I recently came across this blogpost by editor, Gina LaGuardia on how she used her social media avatar to spread the word about a fundraising cause she was supporting.
Gina changed her avatar from a simple picture of herself, to a mini billboard featuring along with her face, the name of the cause and a call to action.
She says that this one simple action created a ripple through her social media world, and she generated immediate interest in the cause. This tiny piece of online real estate started to show its value.
Recently many Australians on Twitter also changed their avatars to protest the Government's proposed compulsory internet filtering legislation, which raised the profile of the issue across a broad and diverse online audience. The legislation has recently stalled.
And of course during the recent US election, many people Obama-ed their avatars in a show of support for the now President.
The avatar has emerged as key ingredient in creating social media interest, and quite possibly an integral part of the social media marketers toolbox. Keep them fresh, simple and updated - this will go a long way to keeping people engaged with your message. Heck, you might even get bloggers writing about yours!
Media monitoring
