What's in a name?? Worth Changing?

[Tim Baillie]

Has anyone been or know anyone who has been in business for awhile and the direction their company has taken is SO far from where the shop name started from?

Considering changing our company name to something that suites are current direction and what we are catering to.....

Thoughts??

[Tuske427]

While I haven't been in the exact situation you're describing, I have been through several rounds of logo changes/ mission statement updates from places I work, etc.

If I were in your shoes, I might ask myself the following:

- Does the current name have a reputation/ credibility? Would changing the name lose that history?

- Will the new name involve any trademarking/ trademark searches, etc (can cost $$. is it worth the expense?)

- What would the new name offer? would a name change make a big enough difference to increase the customers/ sales, etc..

many times unrelated names work well for a brand.

I guess I would be more inclined to change a name if I were trying to get rid of a blemish or bad history. General Motors comes to mind when changing their name to work through a bankruptcy.

Why throw away a hard earned reputation only to start over and do it again?

Maybe update a logo on your business card and store front, but keep the name.

Just my thoughts, I hope they are helpful.

[Tim Baillie]

The biggest problem is people can't pronounce the name and can't remember how to spell it if they are trying to look us up online or somewhere.

We wouldn't lose HzEmall it would just be minimized drastically in the new logo etc and have the new name more prodominat in it.

HzEmall - New Age Hot Rods.........something like that

[HWY Nova]

Originally Posted by HzEmall Customs

The biggest problem is people can't pronounce the name and can't remember how to spell it if they are trying to look us up online or somewhere.

We wouldn't lose HzEmall it would just be minimized drastically in the new logo etc and have the new name more prodominat in it.

HzEmall - New Age Hot Rods.........something like that

How about "New Age Hot Rods, a division of HzEMALL"......

Look at the old "Air Ride Technologies" name, they recently changed it to "RideTech" to better represent their business (and where its headed).


--Eric

[Josh69]

I gotta be honest, what does HzEmall mean? Does it have any definition to your community or area that people relate to? The name you have may have solid collateral backing it, history, personal or regional relevance, etc, but it sounds meaningless and a little 'out there' to an outsider. JMHO and I'm only trying to provide an outside perspective since I think you want honestly, not sugar coating which won't help you. If you've moved that far from what it originally meant, which is obviously very obscure in the first place, I think you would benefit from amending it. Keep it a footnote though as you mentioned for past customers, recognition etc.

[mosconiac]

I'm a guessin' that "Hz" = "Hertz"...as in HertzEmAll...as in HurtsEmAll.

My brothers used to give me Donuts...Hurts Donuts.

[Tim Baillie]

Originally Posted by mosconiac

I'm a guessin' that "Hz" = "Hertz"...as in HertzEmAll...as in HurtsEmAll.

Correct, it's a name we used back in the 90's for a group of us that competed in car audio competitions all around the country.

When I opened my shop we were mostly car audio, electrical and upholstery.

Now we only do car audio as part of the whole package, has been that way for a while now.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by Josh69

The name you have may have solid collateral backing it, history, personal or regional relevance, etc, but it sounds meaningless and a little 'out there' to an outsider. .

Well said. These days most people that don't know you wil try to find you on the net. If you have a name that is hard to remember, or has an obscure spelling, it will not come up easily in a search. I would not hesitate to make changes.