Dilemmas of Picking My Blog Name

I’ve set up a couple of blogs before and all the stuff I’ve read about picking a blog name says to do keyword research first and to include your best keyword or words in the title. Then along comes coach Alex, (I know he gets a kick out of being called that). Forget about keywords, he says. Set up your blog in your own name and tell your story. Make it about your journey into internet marketing and how to make money on the internet.

At first I was taken aback. Do I really want to do that? Do I really want to tell my story and bare my soul online? My mind was racing thinking of how I could do it without letting on that I was on Alex’s coaching course.

But as the coaching session went on and he explained all the ins and outs of it,  it began to make a lot of sense. OK, I thought, Alex knows what he is doing. It’s worked for others so why wouldn’t it work for me?  I’ll just have to be brave and reveal a bit of myself.

So, after making the decision to go for it lock, stock and barrel, I went to register my name as a dot com domain name only to find that someone has already got it. Drat. A guy from the Virgin Islands has beaten me to it!

OK,  next best thing then is to go for the hyphenated version. Not quite the same though is it? It doesn’t have quite the same look to it. But then I notice that GoDaddy gives you other suggestions if the domain you choose is not available. One suggestion that jumped out at me was sandyhallidayonline dot com That sounded quite good to me. Should I go for that?

I posted the question in Alex’s forum and I got a couple of replies that pointed out that a number of well known internet marketers were doing very well with a hyphenated name for their blogs. Well that’s true. I had never really noticed the hyphens before. You just remember the name.

One drawback of the hypenated name is that if you happen to tell someone your URL they may forget about the hyphen but most of the people who are going to find your blog are going to be online and they will just click a link to it so it is not really a problem.

Another replied that if this was going to be my business blog then sandyhallidayonline might be good but if it was going to be my personal blog then I should just stick to my own name. Decision made. I’ll go for my name with a hyphen.

So here’s the Silver Surfer with her blog set up and writing her first post. What are your thoughts about blog names? Did you have the same dilemma? Have I done the right thing? Leave your comments below.

10 thoughts on “Dilemmas of Picking My Blog Name”

  1. hey sandy
    its ok
    ive just left a comment to
    prove to you that you have
    set up fine
    blogs great
    keep it going
    chat soon
    nicky

  2. Hi Sandy,

    Congrats on your first post!

    The domain name you picked for your blog is completely fine. If you should need to change it in the future you can always do so. I also like the description in your title, it has a nice ring to it.

    Keep up the good work and before you know it you will be spending the much needed time with your husband:)

    Anna

  3. Hi Sandy,

    Your domain names is great this is all about having your story online that people can see you becoming an internet marketer. The more oil rig hopping you do the more traffic you will get so the search engines don’t come into it at this stage.

    Keep up the good work you are a great writer and there is a flow to your articles

    Glyn

  4. Sandy:

    Great first post. I had the same problem. Someone had already taken RickByrd.com. I never thought about a hyphenated version so I chose to follow the Alex Jeffrey model and went with MarketingWithRick.com I really wish I would have thought about using a hyphen. Oh well, too late now.

    Good luck to you and I look forward to sharing and learning from you.

    – Rick

  5. Hey Sandy

    Blog looks great so far and I’m sure once you have added more to it, it will look very established.

    I don’t think there is anything wrong with your blog name. I personally do try and avoid hyphons but it’s just a personal thing.

    You have a great blog and that’s the main thing!

    Keep at it and good luck. You have a great mentor in Alex and a truly fantastic community behind you.

    Anything you need, just ask. I will try and help anyone as best I can.

    James

  6. How’s it going Silver Surfer.

    I had the same dillema with choosing a blog name.

    I know it’s the right choice. Just love the way your getting your readers involved with post 😉 and I’ll be back very soon.

    We’ll be on this rollercoaster together my friend.

    Reach new heights,

    Nathan

  7. Hi Sandy, Great post, you have hit the nail on the head with your blog post. You have a wealth of experience to offer also as you know what works and what doesn’t-keep it up!Take care Orla

  8. hey sandy, great post. i was on for ages trying to think of a domain name to choose, especially for my ppp. i must have tried about 100 different ones.

    anyway keep it up.

    Jonny Balfour

  9. Hey Sandy, at least you didn’t have a really common name and managed to get the domain of your choice, the John Smith’s of the world have no chance of getting theirs, or worst still if you share a celebrity name! Hope your well, take care, Sally 🙂

  10. Hi Sandy,

    Glad to meet you and have you aboard. Put the banner up and go for it always build your list. Building a list should be a priority everyday.

    Blog looks Great!

    Talk Soon,
    Chris

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