A while back, I read a Newsweek article about managing your “Google Identity.” It got me thinking about my search engine persona. The article raises a bunch of great points, not the least of which is people use search engines to answer questions. The question “who is TJ Kelly?” is no different.
So, I did some ego-googling. What I found surprised me. There are at least 3 other TJ Kellys that have a visible, accessible online presence. Given that this whole “internet thing” is sort of what I do, I’ve made it a personal goal of mine to occupy as many of the 10 (or 11) Google search results as I can. As of the time of this writing, I hold 6 of 11 results, with the 11th being my Google Profile.
What does your Google Identity look like?
Google me and you’ll see what I mean: http://www.google.com/search?q=tj+kelly
Posted my results on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/76434908@N00/4056850775
7 out of 10 – 70%
13 out of 20 – 65%
17 out of 30 – 56%
Thanks for tempting me to quantify my search results. :)
J
J,
Thanks for commenting. I followed your lead and compiled stats on the first 30 results. My stats aren’t as impressive as yours:
3 out of 10 – 30%
6 out of 20 – 30%
7 out of 30 – 23%
I posted my new results to Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjkelly/4058198570/
My results are pretty garbage. Might improve if the domain name bearing my name does not get renewed come January.
It’s hot-or-miss, depending on if you share your name with other internet-active people. I guess it would pay to have an uncommon name.