Get it right the first time! Use your blog/business name for everything!

Have you ever known someone that is just starting out in business, has spent a fortune to have a webpage created and still cannot be found when people search for them online. I have seen this happen twice in the last week.

I husband and I spend a couple of days at the beach last week . I wanted to take a look around and get some ideas for new blog posts. I discovered a small inn on the promenade in Seaside, Oregon named Inn at the Prom. I went into the office and visited with the owner who gave me a personal tour of the rooms. I came back to my condo room to take a look at his website and write a bit about the business. I could not find him in the google search even using the city name with it.

I had picked up a brochure when I visited so I checked on the address. It turned out the the name of the business was not in the url address. The owner's umbrella business name was the one they were using for the inn. So, if I were to pass the name onto a friend and they tried to find the business, they would have no luck.

In another case the business owner had chosen to use a Facebook fan page to advertise. But finding the webpage required a customer to click on the sidebar info icon. All the web addresses on the FB page took you back to the same FB page.

I cannot help but wonder if businesses vet their webpages and advertising. By pretending they are the customer looking for them they can see if their online connections are working.  I will even do it for new businesses for a fee.  It seems so simple to me!

Your business/blog name should become your brand name.  So here is what I think:

1. When you decide on a brand name, be sure that the url address includes that name.
2. Use your brand name as your screen name for any account that you have. That includes Twitter, Facebook, Redgage, Hubpages, BlogHer, etc. I know now all of my accounts should have Retire In Style Blog as my screen name.
3. Put your link to your business or blog, Twitter account, FaceBook and HubPages in the signature part of your email. You will find the signature function in the preferences.
4. End every bit of communication including comments on other blogs and forums with the brand name and link to that name.
5. You might consider even opening an email account using your brand name.

I wish I had know these things when I began writing. I could have saved myself a lot of time. A rose by any other name may still smell good but will anyone be able to find it?
b
http://www.retireinstyleblog.com