Can you help me name my new Business?

[The Van Cave]

Hi all,

I'll soon be opening a little business (and changing to a trade member), but I need some help naming it. I'm good at a few things, but naming things is not a speciality of mine, so can you help?

I've included a few options to get a little poll going (in no particular order), but if you can think of something better then choose "other" and include your suggestion as a reply in the thread, if I like it I'll amend the poll to include it.

What's the business going to do? Put simply, supply and fitting of suspension and interior and exterior styling. Pretty much anything that fits into those categories, plus sound deadening, insulating, carpet lining, maybe day van conversions if things go well.

I'll be launching formally on here and social media when I'm ready, but I need a name first, please help!

Cheers, Chris.

 

[Jay]

Van gogh transformations.

 

[A Bridge Too Far]

These are a good start, think about what you would have as a web address and if it is easy to type and free to use.

i.e. if you included a character in the business name like + it will confuse people trying to find you online and means your web address would be different to your company name. Once you know your name check if anyone else is using it (search companies house etc).

You may not have a need for a website now but you can reserve the web address for later use (not too much cost) and even get a work email based on it quite cheaply. It stops a chancer finding your business, buying the web address and trying to sell it back to you.

I also think having full names rather than abbreviations or misspelt words looks more professional and would appeal to the widest possible customer base. e.g. 'Shazzers Cardz' or 'Greetings Cards by Sharon'. Both get the business name across but one will not appeal to some people, in business our own views on this don't really matter, getting customers through the door is the aim.

Finally whenever you advertise or post about your business, make sure you know what your message is and make sure anyone can understand it, even if they have never seen a van before. They say you only truly understand a subject if you can explain it to a layman. The number of times you'll get a sales call or see an ad then at the end still not know what they are offering is surprisingly regular.

Good luck I hope it's a success!

 

[VanDamMan]

A van is not a van till it’s been to ..Transformation

 

[The Van Cave]

These are a good start, think about what you would have as a web address and if it is easy to type and free to use.

i.e. if you included a character in the business name like + it will confuse people trying to find you online and means your web address would be different to your company name. Once you know your name check if anyone else is using it (search companies house etc).

You may not have a need for a website now but you can reserve the web address for later use (not too much cost) and even get a work email based on it quite cheaply. It stops a chancer finding your business, buying the web address and trying to sell it back to you.

I also think having full names rather than abbreviations or misspelt words looks more professional and would appeal to the widest possible customer base. e.g. 'Shazzers Cardz' or 'Greetings Cards by Sharon'. Both get the business name across but one will not appeal to some people, in business our own views on this don't really matter, getting customers through the door is the aim.

Finally whenever you advertise or post about your business, make sure you know what your message is and make sure anyone can understand it, even if they have never seen a van before. They say you only truly understand a subject if you can explain it to a layman. The number of times you'll get a sales call or see an ad then at the end still not know what they are offering is surprisingly regular.

Good luck I hope it's a success!

This is a really great post and thanks for taking the time to offer the advice.

I have checked each of those on companies house and they are all available (transporter performance already exists in my name). I had originally named the business that because I was going to offer only suspension and engine tuning, but I preferred to include the exterior and interior styling, both of which are things I'm passionate about and very good at. I thought the name Transporter Performance was limiting and would make people think only of engine upgrades (well, I didn't until that was pointed out to me @Eli , hence now considering a change. I actually got as far as also buying the domain and setting up an email address before I got cold feet over the name!)

I completely agree with the abbreviations and misspelt words, I know which of those card shops I would prefer to shop at.

Great advice on the advertising, I've been in the aerospace engineering industry for over 20 years and I've spent a huge amount of that time translating engineering design language into laymans terms, so hopefully I'll be good at that.

 

[Mud Digger]

Good Luck @ChrisR Good tips from @A Bridge Too Far setting it up is fairly easy i would say... start as a sole trader accountants charge a lot more being limited and also don't use friends to set up.... they end up charging for the smallest alterations that soon build even as your setting out it easily destroys friendships. use social media where you can. yell, google charge a fortune to get your name up top listings

Buy good quality used tools and equipment to save the VAT a lot of money goes out before you can claim any back a lot of the old loop holes have been filled in now

i set up a Limited carpet cleaning business 2 - 3 years ago starting out part time.. is how i got the Van now ... brought all new kit, did all the training, even a nice web site initially laid out a lot of money and VAT then realized people just don't want to pay for a professional service when they can save paying unknowns and untrained a fraction of the price.....

was a big lay out all the time with nothing coming in... so i closed it down and cant get the VAT back lucky i didt leave my full time job, they took me back full time.

