Newbie Niche Marketing

Pen Names: Do You Use Them?

In keeping with my comment in my previous post about posting commentary and opinion about forum posts and blog posts throughout the IM world, I thought I’d kick it off with a post from my most visited IM forum – the Warrior Forum

This particular post is titled 5 Arguments for the Case for Using Pen Names and was started by member ‘BizBoost’.

A pen name is just an alias that you make up and use anywhere that a name is published: eg forums, your blog, when submitting articles etc. BizBoost says:

I’m starting this thread because I believe there’s a much bigger benefit to discussing, and evaluating, why a person would use a pen name, or an alias, not just on the Warrior Forum, but ANYWHERE… as, I believe, it has less to do with personal like and dislike, and more to do with overall effectiveness.

He names safety and branding as two of the main reasons to use a pen name and I have to agree with those points.

I use pen names heavily for my article marketing strategy – I have one pen name per niche (besides IM, where I use my real name) . But you will notice some authors at Ezinearticles submit articles in 10, 20 or even 50 niches under the same name. Whilst this may get them on to the top all time authors list, it is not going to lead their readers into believing that they are a true niche expert.

Member jimrpips replied in the thread with a good point that sums up pen names:

I’m a firm believer in pen names, for a number of reasons:

1) My private life is just that.

2) Persona/character driven brands work well in different niches

3) Its fun.

However creating a new alias for a niche should go beyond just that of a new pen name. You should be creating a PROFILE and a PERSONALITY to go with the pen name. Write up a personal bio for your pen name – give him/her life. If you want to be considered a niche expert you have to show people WHY you are an expert!

To do that you should be creating a person that people within that niche would find interesting and knowledgeable.

This was also commented on by warrior 1bad55:

If you sell to 10 different niches creating an identity in each niche as an expert in that niche to me is the way to go instead of trying to use one name and spread it over multiple niches.

If someone does a search for your pen name and finds that you write information about 10 different niches or fields they are less likely to believe that you are a true expert in any one niche or field.

You might be questioning whether pen names are misleading to your visitors and prospects – not if you use them properly and not if you truly are educating yourself about the niche you are in so that you DO have knowldge of it (or at least your outsourced writers do). Obviously, you should not go as far as proclaiming yourself to be a Doctor or a lawyer if you’re not – that is not what pen names are about.

Pen names allow you to portray yourself as a unique expert on any niche – use them wisely, legally and to your advantage.