Oh, I wish I had my camera! When I was at Oak Island, NC, I saw my favorite business sign: Terry Klutz Construction. It has been up for at least the last 20 years. Word moves pretty quick when a construction company isn't up to snuff on the small heavily residential island, so somehow, Klutz must have defied the odds of having a negative name. After all, who wants a house built buy a klutz? How easy it would be to have an injured reputation with only a few mistakes. Their work and service must be outstanding even with the kooky name. Can you hear the insults? It's just too easy. Those Klutz's are brave souls. No Web site either.
Here's a do's and don't list I found for coming up with a business name at About.com: Retailing :
- Do make it easy to understand, spell and pronounce.
- Don't use negative sounding words. (But it works!)
- Do consider where your business will fall in an alphabetical list such as the yellow pages.
- Don't limit your product line by choosing a name that won't represent all you do.
- Do create a name you can stand behind. (Talk about the need to go above and beyond your name.)
- Don't use a strictly generic term, such as 'discount office supply' which cannot be protected as trademarks.
- Do be creative and imaginative. (Klutz's, you didn't even have to try. Gold.)
Here's another another site PowerHomeBiz.com that helps businesses come up with names.
What can ruin a reputation, of course, is service. Here are a couple of blogs that talk about it:
- BL Ochman's whatnextblog.com.
- Techdirt blog
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2 comments:
I've seen the sign you are referring to also. Here is a unique sign nearby at Holden Beach at the Beach Mart. You can see it here.
http://brunswickbroker.com/2008/05/28/sign-at-the-holden-beach-nc-beach-mart/
Oh, boy, Steve. What a sign. I don't know whether to thank you for sharing or shhh you like you cursed and that's just for being the messenger. :)
Have you seen those signs in Dillion, SC of the Mexico theme park along I-95? One says "Have you ever Sausage a place?" There was another one that did a play on southern dialect. Very creative. I hope business is good!
BTW -- if you go by 47th Street on Oak Island, wave at my parents who just moved there permanently.
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