Question

Topic: Taglines/Names

Need A Name/tagline For Woodcarving Business

Posted by Anonymous on 6/24/2013 at 10:14 AM ET 250 Points
My name is Kevin Baxter. I'm a professional sculptor/woodcarver. I am seeking help in developing a catchy, yet professional title and tagline for my business. My business has been under both my personal name and LINDEN TREE WOODCARVING for 35 years and my work is always signed KBaxter, but there has sprouted another business with almost a duplicate title.

My business is older, and I realize name changes can be risky, but to avoid the confusion it is generating, I am hoping to upgrade vs. argue this in court. I think we can pull it off.

Many clients and students of mine have suggested I develop a name that is catchier, yet I want one that also expresses professionalism. My work has covered a variety of themes from home décor, floral, relief, architectural elements, wildlife and more, but the most popular is figural work from traditional American folk figures to fine art classical sculpture. My work has been in galleries, gift shops and museums and I have taught and hosted my own instructional television show.

I am developing a website and hope to open a new studio within the next year or so, so I am seeking a name and maybe a tagline that has all the great traits of business who serves everyone, from novice carver, to someone buying a unique gift, to serious collectors. It also needs to be something I can use universally with a logo on cards, business info, a sign, something I can carve in wood. Once I test it, if it works, I want to begin developing the whole advertising package.

This may be asking a lot, but I would appreciate any ideas or help.

Thank you in advance.
Cordially, K.Baxter, sculptor
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Moriarty on 6/24/2013 at 10:55 AM Accepted
    Just a quick thought before popping down to my vegetable garden (allotment).

    You've been in business for 35 years - you have customers. Your tagline needs to speak to those who are who you consider (for your own reasons) to be your best customers. You're a sculptor that means your stuff is pretty unique and the people who like your stuff will probably like you too.

    So: what are they saying about you? What do they tell you? What have they said to their friends that sent them to you? You'll be pretty good at this because you work in the artistic realm, it will take a little stepping back though and may take a little time. Unless of course you've already been through the mill ;-)

    Furthermore, your work is personalized and therefore those people (whoever they are) will need to "click" with you. Knowing what this is is the key to your tagline.

    A final thought in this rambling comment - is the other KBaxter another sculptor or are they software engineers or something wholly unrelated? Why are they affecting your business? They might only be an irrelevance - and there are ways around this if you are getting traffic through a website (or planning one).

  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 6/24/2013 at 11:18 AM Member
    Which of your names is causing confusion?
    Can you drop your other business name and focus all your marketing efforts on the unique name?
    If your name is recognized, then seriously consider making it your business name:

    Kevin Baxter
    Professional Sculptor & Woodcarver
  • Posted on 6/24/2013 at 11:43 AM Author
    Dear Moriarty:

    Thanks for the response. The other person is not 'KBaxter', but his business is Linden Tree Woodcarving Studio or > lindentreewoodcarvingstudio.com < vs. my business, Linden Tree Woodcarving and my https://lindentreewoodcarving.com .

    I've been carving since about age nine, and went professional in high school, starting my business under my own name my senior year (1978) and Linden Tree Woodcarving shortly after. A few years later, University of Nebraska at Omaha did a business name search nationally and we were the only ones listed under this title but now with the internet and many overlapping titles, plus .com, .net, .org, etc. unique names are being lost in the ant pile. This guys site is mostly Santas and I carved Santas for many years, but mine were very traditional, very authentic looking 19th century-style works. Our styles are very different and our skills are very different, but you see the confusion.

    My customers do feel my work is unique. Many feel unparalleled in many areas. They love the little details, the fragility, the expression. A miniature sailor for instance, maybe 3" tall might still have tattoos on his arm and buttons visible on his clothing, or a corsage-size rose with carved petals so thin, light shows though them--all carved in wood. For many years most of my work was by commission, and commissions are still important for they give you a special artist/client relationship, but I also want to make time now to explore more person work.

    But how do I express this in a title or tag-line that is memorable and simple? Guy Kawasaki has great insight on developing a Montra, but the idea/choice is my dilemma.
  • Posted on 6/24/2013 at 11:54 AM Author
    Hi Jay.

    Many artist use their own names and many make it. Thomas Kinkaid is a recent example, but his wasn't only the name, but the mass marketing and availability to put his work on every product they could. Charles M. Russell, the famous western painter is very known to many, but virtually unheard of by others, but if I mention Fredrick Remington, more people know his name.

    I changed to a business name, hoping it would be more memorable than a personal name, which many of us tend to forget. We meet a person and often later we just forget that person's name, nor do they remember ours. That was my reason for the choice, but I haven't excluded the possibility.
  • Posted on 6/24/2013 at 12:13 PM Author
    As an additional note: My business name is LINDEN TREE WOODCARVING. The name described what I do--I'm a woodcarver--and the type of wood I primarily use: Linden. The tree I thought lent itself to an image of a tree for my logo. Maybe I should just stand strong on my title and redesign the logo or maybe I should leave well enough alone.

    Since my competitor is popping up on web searches and I am just developing a site and web identity, and the names are so similar, I thought it was time to freshen things up. I may be wrong but am up for suggestions and if anyone has a few new name/tagline idea ideas, I'm all ears.

