Question

Topic: Taglines/Names

Which Name To Choose??

Posted by jhewitt605 on 4/26/2013 at 10:23 AM ET 160 Points
Hello everybody, I've got a name that I love, but of course the domain is taken. I'm going with 'The Sugar Cube' but I'm not sure what domain to choose. I was going to append my city on the end, but didn't love that idea. And I was afraid to go with 'thesugarcubeshop.com' since 'sugarcubeshop.com' is taken. I was thinking people would leave off the 'the' in my domain and end up at somebody else's store. Any suggestions or thoughts?
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Moriarty on 4/26/2013 at 11:02 AM Accepted
    The-sugar-cube.com is available too.

    Most people click on links and don't type in names any longer, i'm pretty sure that missing off the "the" won't affect you much. I wouldn't worry about the competition - if they see it isn't your shop, the place they want to visit - they will come back and look again.

    Does this help any?
  • Posted by jhewitt605 on 4/26/2013 at 11:30 AM Author
    That does help! I just didn't want to lose business, or direct them to another site. And you are right, if it were me, I'd see that wasn't where I'd want to be, and go back and try again.
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 4/26/2013 at 11:33 AM Accepted
    What are you selling? Who is your ideal buyer? And what is your ideal buyer looking for?

  • Posted by Moriarty on 4/26/2013 at 12:02 PM Accepted
    J Hewitt, you need to focus on making your website the place people want to be. After all, "Sugar Cube" isn't going to get you anywhere in the search rankings with 8 1/2 million competitors. As Gary says, concentrate on what your buyers are looking to buy - and make your website somewhere they will want to return to more than once.
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 4/26/2013 at 12:05 PM Accepted
    Another option is to use "qube" instead. And using the "qube" spelling might help if you plan to apply for trademark status. The following domain names are available ..

    thesugarqube.com
    sugarqubeshop.com
    thesugarqubeshop.com
  • Posted by jhewitt605 on 4/26/2013 at 12:48 PM Author
    I'll be selling mostly dessert type things - cookies, multiple caramel flavors, and cupcakes. I'll be concentrating mostly on the caramel and cookies, since there are already a lot of cupcake options in my area. I don't know if I have an ideal buyer. I'd be doing farmers markets and etsy (mostly for the caramel) so anyone looking for a treat would be an ideal buyer. I'm not opposed to special order, but really that's not what I'm looking to do. I'm hoping to differentiate myself with the caramel and the flavors I offer. The cookies and cupcakes would then be an extension of that.

    I love the idea of the qube, but am hoping to make myself as easy to find as possible. I love all the help and will def make the site (and products hopefully!) worth coming back to.
  • Posted by Moriarty on 4/26/2013 at 1:08 PM Accepted
    As ever, Steve's come up with a nice take on this.

    Personally I'd go for it - two aspects: (1) Steve's right about the trademarking issues and
    (2) If the search is close enough to what your website is all about (= make sure your copy is good!) the search engine will come up with "did you mean sugarqube?" and offer results for that one too. The search engine can only do this if they've found you, and your website does actually match the search query.

    More to the point, you'll be found by your customers if **you ask the questions they're putting into the search box**. Because all Google can do is find the closest match to that query. Google can't answer questions - computers are machines, and aren't able to think what's *meant* or implied by a query.

    Some good copy and some good pictures with alt tags and the rest will bring visitors. Get places on Facebook, Twitter and Google maps (and any others you can think of). Make interesting comments on blogs and people will be interested and click your name (= a link). All of this will bring you excellent visitors without them even needing to put in your website URL once. They just click links which they find interesting or useful.

    Because SugarQube stands out! Well done, Steve.
  • Posted on 4/26/2013 at 1:11 PM Accepted
    When you say "easy to find," what exactly do you mean? What is the plan to create awareness?

    The name, and/or the domain name, are not going to create awareness by themselves. And you can't count on being on the first 10 pages of search results for the terms people are using for common searches.

    So what are you going to DO to get noticed? AdWords? Large signs all over town? Television commercials? Other?
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 4/26/2013 at 1:12 PM Accepted
    You also might consider: SugarCu.be (a URL that's registered, but not being used) or LoveSugarCube.com or SugarCubeLove.com (both available).
  • Posted by jhewitt605 on 4/26/2013 at 1:36 PM Author
    Mgoodman - I think I'm worried that people will potentially buy goods from me at a farmers market. With all the other options and the sensory overload that can happen with all the different booths, people and food options, I'm afraid people will get something from me that is good, want to find more, but won't necessarily remember the name. So, when trying to find me, they think 'it was something cube' or 'it had sugar something in it'. I guess tho, that if people were to type in some variation of the name and possibly a farmers market, the second half wouldn't matter since once they saw it, they'd know it. So I'm just hesitant that people won't be able to easily remember the name, which would then lead them to not be able to find me.

    Everyone has such great things for me to think about! You are all great to bounce ideas off of. I love that you've got me thinking of things I never would have on my own!
  • Posted by Moriarty on 4/26/2013 at 2:12 PM Accepted
    If you're doing farmer's markets and the rest, a Facebook page is an absolute. That way they'll know which market they were at - and they'll find you because you'll be there. Quite honestly, I don't see the problem! You will be there week after week, people will see you, connect and find you on the net. They'll remember the Q what's more because it's unusual.

    From where I sit, the Q would stand out more than the cube! Only in thinking cube/square will wonder how it came together - and once they find you the following week, the bond is established.

    Now: this is important. You're selling cakes, not branding toothbrushes for a global concern. Your cakes come first, and that means happy customers. This is what people will remember when they sit down for afternoon tea with a spread of yummies. You're building a business on the fact that people enjoy what you make. Never, ever forget that. Start with that, and half the problems with naming vanish.
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