Tell no one anything how to fix. they need to bring their Van to you ... im just to nice to be a Salesman lol .

best wishes with your Vanventure ........... kindest regards Nick

 

[Loz]

I just PMed you with a suggestion and the domain name is available.

 

[DaveD]

Some people are fortunate enough to run a profitable company.
Some people are fortunate enough to run a business doing something they love doing.
The most fortunate people fall into both categories! Good luck!

 

[Eli]

These are a good start, think about what you would have as a web address and if it is easy to type and free to use.

i.e. if you included a character in the business name like + it will confuse people trying to find you online and means your web address would be different to your company name. Once you know your name check if anyone else is using it (search companies house etc).

You may not have a need for a website now but you can reserve the web address for later use (not too much cost) and even get a work email based on it quite cheaply. It stops a chancer finding your business, buying the web address and trying to sell it back to you.

I also think having full names rather than abbreviations or misspelt words looks more professional and would appeal to the widest possible customer base. e.g. 'Shazzers Cardz' or 'Greetings Cards by Sharon'. Both get the business name across but one will not appeal to some people, in business our own views on this don't really matter, getting customers through the door is the aim.

Finally whenever you advertise or post about your business, make sure you know what your message is and make sure anyone can understand it, even if they have never seen a van before. They say you only truly understand a subject if you can explain it to a layman. The number of times you'll get a sales call or see an ad then at the end still not know what they are offering is surprisingly regular.

Good luck I hope it's a success!

There is a haulage company not far from me and they eventually changed their company name TWA Transport to TWA Group

 

[A Bridge Too Far]

There is a haulage company not far from me and they eventually changed their company name TWA Transport to TWA Group

One is a privtae area the other the wife of a Yorkshire footballer...

 

[jimc91]

using VW in the company title may put off other van owners using you as they may think that's all you specialise in

'Vanstastic Transformations' is my offering

 

[VanDamMan]

Good job its not,,, ARS Equipment

 

[T6Paul]

I'm sticking with ChrisR's Transporter Shack!
Good luck in your new venture Chris

 

[Big.mac]

Good luck with the new venture Chris. Depending on whether you want to limit your market to just VWs I’d be inclined not to use the word Transporter in the name. There are lots of folk now converting Transit Customs and Vivaros etc who may think you only do VW’s if you have it in the name. My vote is therefore for ‘The Van Cave’

 

[CAB]

Good luck with the new venture Chris. Depending on whether you want to limit your market to just VWs I’d be inclined not to use the word Transporter in the name. There are lots of folk now converting Transit Customs and Vivaros etc who may think you only do VW’s if you have it in the name. My vote is therefore for ‘The Van Cave’

Good point.

And following the Ford joint venture, there may not even be Transporters in the future

 

[cgtmiles]

Good luck in your new venture! I will be interested in getting some work done (or rather the work I’ve done redone properly!)

I like van cave, when I think of man caves, it’s where us men spend money unnecessarily to get exactly what we want and create a space unique to us, good parallels there to how I think about the van

 

[The Van Cave]

Good luck with the new venture Chris. Depending on whether you want to limit your market to just VWs I’d be inclined not to use the word Transporter in the name. There are lots of folk now converting Transit Customs and Vivaros etc who may think you only do VW’s if you have it in the name. My vote is therefore for ‘The Van Cave’

That's good advice, thanks. As much as I want to be Transporter specific, it may be that I need to widen my market by covering other vehicles too. Especially so as it seems the 6.1 may be the last true transporter.

 

[The Van Cave]

Good luck in your new venture! I will be interested in getting some work done (or rather the work I’ve done redone properly!)

I like van cave, when I think of man caves, it’s where us men spend money unnecessarily to get exactly what we want and create a space unique to us, good parallels there to how I think about the van

Pretty much exactly my thinking when it came to the name The Van Cave, so good to hear that it appeals to someone else for the same reasons!

 

[The Van Cave]

I've added Vanformations to the list, but I think Vansformations would be better, but can't delete/edit an existing poll option.

 

[ScottyMac]

Pretty much exactly my thinking when it came to the name The Van Cave, so good to hear that it appeals to someone else for the same reasons!

I like The Van Cave also... sounds like the kind of place I'd like to hang out! The biking community always likes to have cool places to just stop off, grab a coffee, browse some stuff they can't normally when the missus is around, etc... I'm presuming the van community are similar.