25.07  Domain name deliberations   |   Freelance designer Wilma Lensink describes the challenges of naming her business – and finding a suitable domain name that hasn’t already been taken.

Working as a freelancer can be challenging. We all have our ups and downs: the days we think we are unbelievably creative are followed by days where we think we are as creative as toothpicks – not to mention other frustrations.

However top of my list of frustrations recently has been trying to register a domain name for my freelance graphic design business. Have you ever tried to register a domain? Then you’ll know what I mean.

I always thought I was good at naming things – my animals, for instance. My small cross-breed poodle is called Maybe (“maybe we will keep her... maybe we won’t”). Our brown cat’s name is Really (as in “really nice”) and the big fat ginger kitty is Very (as in “very nice”) and then there’s the infamous Almost (“almost on his way to Soweto”). I’m creative in the kitchen too, naming my smoothie concoctions things like Strawberry Froth, Lekka Lemon and Chokaflokka. It’s fun!

So I didn’t expect to be stumped when it came to naming my own company. Coming up with a good name proved to be a challenge. I wanted a short name like Google, Yahoo, Hot or Shot. I wanted something that stood out. It needed to be entertaining and mean something in my field, yet be used for multiple purposes. I wanted something that was easy to say, spell and remember. Of course it has to look cool as a logo too and I also wanted everyone to like it. (Running some of the options by family and friends proved to be entertaining!) Lastly the name needed to be easy to remember as a URL so that people could find my website easily.

So after many failed attempts I had a short list. The next step was to see if these names were available as domains. Alas.

The domain squatters had registered every possible domain name I had on my original list as well as every other possible name I consequently came up as my Plan B. Trying to buy out the domain from them also proved to be rather costly. I was quoted R1000 a month for one I wanted. (Usually domains cost R50-200 a year.) I once heard of a company that tried to sell a domain for half a million rand [Ed. – some dotcoms sell for millions of dollars.]. Needless to say the seller’s greedy money making scheme didn't work. Instead, the prospective buyers renamed their company slightly and secured their domain for R250.

Back to my naming nightmare. I tried to the translate the names to Afrikaans. The cool ones were registered. I tried Italian, French, Zulu and Latin – most weren’t registered but they were not exactly easy to remember. My final option was to change the spelling of a name I like but that often causes confusion and comes along with a barrage of nay-saying responses.

For fun (and in honour of my animals) I tried Maybe.co.za, Really.co.za, Very.co.za and Almost.co.za. All but “Maybe” were registered. For curiosity I tried goggo.co.za, roundsquare.co.za, analogy.co.za, high.co.za. Even registered.co.za was registered.
What is sad is that most names will never be used and will float in cyberspace unused, forever.

So to my current and future clients and fellow freelancers: If my company name (once I finally settle on one) is confusing, blame the ISPs.

I had just completed this article when I attended the Flying Solo Unconference on Saturday the 25th of July.  I learnt about the recession discount, how to set your rates, how to use Twitter and what Jelly is. I also got to hear from a CA about PAYE and how Michaelangelo and Da Vinci differed. I learnt about BEE and Sputnik and the possible answer to my dilemma. Apparently you can register a domain through Google. It will be a .net URL and it is for free. I am currently researching this option. Will keep you posted on what the outcome is.

Wilma Lensink, graphic designer, Gauteng