Comments on: Stop Changing Your Twitter Handle

By: Tony Hegwer

Tony Hegwer — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:06:08 +0000

I started using Twitter back in November, since then I’ve begun to love it. What started out as a hatred for Twitter it’s allowed me to network with people in my life alot easier. News and updates happen in right away which makes for a great social communication app.

By: iwouldhatetobeyou

iwouldhatetobeyou — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 07:37:07 +0000

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By: Kylie

Kylie — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 06:06:19 +0000

I don’t really use my twitter account for anything business related. But I decided that if I ever went in that direction, it would be better to already be using my real name so that I wouldn’t have to change it, which would confuse my existing followers.

By: John Lundell

John Lundell — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 01:15:03 +0000

I do think twitter is a killer app. A perfect complement to blogging. I tweet all the time and I’m pretty sure I’m addicted :)

By: Jennifer Mattern

Jennifer Mattern — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 14:36:01 +0000

With your name change, it doesn’t sound like it would have caused any confusion at least — followers would know who you were rather than thinking “who the hell is this person I know I didn’t follow?” :) When it comes to an overall branding change, then it absolutely makes sense to change it for consistency’s sake.

By: LaToya Irby

LaToya Irby — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 05:12:41 +0000

I feel so out of the loop. I didn’t even realize you could change your Twitter handle.

By: Robert Witham

Robert Witham — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 05:07:19 +0000

I have used the same Twitter name since I started with the service. In fact, I mostly keep my user names the same (eBay, Twitter, etc.) for exactly the reasons you discuss here. I did make one change across the board a few years ago when I went from using my shortened name (robwitham) to using my full name (robertwitham). I also changed my website URI, e-mail, etc. all at the same time.

By: Jennifer Mattern

Jennifer Mattern — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:24:32 +0000

What’s the reason though? I remember at one point you had a good one that was tied to your name — simple, professional, but still personal enough that you could tweet about just about anything under it. I don’t know what your primary purpose for using Twitter is. If it’s personal use, then any name is fine. If it’s being used for business networking though, I’d suggest keeping your namesake (not only for branding, but to stop someone else from registering and using it).

By: Jessie Fitzgerald

Jessie Fitzgerald — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:20:35 +0000

I am totally guilty of changing my Twitter handle a gazillion times. Sorry for annoying you. I did it because I could do it instead of creating a new account.

By: Jennifer Mattern

Jennifer Mattern — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:39:35 +0000

Exactly. Picking a good handle is a part of doing business online. Sure, if you’re only tweeting for friends and family maybe no one cares. But when you’re heavily networked with clients, colleagues, etc. on Twitter, have some professional sense. Sometimes it feels like people are using their handles almost like status updates can be used with larger or “normal” social networks. Then again, Twitter’s nothing but status updates, so why bother? It just seems to silly to me.