posted
I didn’t want to hijack Chris OBrien’s post on the portfolio side of things. So I’ll ask here…What is your consensus on having your business name include part or all of your name. (Example: Jeff’s Lettering)
I know there are pro’s and con’s…all in all I think to do it over again (20 years later) I would not include “my name” in the business name.
Just a thought as Chris said he was just starting up a website…thoughts about this might be helpful to him or others as they choose a name.
Jeff
-------------------- Jeff's Lettering Lisa,Luke,Dara, and Jeff Spradling 5742 Shattuck Rd. Belvidere, Il. 61008 815-544-0167
Surviving another day. Posts: 626 | From: Belvidere, IL USA | Registered: Jul 2000
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I think it depends on the type of business you are starting. I would lean away from using my name for a full-blown full-service sign shop. If you are doing all types of signs, printing, and t-shirts, a name like "Jon's Designs" is not very descriptive and doesn't convey a professional image. It reminds me of "Billy Bob's Oil Change" and so I guess I would lean more towards a business name without my name in it.
However, on a business like Chris is starting, it is centered around him being a designer (if I remember right from his post). He is marketing himself and his skills, and so I believe the "Chris O'brien Design" is appropriate in that case. It's similar to "David Maloney, Attorney at Law" or a dentist or doctor simply putting their name on the sign. They don't need to describe their services, they want their name to speak for itself and people to use them because of who they are and their competence.
You see this a lot with engineers and architects also, which would be similar to a graphics designer....
/That probably didn't make sense.. //I'll be starting "Jantz's Learn to Keep Your 2 cents to Yourself" soon. ///Any suggestions are shortening that up??
-------------------- Jon Jantz Snappysign.com jjantz21@gmail.com http://www.allcw.com Posts: 3395 | From: Atmore, AL | Registered: Nov 2005
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Once you associate your name to a company and all fails, then your name is the credit check.
Register a name to the work you do,. Like... A-Plus Signs, or Happy Signs.
If you have to file on loans you name is not include in the title.
If your name is there and they the 'Banks' do a credit check with it, You Name title is going to be the first to come up! It will be hard to open a business again in your favour of your name.
-------------------- Stephen Deveau RavenGraphics Insinx Digital Displays
Letting Your Imagination Run Wild! Posts: 4327 | From: Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia, Canada | Registered: Jan 2000
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posted
Just a quick thought. Using your name may limit the sale price when the time comes. May be hard to find a buyer with the same name for "Hiemie's Signs, Lines and Designs" etc.
My very small burglar alarm company in the eighties had a long but impressive sounding name..."Central New England Security Engineering, Inc." The length and sound of the name brought in large corporate accounts that would not have even looked at "Bill's Burglar Alarm Co." or Bill's Security Services"... You really don't want to present as a one man operation in my opinion unless your name is already heavily established as the "a master sign writer/designer" in your market area.
-------------------- William "Irish" Holohan Resting...Read "Between Jobs." Marlboro, MA 01752 email: firemap1@aol.com Posts: 1110 | From: Marlboro, MA | Registered: Dec 2001
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Where I live ( Ontario, Canada ) there are "numbered companies". 528376 Ontario Limited, as an example.
These are set up and registered as such, primarily because the principals of the company DON'T wish their name to be associated with the company which they in fact control. Now, I don't know about you, but I do have an aversion to doing business with a company where the owner doesn't want their name associated with it. It raises all sorts of questions, like was the principal owner a financial risk because of perhaps a previous bankruptcy, or perhaps a somewhat "checkered" or tarnished past ?
If one of these "numbered companies does happen to go belly-up, then the image and reputation of the actual owner isn't smeared, which is something that Stephen alluded to. To my way of thinking, it's almost as though this company is set up to fail, rather than prosper, and it's very existance as a numbered company fosters suspicion, rather than confidence.
Once a company is established and carries the owner's name, he or she has their professional and business reputation on the line, and reflects a certain amount of credibility, as opposed to a "shell company" which is permitted in this area.
As craftspeople, we should be proud enough to identify personally with the work that we turn out. Establish a sound personal and business reputation, and that will bring in enough business that "looking bigger" for the sake of getting that big corporate account(s) won't matter all that much. There are far more smaller businesses that big corporations, and usually they're easier to deal with on almost every level.
-------------------- Ken Henry Henry & Henry Signs London, Ontario Canada (519) 439-1881 e-mail: kjmlhenry@rogers.com
Why do I get all those on-line offers to sell me Viagara, when the only thing hardening is my arteries ? Posts: 2684 | From: London,Ontario, Canada | Registered: Feb 1999
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The name needs to sound good, whatever it is. The difficulty is using your own full name, comes after/if you ever sell the business, and want to restart- you can't use your name a second time!
