Claim Your Brand Name on Social Networks or Suffer

I found this article written by Dan Schawbel,I thought it was very interesting of what could happen to anyone.
There has been much debate in the blogosphere about Seth Godin’s Twitter account. He never registered his name on Twitter and someone took it. This individual used his avatar, information and actually tweeted using this account. Fake Seth now has 4,375 followers and has sent 476 updates. Luckily for Seth, he blogged about this and the person who owns the Twitter account has only syndicated his blog, rather than torture his brand by misrepresentation. I’ve also seen fake Chris Brogan accounts and a few other “internet celebrities” being taken on Facebook. Truth be told, many of these individuals don’t seem to care because they are so high above the status quo that they feel their reputation can’t be burst into oblivion. Some may register their domain names, while others may forget to sign-up for the top social networks. Today’s post will tell you how to protect and secure your name, so you don’t suffer later.
“I have no idea how to kick someone off my name. What if they have the same name? Is this a productive use of my time if all this person is doing is reposting my blog? That’s not dishonest or wrong, it’s sort of a nice service.” - Seth Godin, Best Selling Author and BloggerHere is what you need to know
#1 - Purchase yourname.com and if you haven’t yet, I posted the procedure.
#2 - Review the social networking checklist to identify which social networks to join and which to stay away from.
#3 - Register your full name on each social network. I recommend Twitter, Facebook, Wordpress.com, LinkedIn.com, Technorati, MyBlogLog, and YouTube for starters.
#4 - Start an excel spreadsheet or the Apple equivalent and list the social networks you’re apart of, as well as the login information and time they were last updated. The purpose here is to let each profile grow as you develop, so you aren’t misrepresented and don’t lose opportunities.
#5 - Pay attention to what social networks are gaining traction by subscribing to blogs that showcase new social networks and that keep a tally on what’s hot.