Pixelrage.net

We’ve all suffered through it: wanting to create an account on a social networking site, only to see that our exact brand name has already been taken by some scumbag who registered it and hasn’t logged in for months (potentially years). It’s frustrating and anger-inducing, and there’s close to nothing that you can do about it. Here’s a reflection on “socialsquatters,” a special breed of scumbag who cybersquats social networking usernames, and what you can do to attempt to get your name back.

Possibly the worst move I ever made (or didn’t make) was securing a couple of my well-established brand name’s usernames on Youtube. Getting a good username on Youtube is nearly impossible. If you have low blood pressure, please don’t even attempt it. I can honestly find an available premium .com domain name faster than I can find a Youtube username that’s worth half a shit these days. Getting back to it, some scum sucker registered my trademarked brand name as a Youtube account – one of which I want to be in my possession SO badly. The account has been inactive for well over a year and a half.

I’ve worked with legal departments at past jobs to gain possession of a cybersquatted social networking accounts before. It always helps to be a “big business” with an official letter that came from someone who has the tag “Corporate Counsel” after his or her name. Bascially, you can send these social networking companies a dispute, stating that someone has “cybersquatted” (be sure to use that word) your company’s registered trademark with the intention of benefitting from your company’s popularity. It helps if the account you’re looking to gain control of actually has something related to your business category within it, which will make your complaint more concrete. Include your company name and/or registered trademark S/N identification (the registered trademark will count much more than an un-protected company name that has been used in commerce). Send out this quasi-C&D form and hope for the best. If you get no reply, try a follow-up. If that doesn’t work, then you’re SOL.

What to do? Here’s my suggestion: be on top of every social network that comes out. If you don’t read RSS feeds from companies like Mashable or Search Engine Land, start doing so immediately. Mashable in particular gives featurettes on start-up social networking services, basically introducing them to the internet marketing public. You never know which one of them will  be the next Twitter, Tumblr or FriendFeed, and you’ll want to register your brand name on them immediately before someone else gets to it first, even if they wind up being failed projects. If anything, include a link to your home page from your account on these sites – it will only help you to continue ranking high for your own company name. The best and easiest way to see which usernames are available on social networking accounts is to use NameChk or KnowEm, both of which will scan dozens of sites at once and let you know which sites have that username as an availability.

As for Facebook…if you’re a business owner, it’s in your best interest to start a Facebook Page for your company, amass exactly 100 fans or more, and unlock the ability to name your page. Name it for the exact name of your company or brand name (hopefully it is still available). Facebook continues to be the only social network that makes you jump through hoops to register a branded URL (unless you own a registered trademark for it, in which case, you go immediately to the front of the line and/or will have any existing page for it be surrendered over to you).

Twitter has wizened up to socialsquatters recently. Don’t even think about socialsquatting an actual brand name: there’s an algorithm for that. Or, some kind soul will defend a brand and simply report you, prompting your ban from Twitter altogether.

Owning the exact name of your company/brand as a social network username is key. It’s a must-have. It’s something everyone will expect you to own…otherwise, you’ll resort to looking like a horse’s ass, with an “alternate version” username that most people will not remember. Think smart by acting fast – cybersquatters and socialsquatters are total shitheads. It’s easy to combat a cybersquatter in your homeland (send off a C&D to the server host), but a socialsquatter is truly someone who will ruin your day, and your branding campaign.