, with variations like @TheRealKellySmith, @HeyImKelliSmith and the like.
You get the idea. There is a creative way to select your name while maintaining your professionalism and then there is a short-term way to name yourself that isn’t ideal for a full-blown career. Know what you want, and make choices that will help you get there.
Danny Ferretti has over 25 years in the marketing industry and is the co-founder of GFE Model Services and Fangear.vip, a company that specializes in collectible calendars, branded merchandise and other model-centric printed products. For more information, contact sales@gfemodelservices.com or visit GFEModelServices.com.
