Naming Your Blog Is Easy Until....

plain and simple · Jun 24, 2012

All I needed was a name for my blog and I was set to go. I was sooo close until I tried searching past threads and Google for advice on how to name your blog. Now, I'm confused...

You see, I want to plan ahead to eventually monetize my blog. I've read every suggestion for naming your blog from "use long names with many keywords" to "keep it short and direct." ???

Now I have to decide if I'm going strictly through Wordpress.com or if I want to buy my own domain name and use Wordpress and learn what fees are involved, etc., Jargon and tech talk are NOT my strong suits.

For example, my user name here is "plainandsimple." Say I wanted to use that on Wordpress.com (which I can't because it's taken). Do I register "plainandsimple" with Wordpress and then buy my own domain name (www.plainandsimple.com) and then use Wordpress to run it? Or is that host it? If I buy the domain, I'm hosting it, right? Who do you buy a domain name from? They don't own the name so why do I have to buy it?

How does a person go about learning all of this?

And, as for the name of my blog... It's named after my voice and style of writing. Not for the topic. My blog isn't about one topic. It's opinions, reviews, commentaries, contests, stories and tips done with inspiration, humor and plain and simple truth -- no mincing words (but no rudeness or cursing. Just telling the truth without walking on eggshells or tiptoeing around the hypocrisy of political correctness)! The name I want to use for my blog are easily recognizable words but words that aren't used very often anymore. (Not words people would natural search for.)

Naming my blog this way seems to go against all advice for those who want to monetize their blogs or make it easy for people to find you. (I don't want to type the name here yet because I haven't purchased/registered it yet.)

Any advice? Ask questions if I can clarify anything...

Alessandra Kelley · Jun 24, 2012

Geez. I just named mine "Confessions of a Postmodern Pre-Raphaelite" because it seemed a reasonable description of who I am and what I do.

You can buy a domain name through any domain name registrar, all of whom are accredited. Some of them are more exploitative than others, and there are stories of people who do a search for a domain name (the first step in determining if you can register it), only to find that very name bought up a few days later and subsequently offered to them at a huge markup.

I find that if you Google the name of a potential domain name registrar with the words "good" and "bad," oftentimes you can find more information about their reliability than if you just Google their name. Wikipedia can be a help here, too, but be sure to check the backstage "talk" pages, as they often have far more interesting news about controversies than the tidied up articles out front.

plain and simple · Jun 24, 2012

Well, I'm getting to the point where everything about registering domain names and domain mapping, etc., is all sounding the same. I'm seriously considering going through Wordpress's Domain Mapping for the whole kit-n-kaboodle to be done with it. It's one stop shopping.

On WordPress.com, you can use a custom domain for your blog, such as example.com, instead of the default address you get when you sign up, like example.wordpress.com. This is called Domain Mapping, and it’s a paid upgrade:

Registering a .com, .org, or .net domain through WordPress.com and mapping that domain to your blog starts at $18.00 per domain and per year, or $25.00 per domain and per year for a .me domain. For $8.00 more, you can also make the domain registration private.

Mapping a domain you already own costs $13.00 per domain, per year.

I just have to find out if I can monetize it later if I'm using their free blogging service or if I'll have to pay more.

As for the name of my blog? Rules be damned. It's my blog and I'll name it what I want and leave the success of it up to God. (When it starts sucking the joy out of what you're doing, do it your own way!)

lorna_w · Jun 24, 2012

uhoh, plainandsimple is going over to the dark side.

CrystalCierlak · Jun 24, 2012

So you're planning on monetizing something you don't know how to use? (An honest question, not a critique).

plain and simple · Jun 24, 2012

lorna_w said:
uhoh, plainandsimple is going over to the dark side.

It comes from having too much blood in my caffeine system. That, and being a perfectionist and "research it til it dies" professional.

It's interesting because learning about one thing leads to three more areas to research which, in turn, triples again and again... Then it just gets infuriating. I've researched Wordpress, BlogSpot, Tumblr, (features, advantages, disadvantages, etc.,) Domain Mapping, Domain Buying, How to Name Your Blog, How to Monetize Your Blog, How to Not Sell Out, etc.,

Ugh.

