Branding And SEO In The Nieuw Werrldde Orddrurre

" Hello? Hello? Is this the executive director of Google? This is Crispian van Astralle - Pleine of Nieuw Werrldde Phautaugrafickts Studieaux. I wish to complain about your search engine.

Neither of my clients can find me on their computer. I have told them my name several times on my mobile phone and you still do not display me at the top of the list of professional photographic legends. We have been established for jus months and this sort of thing is holding back what might be a multi-billion dollar business. It's just not good enough.

Unless this changes before lunch I am going to take it to the highest authorities. We do all we can to  make it easy for you people and we expect you to do the rest. "

And that, folks is that. We all want to be us. We all want to be unique. Identically unique in some cases - like teenagers...

We want to have our business seen as unique - fair enough in a difficult market - but we need to remember that to be seen, we need to be found. Laboured spellings based upon trendy phonics are fine for band posters in summer concerts. The cleverness is no more wasted than the readers...but it is different if you are trying to sell a studio.

Lots of names are already taken. You won't be allowed to register yourself as Kodak or Leica or The Royal Australian Regiment. Calling yourself the Caltex Studio because there are all those signs on the petrol stations around town already will not succeed - Caltex has more lawyers on speed dial that you have had hot dinners.

Try to think up your new business name in the morning, when you have had coffee. Leaving it until after Happy Hour risks the sort of flights of fancy that end up never being heard of again - names that are so impossibly clever that no-one succeeds in finding them. Make no mistake - people are impatient. Three pages into Google and they couldn't give a damn - they'll hire another photographer.

If in doubt - use your own name with the appellation " Photographer" added. Even if you aren't now you might be one day. But it is no fair using someone else's photo on your card...