Lengthy domain name

KMW

Hi,
This is the first time I've posted...I hope this is the right forum. I have a question about choosing my domain name. I'm planning on starting a location photography business and upgrading to a pro Smugmug account. I would like to include my name in the business name. I'm planning on calling it Willoughby Photography. I just registered that domain name but I'm wondering if willoughbyphotography.com is too much. I'm also wondering if using my last name as a business name sounds okay. Should I use kwilloughby.com instead? I've tried other combinations with my initials that are not available. Thanks in advance...I really appreciate any advice on this.
Kathi

gus

I dont think so. Mine isnt the shortest about but i believe its something you must stick with so think it out well. I would have no issues typing that into a URL...its easy to spell.

KMW

gus wrote:

I dont think so. Mine isnt the shortest about but i believe its something you must stick with so think it out well. I would have no issues typing that into a URL...its easy to spell.

Thank you for replying. I would like to stay consistent with the business name and domain. I have been thinking about it for a long time. One name I thought about was KW photography but it is taken. I probably will stick with Willoughby photograpy for the business name and domain name and hope that people spell it correctly.

Thanks,
Kath

chrisjlee

KMW wrote:

Thank you for replying. I would like to stay consistent with the business name and domain. I have been thinking about it for a long time. One name I thought about was KW photography but it is taken. I probably will stick with Willoughby photograpy for the business name and domain name and hope that people spell it correctly.

Thanks,
Kath

Yeah thats true. I wouldn't think of spelling it right the first time.

I would try an identity would convey an emotional attachment or a Unique selling point (USP). Not that theres ever something wrong with last names being brand names (but usually they're shorter and frequently with two-3 syllables - prada polo ).

KMW

chrisjlee wrote:

Yeah thats true. I wouldn't think of spelling it right the first time.

I would try an identity would convey an emotional attachment or a Unique selling point (USP). Not that theres ever something wrong with last names being brand names (but usually they're shorter and frequently with two-3 syllables - prada polo ).

Thanks for your suggestion. I wanted to include my name in the business name for tax purposes. I read somewhere in order to be a sole proprietor you have to include your name. My full name is Kathleen M. Willoughby. It's a long name thanks to my husband so I've been trying to think of every combination and I am stuck. KMW photography is taken too. Do you have any suggestions? I wish I had a shorter name...

dragon300zx

studiokw.com
kwphotostudio.com
kwphotostudios.com
kwphotog.com
kwphotopro.com

KMW

dragon300zx wrote:

studiokw.com
kwphotostudio.com
kwphotostudios.com
kwphotog.com
kwphotopro.com

Thank you for your ideas...I'm eventually planning on having a studio in my home if this all works out but for now I will be doing location photography specializing in babies and children. What if I call it Willoughby Photography and use www.kmwphoto.com? Would that be better than www.willoughbyphotography.com?

dragon300zx

KMW wrote:

Thank you for your ideas...I'm eventually planning on having a studio in my home if this all works out but for now I will be doing location photography specializing in babies and children. What if I call it Willoughby Photography and use www.kmwphoto.com? Would that be better than www.willoughbyphotography.com?

My site is zxstudios.com company name ZX Studios, LLC.

A Name is a Name. It needs to be something people will remember. The domain should match the company name you go by.

I would have them match, and be as short as possible. Lots of people preffer a name that starts with an A for higher ranking in alphabetical order.

Whether you have a studio or not though a name is a name, if you like it go with it.

jdryan3

KMW wrote:

I wanted to include my name in the business name for tax purposes. I read somewhere in order to be a sole proprietor you have to include your name.

I'll try and site this, but that doesn't ring true. I know lots of people who have a d/b/a that does not include any part of their name. On the Schedule C & Schedule C-EZ there is a place for the name of the taxpayer and a separate spot for the name of the business.

Shorter is better, especially with names that can be spelled several different ways.

KMW

jdryan3 wrote:

I'll try and site this, but that doesn't ring true. I know lots of people who have a d/b/a that does not include any part of their name. On the Schedule C & Schedule C-EZ there is a place for the name of the taxpayer and a separate spot for the name of the business.

Shorter is better, especially with names that can be spelled several different ways.

Thank you that opens me up to more possibilities...I could also use my initials KMW photography as the business name and www.kmwphoto.com but there is a company called KMW Photography Services with the domain www.kmwphotography.com so people may accidently stumble upon their website instead. It is a lot shorter though and easy to remember. I guess I really need to think about this.

ivar

how about just using your firstname/lastname withouth the middle initial?
kathiwilloughby.com? or if you want to kathiwilloughbyphotography.com?

I kinda like the first name being in there, it's more personal and inviting for me, if that makes sense.

