Getting your name online

I've just been trawling on the internet to find a name for a new business idea. It's one thing to know what you want to call a business. It's another to know for certain that no-one else has thought of your name too.

So having spent an innordinate amount of time now trying to find a domain name that fitted the business idea, and that hadn't already been snapped up, I thought I'd share my story as a way to help anyone else through the maze.

First stop is The Australian Business Registry, an Australian Government initiative where you type in your name to make sure no-one else is trading under that name.

Okay, you're right. Your name hasn't been registered. But before you get all excited, it pays to check the other realm of business activity, the World Wide Web.

It's one thing to have a business, it's another to have an operating business and not be able to use that name online as it's already been registered by someone else.

There are lots of domain providers that you can use to find out if a particular business name is available as a domain name. I like going to Crazy Domains as it's quick and easy to navigate. You simply type in the name you want for your business (or already have) to find out if the domain name is also available.

There really can be no worse moment when the name you've had your heart set on, or (worse) already have been trading under, has been registered by someone else. In my case, the name of choice, which has been available for months, has just been snapped up. Literally from under my nose!

But I'm not alone. I've even heard of an artist who doesn't own her own name as a domain because she inadvertantly allowed a dealer to use it on her behalf a few years ago. There are ways to contact whoever owns your name to see if they're open to you buying it off them. They may or may not, and prices vary.

There's also the added complication if you want your profile to appear more global. What you have to do is find an available name for a .com.au and then try to match it with the same name but with a .com prefix. Seems that so many of the good names have already been taken in the realm of .com. It's really the quick or the dead.

So my tip for any small business is to go online to make sure your business name, or personal name if you're a sole trader, is available to own as a domain name. Even if you're not yet developing a web presence (which you really should be), it's a peace of mind exercise.

Just get in quick!

Margie

Success strategy #1: Think through your journey

Successful small businesses know exactly where they want their businesses to go and how they’ll get there. From the word go they have a roadmap. Then it's something they continuelly revisit, dodging roadblocks and finding shortcuts along the way.

It doesn’t have to be a convoluted process, but you do have to set aside time to actually think about where your business is going, and if you're happy with the direction.

How do you start? A good place is to ask yourself some key questions:

1. Who are my customers?

2. What products or services do they want to buy and what are my competitors offering?

3. When do they want these products or services: daily, weekly, monthly, seasonally or yearly?

4. Where are my customers located?

5. Why would they buy these products or services?

6. How do I deliver on my customers’ expectations?

Answer these questions and you’ll have a better grasp on exactly what your business is, and where you want it to go.

Enjoy the ride!

Margie

How KPD is your business?

A weekend sporting injury has created a pain in the butt for me this week. Literally. So as I sit here gingerly in front of the computer, doing enforced downtime, I'm reminded of one of the perils of running a small businesses: that being Key Person Dependent (KPD) can impact your performance.

KPD is a particular danger for micro and solo businesses, where you, the owner, do much in the business. If you're not there, things just don't happen. But it's also a factor of every small business because when we hire people, most of us rely on them to do specific tasks that no-one else in the business knows how to do.

Ask yourself: if I took a tumble, would someone else know what needs to happen in my business today? Or if your admin manager got hit by a bus, could people still get paid? If your foreman doesn't show, does anyone else know where the projects are up to?

My tip for small businesses is to make sure that everyone knows how to do another person's job. Develop a mentoring program as an essential part of your strategic and staff development. It's a simple way to mitigate your KPD risks, protect your intellectual property and, as Professor Ian Williamson states in The Small Business Success Guide, it "allows for the cross-fertilisation of ideas".

Basically, if your staff are mentoring each other, you won't be left high and dry, and you'll guarantee that your IP isn't tied to an individual.

And if your business is a micro operation, or just you? Make sure you outsource certain tasks and organise back-up services in the event that you're flat on your back.

You don't want KPD to make your business suffer too!

Margie