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How to Name Your Shopify Store – 3 Tips to (Hopefully) Stop Your Writer’s Block

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    [Updated January 21, 2022]

    As you’re building your Shopify store and its web design, take care not to reduce your store name to an afterthought!

    As an entrepreneur, you’ve put in all the work of sourcing your products, figuring out logistics and availability, and building your business from the ground up. As inconsequential as the name may seem in light of all your hard work and service, your business name (and by extension, your domain name) can either give you a serious leg up or completely kneecap your chances of success. So what does it take to pick a great name for your online store?

    Why does your Shopify store need a great name?

    A great and click-worthy name will stand out to your potential audience and customers, be easy to remember and type, and provide at least a hint of what you sell. A business name that is excessively generic will make it difficult for your site to rank in Google; a name that is very odd or disconnected from your product may be off-putting or too hard to remember. The magic lies in finding the sweet spot somewhere between search-engine friendly and daringly unique or creative. This is applicable for any type of business you’re engaged in, whether food, finance, lifestyle, gift, women’s clothing, superstore, flower, inspirational, beauty, handicraft, shoe, cookbook, textile, farm, drop shipping, or anything in between.

    Before you order and buy a domain name for your business, here are the key points to keep in mind and hopefully inspire you as you develop a great name for your online store, whether it’s a Shopify, Wix, or any other ecommerce family of websites:

    Make it short, simple and easy to remember.

    This is the most important aspect of your store name. As a general guide, domain names can be around 60 characters, but your Shopify store name definitely shouldn’t be that long. You can use a business name generator or tool if you need some inspiration or even simply ask friends for ideas or suggestion. While you want to use some creativity in choosing names, keep calm and don’t waste time overthinking your decision-making. Just make sure your web shop’s name should be easy to say, type, and read. As you try out names, say them out loud. Then ask other people to say them out loud, and make sure they’re easy to pronounce. You should also make sure that someone who just hears the name but doesn’t see it written out would still be able to figure out how to type it and spell it in American English into the Internet search bar.

    Consider keywords relevant to your product.

    Open and access a keyword tool and do some keyword research for common searches relevant to the products you sell. Funnel through each one and consider whether you can incorporate them into your store name in a way that feels natural. If you can snag a name that is also a common search, you’re in business. However, this is unlikely due to the saturation of stores, web pages and domains already out there.

    It’s also challenging to stand out when your Shopify store’s name is not artisan-sounding but is simply a generic keyword like “Hiking Gear.” It won’t be helping at all. An easy solution to this problem is a combination of your keyword with another word. This added uniqueness also increases your chances of getting the domain name you love. Sticking with the hiking gear idea, here are some examples:

    • Hiking Boutique
    • Outfit My Hike
    • Hiking Gear Express
    • The Hike Shop
    • The Hiking Community
    • The Hike City
    • Mexican Hiking Authority
    • French Hiking Factory
    • Comfort Hiking Emporium

    Each of these names is perfect, as it is short and sweet and makes it clear that the product being sold is hiking gear, but they each evoke a slightly different feel. It’s easy to see the wide range of possible ways to create a unique name that really reflects what your business is about- all with simple words that are easy to remember and type.

    Compare your top choices with existing store names

    After you’ve done some keyword research and narrowed down a list of ideas, do a bit of trial and research similar stores to find out what names are already in use for stores and industries selling products like yours. Sometimes you may find a duplicate name. Clicking on and browsing these related sites is mega critical to verify this information before finalizing your decision. It’s like doing market research or competitor analysis but for domain names.

    Something too close or linked to another store or company name will be confusing. If you love and have your heart set on “Hiking Boutique” but in your research, you discover that there’s another shop selling under the name “The Hike Boutique”, you are going to want to run far away from that name. Your company or business name is a chance to stand out from the crowd, so you have to be willing to exchange it for something else or “kill your darlings”, so to speak, if they’re going to mess up your Shopify store’s searchability and not going to set you up for success. Nobody with a business to run wants to spend their everyday life correcting confused customers (or handling a lawsuit that, unfortunately, cost you more than a dollar).

    As you search for and analyze similar shops and company names, include social media in your search. This is key. Most new stores start their journey and promote via Facebook marketing and Instagram ads and some even try guerilla marketing. You want to be able to use your brand there as well, so make sure the domain name that you desire most isn’t already taken. Using the same name across all platforms makes it significantly easier for your target audience or consumer and current customers to find you too.

    A great domain name will make it easier for new customers to find you. In a similar fashion, it will also make it easier for your target market and customers to remember you, and to recommend you to others. Let’s not discount the fact that your privately held company and its new URL will also sound more professional, generate trust and customer satisfaction, and will overall be good for establishing your brand identity.

    Expert tip: The most important key factors to remember as you brainstorm are to keep your Shopify store name on the side of short and simple, consider including a relevant keyword to make it clear what you do, and make sure that it’s unique and interesting or charming enough to differentiate you from your competition. Choosing an attractive name for your business doesn’t have to be stressful. Just return to this article if you need a guideline in picking and purchasing the right name for your Shopify store. Don’t forget to put the same premium value or price and enthusiasm into it as you put into all other aspects of running your online business, and you’re sure to stand out from the crowd.