express2100

Descriptive Business Names....

Recommended Posts

To be honest I don't think I am truly ready for this adventure but some of you and others have told me to dive in and start paying for my equipment while I learn. So......

 

How important do you think it is to try to include what you do in your business name? With everything our equipment can produce it is pretty hard to lock it down to just one or two words that tell the customer exactly what we offer. 

 

Can we do decals? Sure.....T-shirts? Yes.....Vehicle lettering? Absolutely.....Signs? Oh you betcha.......Vinyl Graphis? Yep..... and on and on it goes.

 

Also the other shops around already have names such as Sign XX, XX Graphics, XX Decals, XX Signs etc. All of which offer much much more than their name implies.

 

This is why I am  leaning more towards keeping my current business name which is my initials followed by Sales 4U ( XX Sales 4U) and adding a more descriptive sub name such as Custom Vinyl Graphics, Custom Vinyl Designs or something of the sort. 

 

I think the Sales 4U works for two reasons. One because I am selling a product and service and two because most of what I hope to do will help sell or market the consumers business. ( vehicle lettering, signs, etc )  

 

I'll never forget what the guy who sold me my cutter said.... "Now remember you are not in the sign business, you are in the marketing business. What you produce with this machine will help to market your customers business. So before you price your products and service, think about how much money you will make that customer and how much they charge for their services. ( contractors hourly rates etc ) Don't give it away." I thought that was pretty solid advise!

 

Anyhow what do you all think? Is a sub name acceptable?

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I have to be honest, Sales 4U does not say vinyl graphics, graphic design or marketing products to me. IMO it says " I sell stuff " and that's it.

 

This is even more evident online. You have a finite window of time that someone might glance at your name in a google search and you need to make it very clear what you are and what you do. you can leverage your products once you have the customer, but when someone searches online for " sign maker in XX town " they want to find someone who makes signs. same with promo products, and shirts, and so on.

 

I live on the east coast, boats are a big portion of business for me. one of the sign shops in town, registered boatstriping.com, and its just a re-direct domain. it sends you to his shops website. You could do something similar.

 

The NEW customer is very fickle and easily swayed. I've had customers co me tome from the next town over. I ask them why they came to me instead of the sign shop they have in their town, and sometimes its as simple as " I didn't like their name." Customers ALWAYS judge a book by its cover.

 

just my .02

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks mac I appreciate your .02. I'd still like to hear others opinions. Seems a few guys here do not have descriptive names and do alright. If I choose say xx signs will I be able to reel in those looking for vehicle graphics, wall art, T's etc?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Love your signature under your post :) I can't held with the name mainly because I don't have an online presence to tell you what works best but the stores name is Jay's Place so whenever somebody asks where something was done they say I got it at Jay's Place. Simple but effective.

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I agree with mac, sales4U makes me think of something more like ebay or craigslist however, I also think it's more in marketing and word of mouth than just the name. If you're wanting search engines to catch your web page the name isn't as important as the meta tags and search bot readable text on the web pages.

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="jaybird" data-cid="364525" data-time="1405016143"><p>

Love your signature under your post :) I can't held with the name mainly because I don't have an online presence to tell you what works best but the stores name is Jay's Place so whenever somebody asks where something was done they say I got it at Jay's Place. Simple but effective.</p></blockquote>

....sorry quotes are like this on the mobile version.....

yeah Jay I think my sig is fitting... came up with that when a few newer guys were catching a bit too much grief.

I see your point on your name but it doesn't tell anyone what it is you offer and correct me if I'm wrong but you seem to be pretty busy.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="darcshadow" data-cid="364526" data-time="1405016220"><p>

I agree with mac, sales4U makes me think of something more like ebay or craigslist however, I also think it's more in marketing and word of mouth than just the name. If you're wanting search engines to catch your web page the name isn't as important as the meta tags and search bot readable text on the web pages.</p></blockquote>

Thx darcshadow.....I don't plan on having a web site at least not for a while (can't afford it). I do see the importance of locking in a domain ASAP though... I agree with you in regards to word of mouth and marketing.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Word of mouth, business cards and pounding the ground are what made me busy. Walmart doesn't describe what they do and the same goes for Target, Kmart, Sears, Etc. You need a easily remembered name and just promote the crap out of yourself.

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

The web lingo is foreign to me..........So meta tags and search bot readable text will help get me regognized in searches? If my sub name or description of what I offer is bot readable then I should come up in searches right? 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I got about 90% of my web-sourced business from people just google-searching "sign store xxxxx" (xxxx=name of town)

(the other 10% was from the web address being placed right on the sign in front of the store, and people would visit my site, and initiate contact through the Contact Us page)

 

Webhosting through GoDaddy is like $60 a year.

If you cannot afford $5 a month as a sign maker, you really need to look at getting into another profession.  B)

 

Google will provide local businesses a quick lookup presence for free.

Just sign up for a Google account, and go to the Google Business Dashboard to add photos, map coordinates, etc.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Good info Slice. I had no idea it was that affordable. I will look into both....but for now I need to get the name locked down so I can stop donating my work.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
The web lingo is foreign to me..........So meta tags and search bot readable text will help get me regognized in searches? If my sub name or description of what I offer is bot readable then I should come up in searches right? 

yeah, there's quite a bit you can do to a web page that people don't see but will help search engines find and identify your page.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now