Naming your new business can be exciting and just as important as naming a child.

Back in 2001 eMedia Worx seemed like a great business name. eMedia was a real buzz word at the time and if you do a Google search on it you will see that similar businesses around the world had the same idea.
Short for electronic media it was right up there with eCommerce and eMail and by adding Worx with the funky x, a fashionable idea at the time, we felt that we had added that touch of old factory working environment with the double meaning of telling people that ‘electronic media works’.

We soon discovered that along with the clever name came the downside. We find ourselves having to spell it virtually every day. Small e, Capital M, e.d.i.a, space, capital W, o.r.x. Yes x.

The numerous mis-spellings and variations have included e-Media Worx, E-Media Worx, E-mediaworx, Emediaworx, eMedia Works, Media Works and we have even answered the phone to more than one person asking to speak to ‘Mr Worx’.

With the wisdom of hindsight I feel qualified to offer -
My 5 tips for selecting a new business name

1. Don’t make it too fashionable.
Just like Kylie and Jason fashionable names come and go out of date quickly.

2. Make sure it is easy to understand, spell and pronounce.
eMedia Worx - what were we thinking!

3. Remember the KISS principle of Keeping It Simple Stupid
Short, memorable and unique.

4. Write it down

Some words can look silly in print and worse in a web address. Pen Island becomes www.penisland.com

5. Include either what you do, how you do it or where you do it

ABC Landscapes, Speedy Landscapes, Ballina Landscapes.

6. Yes, I can count but this one is really important to me.
Work with a designer to create your logo design. Colour and style can say a lot without words.

We were recently contacted by a sales rep from our local newspaper “The Northern Star” explaining that they were running a full page feature highlighting local businesses that offer Internet related services.  I have always been very sceptical about the success of newspaper advertising but figured that this was highly targeted, and a lot of local businesses are still very naive when it comes to the Internet.

As part of the feature we were offered a 5cm x 7.3cm colour ad, which is about the size of a business card (see below).  The total cost of the ad will be $52.32 (inc GST).

When it comes to the Internet we offer a whole range of services but decided to focus the ad on what we believe most sets us apart from the majority of our competition — Search Engine Marketing.  The other reason for targeting search engine marketing, and in particular using the names of the major search engines in the ad copy, is that most people are extremely curious about how to get to the top of the search engine results  ( in particular Google).

In regards to measuring success, at this stage the only thing that we can do is be vigilant about monitoring phone calls, and/or hope that if somebody fills out our quote form they select newspaper advertising from the drop-down menu.  I guess the good thing is that if we manage to secure any new customers we should see a fantastic ROI.

I will keep you posted on the results