I don't like the middle initial in there usually as it's something that has no real value, and it kind of interrupts the flow when you are entering the address. (again, i hope that makes sense).

urbanaries

ivar wrote:

I don't like the middle initial in there usually as it's something that has no real value, and it kind of interrupts the flow when you are entering the address. (again, i hope that makes sense).

KMW

urbanaries wrote:

Thank you everyone for you ideas...I've have been going in circles with this all day and I keep coming back to Willoughby Photography. I know it's long but it seems to flow better than anything else. I'll probably end up using that as the business name when I upgrade if I can't come up with anything else. I did purchase the domain name so I would have the same business and domain name. I did try doing a google search by mispelling my last name and it did come up with "did you mean to search for www.willoughbyphotography.com " so maybe if people do spell it the way it sounds they'll still find it in a search. For now I think I just need to try to sleep on it and maybe I'll have some more ideas in the morning. Thanks again!

jdryan3

KMW wrote:

I did try doing a google search by mispelling my last name and it did come up with "did you mean to search for www.willoughbyphotography.com " so maybe if people do spell it the way it sounds they'll still find it in a search.

You can also register common misspellings (one L, no u, g & h transposed, etc). Then when someone enters it, they can automatically be redirected to the correct site. Obviously the misspellings can not already be registered.

brncr6

Mine is
a little on the long side briandanielsphotography.com but is say's it all, who I am and what I do.

KMW

jdryan3 wrote:

You can also register common misspellings (one L, no u, g & h transposed, etc). Then when someone enters it, they can automatically be redirected to the correct site. Obviously the misspellings can not already be registered.

Hi thanks for your suggestion...do you mean register a domain with a common mispelling? Do you then forward it to the correct domain? I've seen people spell Willoby a few times. I was also wondering if I could put invisible keywords on the Pro Smugmug site with the common misspellings. Is that possible?

KMW

brncr6 wrote:

a little on the long side briandanielsphotography.com but is say's it all, who I am and what I do.

Maybe having a long name is not so bad after all. I don't think there are too many Willoughby's around so maybe it will stand out. I hope. When I first got married it took a while to get used to but now it's my name.

chicodawg

Did you try a short(er) version with a dash?

I had a tough time in the domain department and finally went with a dash in the domain.

BTW, I'm a sole proprietor and do not have my name in the business name registration, or as a d/b/a. I was told that d/b/a was if you go with a fictitious name type registration. You can also use your name, as your business name (John Doe Photography), without registration... since you technically already own your name.

Mike

KMW

chicodawg wrote:

Did you try a short(er) version with a dash?

I had a tough time in the domain department and finally went with a dash in the domain.

BTW, I'm a sole proprietor and do not have my name in the business name registration, or as a d/b/a. I was told that d/b/a was if you go with a fictitious name type registration. You can also use your name, as your business name (John Doe Photography), without registration... since you technically already own your name.

Mike

Thanks...I am definitely going to use my last name as the business name. I created a header last night to see how it looks on my webpage. I still need to add nav bars and more kids to my portfolio besides my own. The last thing I need to decide is which domain name to use. I can stick with www.willoughbyphotography.com or a shorter version is available www.willphotography.com ....so many decisions to be made. I think I like how my name looks as the business name. What do you think?

www.kmw.smugmug.com

jdryan3

KMW wrote:

Hi thanks for your suggestion...do you mean register a domain with a common mispelling? Do you then forward it to the correct domain? I've seen people spell Willoby a few times. I was also wondering if I could put invisible keywords on the Pro Smugmug site with the common misspellings. Is that possible?

Yes. My company name is a little different and people often misspell it (you should see the mail I get). But we have registered the real name, plus a number of misspellings. When a person misspells our name in their browser URL, it is automatically redirected to the real site. Technology. Ain't it cool!:):

Stella Bella

I know this thread was buried....

I am trying to come up with my business name as well and some have suggested using my name. Kathi, I really like your website!

Thanks

KMW

Stella Bella wrote:

I know this thread was buried....

I am trying to come up with my business name as well and some have suggested using my name. Kathi, I really like your website!

Thanks

I just noticed my old thread at the top again....thanks for the compliment. I think you should go with Stella Bella Photography or either name sounds great alone. So far I have had no problems with people finding me. I just put my business cards on bulletin boards and post ads on Craigslist. I never expected any calls from Craigslist and so far almost every client is from Craigs list. I am booked through October. I have had no problems with word of mouth either. I am getting bookings from client's friends and families too. Good luck with your business!

Icebear

It's never too late . . .
If I were in the business of photographing children, and were a lady, and my name was Willoughby, I'd have a long look at "WilloPhoto" but then that's just my $.02.