Why profile pics matter
And how to take one that intuitively communicates who you are and what you're doing online.
Imagine you are at an event. It’s not a niche event. Everyone is here, looking for everything they’re interested in, all at once. That's the internet.
Now imagine that at this party you are introduced only by your online profile pic, which each person might look at for a few seconds. Within these few seconds, without even thinking about it, people make assessments about you based on their first impression of the image you have chosen to represent yourself.
If you are building an online presence for a specific purpose, it's essential to think about what your profile picture communicates to other people.
This column will be part case study, using my smartphone photo of artist Tristan Chant, and part tutorial on how to clarify what your profile pic communicates and distil that message so it can be conveyed intuitively, within seconds.
If you have any questions or would like my feedback on a particular photo, please write in the comments.