What do you think about companies with surnames in them?

Question

I am trying to figure out if having my surname in my company name and URL is a good idea. My company is going to be a family business with other family members.

I purchased cashmoneydough.com in case it is a better idea to have a generic URL on the mailers and bandit signs.

If I use this URL, I’ll probably set up a DBA under the surname company. I then plan on doing all the communication and marketing of wholesale deals under the CashMoneyDough name to protect myself. All other business (rehabs & rentals) will be done under the surname company.

What are your thoughts?

Jim Pellerin · Answer

I think you can do both. RichnerRealEstate. RichnerRealty.

McDonalds Hamburgers and Keller Williams Realty, etc have done ok.

Personally I think CashMoneyDough sounds too hype. Plus people will spell dough wrong more than you think.

Brian Garrett · Answer

I personally don’t love CashMoneyDough from a marketing or branding perspective and would suggest either using your surname or something else that conveys the message of what you actually do more clearly.

Charlie MacPherson · Answer

@Eric Richner It depends on your exit strategy. If you eventually plan to sell the company, using a surname could be a disadvantage.

I'm strongly in favor of descriptive names - names that tell you what the company does. That's a big leg up in marketing.

For example, I had my own brokerage for a while. I chose the name "Clear Sailing Realty".

We're in a coastal town, so the imagery and colors were chosen to reflect that as well.

Brian Barfoot · Answer

Sounds much more precise (and honestly friendlier.) Good luck!

Eric Richner · Answer

My fiancé agrees as well. So instead, I bought a new domain that was very short. RicoBuys.com. Rico was my nickname back in the day.

Jim Pellerin · Answer

I like it.

What do you think about companies with surnames in them?

What do you think about companies with surnames in them?

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