-------------------- "Stewey" on chat
"...there are no limits when you aim for perfection..." Jonathan Livingston Seagull Posts: 7014 | From: Highgrove via Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia | Registered: Dec 2002
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I agree that having your own personal name in the business name isn't always a great idea, for many of the reasons already mentioned. In fact, I started a "business" last year under the name Impact Graphics for the very reason that I did not want my name involved. However what I am doing really is more of a personal website with a bio, and a portfolio of my logo design, my illustrations, drawings, paintings, and anything else I think is neat. I work full time at a sign shop, and do not want the image that I have my own sign shop on the side, since this is not the case. And the name "impact graphics" had more connontations of a full-time business. I actually wanted to just get "ChrisObrien.com" but since there are about 9 billion of us, I had to settle for "ChrisObrienDesign.com" - But it is going to be more of a website promoting me personally as a designer/freelancer/all-around-neat-guy/etc.
Also, any other opinions on my post at the portfolio page?
-------------------- Chris O'Brien Cape Cod, MA Posts: 183 | From: Cape Cod MA | Registered: Jan 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Ken Henry: ..........Once a company is established and carries the owner's name, he or she has their professional and business reputation on the line, and reflects a certain amount of credibility, ..........As craftspeople, we should be proud enough to identify personally with the work that we turn out. Establish a sound personal and business reputation, and that will bring in enough business that "looking bigger" for the sake of getting that big corporate account(s) won't matter all that much. There are far more smaller businesses that big corporations, and usually they're easier to deal with on almost every level.
Ken said it for me.
-------------------- Wayne Webb Webb Signworks Chipley, FL 850.638.9329 wayne@webbsignworks.com Posts: 7403 | From: Chipley,Florida,United States | Registered: Oct 1999
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I'm in the "no name" camp. I just never liked personal (or worse nick names) for a business that has bigger things in mind. I use a sub for installs and often give his name for some large jobs that we don't do, but I always have to preface the referral with "he's really a large company doing big installs" because his nicknamed sign co. just doesn't sound like someone who installs $50k jobs.
posted
Well, DIAZ Sign Art is a family business and we are PROUD of our name! (It's interesting though, when people walk in, they AREN'T expecting a short German-looking lady behind the counter!) It's worked out well for us, especially since the boys have joined us and we all work here now.
-------------------- Jane Diaz Diaz Sign Art 628 W. Lincoln Ave. Pontiac, Il. 61764 815-844-7024 www.diazsignart.com Posts: 4102 | From: Pontiac, IL USA | Registered: Feb 1999
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Back when we incorporated we did not want to include our name in the 'brand'. But 'Imagination Corporation' was deemed by the authorities as 'not descriptive enough' and our lawyer suggested adding Sawatzky's to the front of it.
In retrospect I wish we had fought it more vigorously. From time to time we consider trademarking and changing our name... but it would be expensive and drawn out process... and we drop the idea each time.
Using just a first name definitely wouldn't be my choice. Using your last name would be fine, except for no one can spell ours.
But then again my name is different and now well known in the industry and elsewhere too. Now my name 'works' for me... so it turned out to be a good thing in the end.
Using Imagination Corporation has (and will continue) allowed us to do a wide variety of things under the same name.
No right answer in Yarrow...
-grampa dan
[ October 02, 2007, 12:06 AM: Message edited by: Dan Sawatzky ]
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8738 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
I agree with Grampa Dan... I notice it does make a difference whether the last name or first name is used. To me, the last name sign businesses mentioned here sound very professional...
Look at some of the most successful companies in the world, many of them have the last names of their founders in them. Hewlett-Packard is one that comes to mind... Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard flipped a coin to see if the they were going to call their company Hewlett-Packard or Packard-Hewlett. Somehow, I just don't see them becoming a global company if they had gone with "Bill & Dave's Garage-Built Computers".
Then again, I think it depends on the image one is trying to project. If you are wanting to have a 1-man, personable, low-key and service oriented business, maybe the first name in the business is a good idea.
/I could be wrong //won't be the first time...
-------------------- Jon Jantz Snappysign.com jjantz21@gmail.com http://www.allcw.com Posts: 3395 | From: Atmore, AL | Registered: Nov 2005
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Right out of high school I went by Spradling Signs and like Dan said, rarely was it spelled right or pronounced correctly for that matter.
When we officially went into business it was Signs by Jeff. After a few years of people calling us about “sign” work and then asking who to call about lettering their vehicles, we thought it would help to go more generic, so the change to Jeff’s Lettering was made. Silly me!
