Cleaning up your online profiles

Some sites let you add extras like:

• Your RSS feed. Ning profiles let you do this as do some other social networking sites. Why not share your content with your online friends?
• Your Facebook badges. If there is a place to add text in your profile (Ning sites have this function) put in the text for your Facebook badges – either for your personal profile and/or your fan page.
• Pictures. You may want to add a badge for your blog or some personal photographs.
• Updates. If you can, link the site’s update line to Twitter or Facebook. That way you can update several places at once.
• Colors and design elements. Many social networking sites let you change colors and add background images. Why not your profile page look like your blog? I’ve done this in YouTube, Ning sites and CafeMom.

Other things to keep in mind:

• Who is your audience? If it’s a friend to friend site like Mom Central’s Spark community, keep it casual. Share pictures of your family, your craft projects and your recipes. If it’s a business site like LinkedIn, you should keep it more professional.
• Consistency. Try to have the same information on all your networking sites and use the same name – either your full name or a profile name like “YogaMom.”
• Does it serve you? If you’re inactive on a social networking site – and the site doesn’t pass on any Google juice – contact the site owner to remove your profile.

What social networks should mom bloggers use?

• Twitter
• Facebook
• LinkedIn
• Mom Central’s Spark community – make sure to join the Moms Who Blog group
• Mom Bloggers Club
• BlogHer
• YouTube
• Flickr

What other social networking sites do you use to promote yourself and your blog? Comment below.

Anne-Marie Nichols is the Managing Editor of Mom Central Blogger University. You can also find her blogging up some healthy recipes at This Mama Cooks!

Anne-Marie Nichols