How do you pick the perfect domain name for your blog or business? When I started a company back in 1986 out of my dorm room with two friends, it was easy. We just picked a name that described the business, Laser Designs which did laser printing and desk top publishing.
When we added temporary staffing using the Macintosh computer, we didn’t have to work too hard to come up with MacTemps. But then we outgrew the name. We no longer just staffed on the Macintosh or placed temps.
So … we hired a branding company to come up with our new “empty vessel” name. They came up with Aquent, the root of which means Not a Follower.
I learned some valuable lessons from this new corporate identity change.
Pick the Perfect URL for Your Blog
- Look at Latin roots to convey meaning.
- Make sure the names you consider are not claimed already.
- Conduct a trademark search for any name you are considering.
- Check to see if the URL is available.
When I started my blog, I discovered that there are even more things to consider.
Consider Social Media Branding
- Make a HUGE list of all the names you are considering and then check to see if the URL and Twitter handle is available.
- Pick a name with less than 15 characters that work as your Twitter handle (including spaces).
- Make sure that the Twitter handle is available!!
- Think branding: you will want your Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram to be the same name as your blog.
- Google + and LinkedIn, however, should be your real name, not your blog name.
- Once you buy your URL, grab the Twitter and all other social media platforms you plan to use IMMEDIATELY (even if you are not using it soon).
- When you buy your URL, consider buying it for 2 years or more. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) rewards that.
I bought my blog domain name 6 years ago when there were more choices available. I wanted a URL that ended in .com because that’s the most popular for a business. But now there are fewer .com choices available. What to do? Consider ‘not-coms’ names with endings such as .MEDIA, .FITNESS and .RESTAURANT that provide distinct categorization; or .ACADEMY, .WORKS and .WORLD for professional polish; and .GURU and .WTF for a bit of fun.
These ‘not-com’ options allow you to create a domain name that is memorable, meaningful and of course, available. Name.Kitchen is a destination to celebrate the idea of name creation and provides first-hand perspective directly from entrepreneurs who are leading the ‘not-com’ movement.
How about you? Was it hard for you to pick your blog name? How did you go about it? What would you do differently?
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My books:
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Food for the Future: Sustainable Farms Around the World
- Junior Library Guild Gold selection
- Massachusetts Book Award Long List
- Selected as one of 100 Outstanding Picture Books of 2023 by dPICTUS and featured at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair
- Starred review from School Library Journal
- Chicago Library’s Best of the Best
- 2023 INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist
- Green Earth Book Award Long List
- Imagination Soup’s 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids
Amazon / Barefoot Books / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Scholastic / Signed or Inscribed by Me
It’s interesting to hear about your other business. I only know you from running this website about books for kids and teenagers. Hoping Aquent is doing well.
Thanks Giora!!
Great tips here! I originally had a blog called “Thrifty Craft Mama” (it’s still up in blogger, actually). I realized that I wanted something more flexible and easier to remember.
Hi MaryAnne,
You are so great at crafts that I’m not surprised you had a crafts blog! The naming is tricky for a blog I think, especially if you don’t plan ahead to grab all the social media platform accounts. Yours is perfect; has a great connotation; easy to remember, short for Twitter handle too!
Loved hearing about your other businesses. Don’t know how you find time.
Hi Patricia,
Thanks so much! Glad you enjoyed hearing about my other life.:)
Great tips! I reached for Latin roots too when I named Phyta Publishing. When I started my blog, I first went with my name, E.S. Ivy as a dot com, but recently I decided that it would be better to have a name that’s easier for first time visitors to remember. But to find something not taking with .com, I did end up going long, with Mom Behind the Curtain, at mombehindthecurtain.com. We’ll see how it works out! Moving domains when you learn web development yourself is a PAIN.
Hi E.S. Ivy,
I usally hire someone to move domains. It’s tricky and stressful!