I have a domain name that I'm branding. However, some of the social media accounts for that name has been taken. So I'm adding an "i" in front of the twitter, facebook, etc names. To fix any confusion, I also purchased the domain name with the "i" in front of my main website name and I want to forward it to my main website name (just in case someone thinks my domain name is the one with the "i" in front of it). Will this hurt my SEO? I've been reading stuff about redirecting may cause SEO problems with Google and I'm getting a bit confused. Thanks.
It won't hurt. Best practice is to use a 301 redirect. Consider forwarding email also. If your unsure what 301 means, Google is your friend.
Many brands just put @brandcom when their name is taken or @officialbrand Its a common industry practice. You can see an example of that from Local.com
That's a good idea! Thanks for sharing that info. It's shorter with an "i" (and catchy), but more functional with the "com" at the end.