Have you ever had that moment when trying to sign up to a social media platform – only to discover your chosen username is already taken? With over 4.48 billion social media users, it’s getting more difficult to find a unique username online.
If you’re creating a new social media profile, you might find choosing a username is a challenge. Fortunately, help is here! Read on to discover these tips for finding a social media username!
What Do You Represent?
Ask yourself – why are you creating a new social media username? Are you joining a social media platform for the first time? Creating a business account? Or an additional account for a specific purpose, like a fan page, meme account, or niche interest?
This will help to guide you in choosing a username. If your account is personal, you might want to relate it to your name. If it’s for a specific niche, consider a social media username that will signal to the right people what your account is about.
Choosing a Username for Business
If you’re opening a new social media profile for your business, this will narrow down your username choices. If you can get your exact business name as a username – perfect! Otherwise, consider shortened versions of the name, or doubling up on some of the vowels or consonants in the word.
You could also consider adding a couple of extra words to the username, for example ‘we are’ or ‘official’. An underscore can separate words to create an available option. Finally, adding a reference to your location like ‘NYC’ might help create a unique username.
Keep It Simple
If you struggle to remember your new username or say it out loud, the same will apply to your followers. Adding lots of alternative spellings or additional characters to a name will just make things complicated for you and those trying to find you online. Each time you tell someone your handle, you’ll have to write it out!
It can also affect your experience online if your account name is hard to spell. If you want to get Instagram followers, they need to be able to find you in searches!
People might make typos when they try to tag you, which can also prevent your account from growing. Keeping it simple will pay off as your account grows.
Consistency Is Key
If you have a username already on one social media platform, why not see if you can use the same name on your new platform of choice? This makes it easy for your existing followers to find you in different spaces.
For a business or professional account, this is particularly important. Having a consistent presence across different online spaces will help you to build a trusted brand.
Get Creative
If you’re creating a new online account just for fun, you can be creative! Combine some of your favorite words and see what you come up with. Try making a list of your favorite colors, foods, music, animals, and activities, and combining them in different ways to see what sounds and looks good!
There’s no right or wrong with this approach, as long as it makes you smile and is available to use.
Ready to Go!
Creating a social media profile can be the start of a fun new online experience. Follow these tips for choosing a username and you should be ready to go!
Did you find this helpful? Check out our other articles and guides for more inspiration!