When Blogging, Don’t Just Comment, Leave Your Ugly Mug

I recently discovered Gravatar.com by Automattic, a nifty set of complimentary blogging tools that help you to:

1. show commenter avatars on your web blog
2. display your own avatar when leaving a comment on other blogs

It’s a nice way to personalize the blogging experience and helps the blogosphere get to know you a little better too. I think people remember faces more easily than they remember a name, but if you attach a face TO your name when commenting around the web, arguably it will be easier for people to remember your name as well. In essence, you’re providing a visual hook.

Of course, commenter avatars only show up on your blog if your guests are actually registered with gravatar.com themselves. (Looks like most of my commenters aren’t on the gravatar bandwagon yet. Damn.)

Then again, maybe a simple mug shot isn’t enough to realize the full impact of mental hooks on memory. Because according to Memory-Improvement-Tips.com, “ordinary things are too forgettable,” while “the silly, the impossible, and the outrageous are easy to remember.”

Is this a case for using cartoon charicatures instead of real photos in our avatars? Or maybe just Photoshopping our portraits to exaggerate certain facial features? (You know, like giving yourself big elephant ears, or maybe making your hair punk pink.)

Food for thought anyway. But at minimum I do recommend attaching your face to your web presence. It doesn’t matter if you look like a rock star or a runway model. Just that you show yourself in some way. Doesn’t have to be your face either …