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Don't be an egg

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I know that some of you already know what we mean by this famous phrase from our talks and newsletters, but for those of you that didn’t see it I will explain. The egg represents the “default” profile image.
Your initial setup on any social media channel needs to be considered before you go out and start drawing attention to yourself. This is relevant to any channel – not just Twitter – including LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook.
I can hear all the desperate questions already… “What does it mean to be an egg, or rather to not be an egg?“, “What’s wrong with eggs?“, “What is an egg when it comes to Twitter?“, “How do I change from an egg to just fabulous old me?
Some of you are already on Twitter – and some of you aren’t. The default icon or avatar for a new profile is an egg, and we really hope you have changed it by now.

Why an egg you ask?

Well, in my opinion it is because Twitter wants you to join as an egg, still new and untouched, then hatch into a beautiful bird with wings that spread far and wide. Please note: The whole hatching part needs to happen pretty quickly!

Why should I change it?

I have read a few articles on the dreaded egg avatar and have mostly come to discover that if you don’t change it people could judge you by your egg and decide that you are a lazy tweeter and not follow you. And really you want followers on Twitter! Just like a book and it’s cover – your profile picture should show something about who you are or what you look like, people will be more inclined to follow you then.

How do I do this?

To change this, just click on “Profile” at the top of your Twitter page – when you are logged in. Then click “edit your profile” – and then click “Profile” – and then “Edit Profile” and in the popup, click on the egg and browse to a replacements.
Ideally you can use a close up picture of your face. Your image must be square and can be any of these formats: JPG, GIF or PNG. It shouldn’t exceed 700k, and twitter will resize it for you. Also try to use images that are clear, no one likes to see blurry or pixelated images. So just changing from an egg isn’t really enough, if you are going to change from an egg its best to do it properly!

Tips for great profile pictures:

This is added here as a bonus, as I see so many examples of people getting this wrong!

  • Make sure you use a headshot, not a full-length shot – these profile pictures are seen as small thumbnails, so you want to be recognisable as you
  • If you really don’t want to smile, at least have a pleasant and approachable look on your face!
  • Aim for non-blurry, good contrast, good composition.
    If you can’t afford a professional photographer then ask a friend. But seriously consider getting a professional photographer anyway, it’s actually a very affordable hugely worthwhile investment. Your profile pictures are going to be used not only on social media profiles but in the about page on your site, speaker bios, etc.
  • Don’t be too sexy! It’s best to try to make this type of shot a bit more “businessy” for social media profiles. There are probably some exceptions, but I would still question them!
  • Watch out for background plants and street objects that look like they’re growing out of your head.
  • Give us a shout if you need any help with this transformation. We are always full of helpful hints and happy to assist in any way we can.