    A local business in my area has a great tagline which fits my work perfectly as my customers describe It -- "Innovative Ideas - Extraordinary Results" -- awesome! But it's theirs, not mine and it's kind of long like my business name. This has been a struggle for me since I first named the business.
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 6/24/2013 at 12:49 PM Member
    One thought is to remove the word "Linden" from your name - since that's a detail that's not likely important to your clientele (the material you use). If people love your details, then consider a name such as "The Intricate Woodcarver". Also - do you do sculpture in materials other than wood? If not, then having "sculpture" in your name/tagline may be confusing.
  • Posted by Moriarty on 6/24/2013 at 1:21 PM Accepted
    I happen to love lime trees. And their wood :-) I want to approach this from a different angle.

    Firstly, you need to do some serious marketing online with a paid search campaign. It need not be big, nor need it be expensive - and you'll learn tons from doing it. Reckon to spend what you can afford - the price of a cup of coffee each day or something like that. until you start bringing in money through it that is - then you can expand.

    Basically you need a Google PPC/display network campaign. https://perrymarshall.com and https://askhowie.com are two recommendations. If you start small, it won't matter too much if you're making mistakes.

    Your competitors won't be ready for your side swipe at them. Because all the stuff you learn from your campaign you can turn back into your SEO campaign. You can sort out your copy and keywords so that you are targeting those people who are likely to buy (you'll learn who they are from your campaigns).

    I'll take a look at both after dinner (it's evening here in Holland) and let you know what angles you can take.

    As to "innovative ideas, extraordinary results" that's about as flat as a pancake! Do people really believe this? Do they get this when they go there? I'll bet no few of them are disappointed - which is why you need a razor sharp tagline that tells people EXACTLY what they'll get. Then they both know and won't be disappointed. Again, I'll be back in an hour or so less hungry and a little better informed!

    See ya later.
  • Posted by Moriarty on 6/24/2013 at 4:05 PM Accepted
    I can't help much with your site, there's not much there yet ;-)

    lindentreewoodcarvingstudio.com the domain is available - please could you check the domain name and we can try again?

    M
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 6/24/2013 at 4:28 PM Member
    Jay has given you the two best options to consider. Perhaps you could combine them as ...

    Kevin Baxter
    The Intricate Woodcarver
  • Posted on 6/28/2013 at 10:07 PM Author
    Thanks everyone for the responses. It isn't quite what I was looking for, but gave me more to consider. I was really looking for a title/name and maybe a tagline--something more catchy to brand my art business with so it stood out better--before we finish a website and lay everything out there. Since the logo/name/icon--whatever I use represents the business--is so important, I leave well enough alone, or can't change my image until I've resolved this.
  • Posted by Moriarty on 6/29/2013 at 2:50 AM Accepted
    I can imagine that we haven't been able to give you what you were looking for.

    Why?

    Because you haven't shared much with us! Let me re-iterate:

    "You've been in business for 35 years - you have customers. Your tagline needs to speak to those who are who you consider (for your own reasons) to be your best customers. You're a sculptor that means your stuff is pretty unique and the people who like your stuff will probably like you too.

    "So: what are they saying about you? What do they tell you? What have they said to their friends that sent them to you? You'll be pretty good at this because you work in the artistic realm, it will take a little stepping back though and may take a little time. Unless of course you've already been through the mill ;-)

    "Furthermore, your work is personalized and therefore those people (whoever they are) will need to "click" with you. Knowing what this is is the key to your tagline. "

    Because you are in a unique position and could have an extremely strong tagline. Instead you want to brand yourself like some plastic bottle.

    I'm happy to work around what you have already - your Linden tree logo for one. Not that many would know what a linden tree was, even if they were sitting under one and drinking lime-blossom tea.

    We still lack the focus of your customers, especially your better ones. Your tagline should tell them exactly what they'll get.
  • Posted on 6/29/2013 at 6:21 AM Author
    Thank you again Moriarty:

    I don't want to sound like a commercial product -- no. That was not my intention.

    Initially people don't quite fathom what I do until they see it. Then it is . . ."you're remarkable, your work is amazing, you are soooo talented" . . . blah, blah, blah. I appreciate the accolades, don't get me wrong. I want amazed clients! I work to give them something they don't quite expect. But what I hear is more compliments as a carver than descriptive words on my work. And I'm not going with, "Kevin Baxter--The Amazing Carver"--that sounds like a circus act. : (

    If you could see my original logo and a few pieces of my work, it might make more sense. That's what sells the clients. Here is an email if you want to see something and maybe we can go from there. I do appreciate the help.
  • Posted by Moriarty on 6/29/2013 at 6:57 AM Accepted
    You can send some images if you get in touch via my website.

    My mum has some carved figures she bought when we lived in Canada (I was very little then). I remember a fisherman that whilst crude, had a pipe and has etched himself in my memory.

    My point about what customers have said isn't about the accolades - the better ones will all have a "flavour" to them. A character, if you like. It's this I want to tap into. Not the accolades or blunt descriptions, something that will act "under the wire" as it were. Give them an idea of what they'll feel when they see your creations.

    Another angle for you is the aforementioned display network - it would work a treat with a few images of your stuff scattered across the internet. Start small and grow it from the seed.

    After all, the tree just grows. It takes someone creative to turn a piece of firewood into something wonderful.

    I will add that whilst you don't want to sound commercial, that is your business. If you're not commercial you're not making a living. It's a balance that even artists find difficult to find!
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