Now some 14-15 years later many still call us Signs by Jeff or Jeff Signs or Jeff’s Letters and the occasional package that seemingly comes from some foreign country labeled to Mr. Jeff s. Wettering.
Guess it doesn’t matter as long as they’re calling. Other than a few times the bank wouldn’t cash a check because it wasn’t made out to “Jeff’s Lettering“.
I never had dreams of the big “corporate” sign company, or the thought of bankruptcy, and I don’t think I’ve done anything to shame my name too bad …yet. I will admit the egotistical part of me likes to see my name there sometimes.
I’m sure I would be proud if someday the kids carried on with the business regardless of the name.
Jeff
P.S. Jon’s thoughts about last names led me here I found the origin of some corporate name interesting.
-------------------- Jeff's Lettering Lisa,Luke,Dara, and Jeff Spradling 5742 Shattuck Rd. Belvidere, Il. 61008 815-544-0167
Surviving another day. Posts: 626 | From: Belvidere, IL USA | Registered: Jul 2000
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posted
After having an Excavating Company (Dennis Raap Excavating) for over 25 years, when we ventured into the sign business we thought we shouldn't use our name, for the reasons some have listed. Chose X-treme Graphics. AFter about 3 years of people telling us they didn't know how to find us and figuring out that X-treme Graphics was a highly popular name, we went back to Raap Signs. Best thing we did. We had a great reputation from our old business and that has carried thru to our Sign business. People remembered doing business with us before and we are the first they call now. I agree with Jon and Jeff, and the corporate world theory. Should be proud to advertise your name with your business. If you run a respectful business, shouldn't have to worry about ruining your name, and if it does get ruined, your name is anyway.
-------------------- Patricia A. Raap Raap Signs 2615 Arthur Coopersville, MI 49404 616-677-0158 pat@raapsigns.com Posts: 575 | From: Coopersville, MI 49404 | Registered: Nov 2003
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If you think people can't spell Sawatzky, Dan, you should see some of the variations they come up with for Stewart-Koster- I think it's worse!!!
-------------------- "Stewey" on chat
"...there are no limits when you aim for perfection..." Jonathan Livingston Seagull Posts: 7014 | From: Highgrove via Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia | Registered: Dec 2002
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posted
I've always worked out in the left field of sign work, doing a lot of personal stuff like lettering race cars, pinstriping hot rods, etc. I've always used my real name in any business endeavor. I've worked as a home based business for years, ran a shop for years and went back homebased. I always thought it would be easier on folks trying to find me.
The only suggestion I would offer is that if your name ends in an S, stick something like "creative" or whatever after your name. When answering a phone the two S's back to back just don't roll right off the tongue.....especially with dentures.
-------------------- George Perkins Millington,TN. goatwell@bigriver.net
"I started out with nothing and still have most of it left"
posted
I think in a service related business it's important to link your name. It's all about relationships and in this world of people hiding behind corporate veils or the annoying and clueless "front line" employees playing defense, putting your name out there in the forefront so people know who they're dealing with just sets you apart.
I can see the point in not using your name for when it comes time to sell - IF it ever comes time to sell, but I've seen many businesses around here fold up after new owners took the reigns simply because the customers liked dealing with the previous owners and they quit coming once the old owners left.
I have a separate biz name for the vinyl/design side of things but on the photography side I'm building that using my full name. This is due in part to the more personalized service nature of commercial photography, and the fact that on the vinyl side, nobody remembers my real name so they call me by the website name (which is also different from the official biz name) and it gets annoying.
-------------------- "If I share all my wisdom I won't have any left for myself."
Mike Pipes stickerpimp.com Lake Havasu, AZ mike@stickerpimp.com Posts: 8746 | From: Lake Havasu, AZ USA | Registered: Jun 2000
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I asked a company that sells businesses to sell my business a coupla years ago. They said, nope, can't do it. Because you ARE the business, with the name "Mike Meyer Sign Painter".
Here I am, selling my building with upstairs apartment, and moving 8 miles and re-naming the business.....this is the web site it's listed under..go to search, then click on "other" http://www.oibmn.com/ I have to get my pictures up. here is my new name and logo.....Jeff if you will.....
-------------------- Mike Meyer Sign Painter 189 1st Ave n P.O. Box 3 Mazeppa, Mn 55956
We are not selling, we are staying here in Mazeppa....we cannot re-create what we have here....not in another lifetime! SO Here we are!!!!!!!
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Rolling On The Floor]](graemlins/rolf.gif)
Silly me!![[I Don t Know]](graemlins/dunno.gif)
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I will admit the egotistical part of me likes to see my name there sometimes. ![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
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