Are you tired of being an anonymous mystery man on your WordPress site? Are you commenting on various blog posts on the inter-webs with thoughtful and insightful rhetoric, yet leaving a trail of shadowy silhouettes everywhere you go? Stop the insanity! Get a gravatar, increase your own brand awareness, and make your mark.
In case you don’t know what a gravatar is, it stands for Globally Recognized Avatar, and it’s a graphical representation of yourself that shows up online when you interact with websites that support graphical representations. A really great explanation of what a gravatar is all about, and why you might want one can be found here.
But what if you’re well aware of what a gravatar is, and you want one so bad you can taste it, but just aren’t sure how to go about getting one?
You’re in luck! Here’s a quick tutorial on how to set up your Gravatar account so you can let the world know who you are, consistently build your personal brand, and shine brightly amid a sea of gray.
Step 1: Go to gravatar.com and click ‘Sign In’ on the top right.
Step 2: If you already have a WordPress.com account, simply enter your information and click ‘Sign In.’ If you don’t already have a WordPress.com account, click ‘Need an Account?’
Step 3: Fill in the requisite information if you need to get a WordPress.com account, and click ‘Sign Up.’
Step 4: A confirmation email is sent to you, and once you retrieve it, click ‘Activate Account’ to authenticate your Gravatar account.
Step 5: Once you confirm your account you can go directly to your Gravatar account by clicking ‘Sign in to Gravatar.’
Step 6: On your first visit to your new Gravatar account you’ll automatically be notified that you don’t have a picture. Click
‘Add one by clicking here!’ to get the ball rolling.
Step 7: Decide where you’d like to source your picture from. If it happens to be from your computer’s hard drive click ‘My computer’s hard drive.’
Step 8: Click ‘Choose File’ to access your hard drive and upload a picture.
Step 9: Crop and size your photo using the little handles at the corners and sides of the picture.
Step 10: Next step, give your Gravatar a rating.
Step 11: If you’re happy with that photo, you’re all done! If not, continue to upload pictures to use on your account by clicking ‘add a new image.’
Now that you have your Gravatar account all set up, and have a great photo to represent yourself, you’re all set. Now your picture will show up when you write and comment on any page that supports Gravatar integration…which is quite a lot of pages at this point and only growing.
Go forth! Write, comment, make your own personal brand seen and heard, and make the internet an even more enlightened place to be!