I'm done. While there is still marrow left to suck out of life, I'm taking the leap. Just one problem. My best friend didn't like the name of my blog. <insert Charlie Brown scream here>

plain and simple · Jun 24, 2012

CrystalCierlak said:
So you're planning on monetizing something you don't know how to use? (An honest question, not a critique).

Hi Crystal! No, not immediately... or too soon. I just want the option to monetize to be there as I grow into this. I was advised to set up my blog carefully and not make the mistakes many people do when they start their blogs. Once they decide to monetize, they end up having to change hosts/sites and all their SE stats are gone and they have to start from scratch. That's all I want to avoid, so, I'm trying to figure out the best way to do that.

Deleted member 42 · Jun 24, 2012

1. Buy your own domain.
2. Pay for hosting from someone other than your domain register.
3. Pick a host like Dreamhost or GoDaddy or any number of others that offers one-click installs of WordPress. There are many ISPs/hosts that offer this. That way you can monetize it to your heart's content.
4. The name of your blog doesn't have to match your domain, and can be easily changed. The name of your domain is important. Your domain needs to be memorable, and short. Get the .com and .net and .org versions of your name if possible; you can have them all point to one site, you don't have to do everything 3 times.

plain and simple · Jun 24, 2012

Medievalist said:
1. Buy your own domain.
2. Pay for hosting from someone other than your domain register.
3. Pick a host like Dreamhost or GoDaddy or any number of others that offers one-click installs of WordPress. There are many ISPs/hosts that offer this. That way you can monetize it to your heart's content.
4. The name of your blog doesn't have to match your domain, and can be easily changed. The name of your domain is important. Your domain needs to be memorable, and short. Get the .com and .net and .org versions of your name if possible; you can have them all point to one site, you don't have to do everything 3 times.

From Medievalist's signature:

My opinions are my own. | Who else would want them?

Me. And I'm very grateful. Thank you.

Soul · Jun 25, 2012

my titles are:
Soulie's Corner
Corner of an Earth-Sized Room

my domain is soulrequiem.com

I need to purchase my penname as a domain name.

this way I can get all the discussion of gay lurve off of the site I use for an email address to give to employeers.

Not that I'm embarrassed about my boys and their love.

Just...an employer does not need to know my private life right off the bat.

Tiarnan_Ceinders · Jun 25, 2012

I just set up a new blog at fixingfiction.com. Setting up a blog to monetize on it isn't your primary concern - but setting it up to make sure that if it blows up, you can do so with no trouble at all, is.

So the steps are pretty simple. Find your domain name. Get a host. Install wordpress. Even without one-click install it's really easy to do.

When it comes to hosting, I think you should take a good hard look at what your money will get you. I pay 9 dollars/month, and it gives me:

- 100 gigs of space
- 2000 gigs of bandwidth/month (monthly traffic - important!)
- Can create as many myphp databases as I want
- Can buy and add more domain names

Monthly Traffic (Bandwidth) is the amount of data that travels between your website and your visitors computer. Before choosing your web hosting package you will have to consider how big the files that you wish to store on your servers will be.

For example, if you have lots of large images, flash or videos with a lot of people visiting your website and downloading them, your monthly traffic allocation will be used quicker.

That's why I changed hosts when I decided to set up Fixing Fiction. My old host had the same cost per month, but only gave me:

- 2 GB storage
- 25 GB bandwidth.

As you can see, that's a huge difference. My new host should let me grow to a very large size before bandwidth ever becomes an issue.

Also, make sure you can have several databases/myphp installations at your host free of charge. You may want to start a new blog or a new website in the future, and you don't want it to cost anything more to do that than it already does. I have five sites running from my host right now.

veinglory · Jun 25, 2012

My most successful blogs are called very non-clever, plain label stuff. That is "Gay Sherlock Holmes" and "Erotic Romance Publishers". I think there is something to be said for being direct.

Diana_Rajchel · Jun 25, 2012

There's a point when it comes to names where you just have to go with your gut. While I had a flash of brilliance with Fat Chic - occasionally the synopses fire just right - I've found it's easiest to just give the blog a simple name, and then adjust the tagline as that can change easily.

Also, there's a lot of stuff you're going to find about "meta data" and "keywords" and all sorts of stuff that's no longer relevant because of Google's PANDA algorithm adjustment in 2011. Now it's really simple: use proper tags and headers, produce good content and the keywords will appear by themselves for the most part, and label your images properly. That really is all there is too it.

Deleted member 42 · Jun 25, 2012

Post and page titles; those are important. The link text is also important. Link to descriptive words, rather than using a word like here for the link text.

plain and simple · Jun 25, 2012

Really good information. I'm glad I don't have to worry too much about keywords. What Diana described is what I would have thought to be all I'd need to do. (Nice to know I'm on the right track with that.)

I'll be posting original pictures that I take myself. Is there anything I can do to protect those pictures from being copied and used by others? Honestly, I wouldn't mind if people took them to use and enjoy. I just don't want people to make money off of them. I heard of people doing that. Is there any way to prevent the pictures from being downloaded or copied?

Deleted member 42 · Jun 25, 2012

plain and simple said:
Really good information. I'm glad I don't have to worry too much about keywords. What Diana described is what I would have thought to be all I'd need to do. (Nice to know I'm on the right track with that.)

I'll be posting original pictures that I take myself. Is there anything I can do to protect those pictures from being copied and used by others? Honestly, I wouldn't mind if people took them to use and enjoy. I just don't want people to make money off of them. I heard of people doing that. Is there any way to prevent the pictures from being downloaded or copied?

Meh. Not really. You can watermark them with your copyright.

But a determined thief will always find a way.

I'd suggest looking into a Creative Commons license. It doesn't stop anyone, but it does make it clear what you're ok with people doing with your images.

plain and simple · Jun 25, 2012

Medievalist said:
Meh. Not really. You can watermark them with your copyright.

But a determined thief will always find a way.

I'd suggest looking into a Creative Commons license. It doesn't stop anyone, but it does make it clear what you're ok with people doing with your images.

I just visited the Creative Commons License site. I think that really fits the bill for what I need. Thank you!

Diana_Rajchel · Jun 25, 2012

plain and simple said:
I just visited the Creative Commons License site. I think that really fits the bill for what I need. Thank you!

It will take some practice, but you'll find a balance between what you are OK with sharing and what you are not. Creative Commons is super adjustable - it's pretty much what I've done with my photographs. Except for a weird incident where a lady Photoshopped her dog into some of my vacation pictures once, I don't think I've had my stuff misused all that much.

plain and simple · Jun 26, 2012

I DID IT! I DID IT! Forgive my four year old style of enthusiasm but, I DID IT!

I found a name for my domain/blog and, best of all, it appears to be available! I am over the moon!

You have to understand, naming anything is long process involving blood, sweat and a mid-life crisis for me. Whether it's a character, a novel, a pet, or my old, gray 1991 Ford Tempo, I agonize over naming things! (Can you imagine if I had children? For my daughter's Sweet Sixteen, she'd finally get a name!) After taking pages of notes and writing down 232 possibilities, it hit me like a ton of fruitcake! I had outlined what I wanted my blog to be and, just like Google, my brain took in the keywords, recognized the theme and displayed the result in only .26 seconds.

It's late and I'm tired so I'll check into acquiring the domain name tomorrow morning. Until I acquire it, I don't want to announce the name just yet. (I will once I buy it.)

Thanks to everyone for responding with their advice!

Naming Your Blog Is Easy Until....

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

Alessandra Kelley

Sophipygian

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

lorna_w

Hybrid Grump

CrystalCierlak

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

Deleted member 42

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

Soul

Pocket-Sized Leopard

Tiarnan_Ceinders

veinglory

volitare nequeo

Diana_Rajchel

Writing from my Seaside Palace

Deleted member 42

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

Deleted member 42

plain and simple

Taking it all in.

Diana_Rajchel

Writing from my Seaside Palace

plain and simple

Taking it all in.