How To Come Up With A Blog Name – Blogging 101

Giving birth to a blog is exciting and overwhelming. And just like a baby, you must find the perfect name for it which can take hours and days. But it doesn’t have to be this way – this post will help you cut through unnecessary steps so you can find a blog name in less than an hour. Oh, and congratulations on taking the first step to your blogging journey!

Today I’m going to show you how to quickly come up with a blog name so you can start working on your first blog post – and be on your way to making money as a career blogger!

The first thing you are probably wondering is: how important is it to come up with an awesome blog name?

And the answer is pretty simple – it’s not that important.

How come it’s not that important?

Because people don’t care if your blog name sounds cool or not. What they want is solid content that speaks to them.

So how long should you spend trying to come up with a blog name?

45-60 minutes, tops! Honestly, the less time you spend on it, the better.

Why?

Because the search for the perfect name can become the reason you don’t ever get around to starting a blog. If you spend too much time looking for the perfect name, the initial inspiration can pass you by.

And which would you rather have: a blog that doesn’t have the perfect name but makes you money – or an idea growing stale while you quest for the perfect name?

This post will help you simplify the selection process by giving you a few shortcuts on how to find a blog name so you can focus on what’s important -> your content.

So grab a pen and piece of paper and let’s begin the search!

1. Identify Your Blogging Niche

The first step to finding a blog name is to figure out what type of content you will write about. Is your blog going to be about traveling? Cooking? Being a mom? Interior design? Photography?

Your blog can also be about a few different subjects like mine is – but it’s worth mentioning that blogs with specific niches tend to fare better financially.

The reason being: these blogs focus on solving a targeted issue (how to save money, how to cook tasty vegan food, dealing with the postpartum phase) – which in turn attract visitors who are specifically looking to find answers to that problem.

What does this mean in terms of dollar signs?

It becomes easier to sell third party affiliate products, or create your own product, because you know exactly what your visitors are looking for. A LOT of money can be made that way!

For the first 5 years of my blogging career, I created only recipes . It’s only recently that I decided to venture out of my niche because I knew I could. I have over 700 recipes, an eBook and a recipe app – so it’s safe to say that I’m established as a food expert.

But since I also happen to be an expert at blogging (I’ve been blogging for eight years) and I love helping people out, adding a section about blogging only made sense.

 2. Know who your target audience is

Will your target audience prominently consist of females in their 30s and 40s? Then you probably want to steer clear of using slang words or trendy words in your blog name.

Conversely, if your target audience mainly consists of teens and people in their early 20s, it might be a good idea to use trendy words to signal that your blog is aimed at a younger demographic.

Knowing who you are creating content for is crucial to your blog’s success. The voice you will be using as an influencer has to resonate with the audience reading your posts.

Take a moment to write down who your target audience is. This shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes.

3. Make a list of keywords relating to your blog’s niche

Once you figure out what your blog is about, the next step is to come up with a blog name.

Make a list of words that relate to the niche you are going to write about.

Let’s say I’m starting a blog about being a mom.

Words that come to mind when I think about being a mom – motherhood, babies, stay at home mom, pregnancy, breastfeeding, back to school, kid’s lunch, working from home.

Try to come up with as many words as you can – and don’t forget to use a thesaurus for synonyms

Don’t spend more than 20-25 minutes doing this.

Set your timer and go!

4. Look at your competitor’s blog names

This shouldn’t take more than 5-10 minutes to do. It’s a great way to help you get the juices flowing and think up a good name for you blog!

First you will need to find your competitors by doing a Google search. You can either look for a list of top bloggers in your niche (e.g.: best financial blogs) – or do a general search.

Next, write down the blog names you like. Be sure to look at the meta descriptions too, since you can find great keywords stuffed in there.

5. Better go with a .com or .co than other domain extensions

The reason being that .com is used widely for all sorts of blogs and websites and is the most popular and common extension. I also suggest .co because there are more domain names available, making your search faster and less frustrating.

What about .net and the other extensions?

You could go with a .net – but before you do, you should know that this extension is mainly intended for technology and networking websites.

I wouldn’t recommend .me because it’s meant for personal blogs with no commercial purpose.

I also wouldn’t recommend these extensions – .org for organizations, .edu for education, .info for information and knowledge database, .biz for business (plus, this one gets a bad rap due to lots of spammy sites ending with .biz).

So here are the top three extensions to use when looking for a domain name:

1. .com
2. .co
3. .net

6. Start your search for a blog name

Now that you have a list of words specific to your niche, synonyms, competitor blog names and additional keywords taken from search descriptions, it’s time to look for a blog name!

If you already have a hosting company, I suggest using them to also get your domain name. It’s easier to have your domain name and blog parked in the same spot, especially if you aren’t super tech savvy.

Otherwise, I recommend Bluehost, one of the most established and well-known hosting companies online. You can start blogging for as little as $2.95 per month, and this includes a FREE domain name when you sign up. Click here to get started and to get the special Bluehost discount only available to my readers through this link.

You can also read my post How To Start A WordPress Blog On Bluehost for more details.

Now that you have a few blog names in mind, try them in the Bluehost domain lookup tool to see what’s available:

If the blog name you like is available, congratulations! You are mere minutes away from starting your own blog!

If you have used up all your ideas and came up empty handed, don’t give up. Try a plural version, different word combinations, add an adjective or a verb to describe your blog.

And remember: don’t overthink this part too much, save your marbles for what matters most – writing your content.

8. If all else fail, use your own name

My own name? What? How does that describe what my blog is about?

It doesn’t.

Yes, it always helps to have a descriptive domain name – but it’s not what’s going to make you successful.

How do I know this for a fact?

Answer: sarahtitus.com

Sarah Titus is a very successful blogger who makes nearly a million dollars a year focusing on selling printables. Yeah, you read that right – close to a million dollars!

By looking at her blog name you would never guess she has an online store full of printables, right? So how does she manage to make so much money?

By creating high quality blog posts and solid products.

She could have called her blog something like healthypuppyslippers.com and it wouldn’t have made a difference. People like what she sells because she understand what her audience needs. And, because of that, they come back for more.

The moral of this post is – create amazing content and don’t fret so much over a blog name

All of us would love to own the coolest domain name, but focusing on that is not the right way to get started.

Instead of spending hours coming up with a great name, why not focus on creating high quality content?

I believe ideas are everywhere. They float in the air all around us – and once in a while, when the timing is right, one will land on your shoulder.

When a great idea strikes (like starting your own blog), it means it’s ripe for picking. Grab it. Don’t let go. Do something with it! If you wait too long, it will move on and someone else will take ownership.

Finding a blog name is just the beginning of your blogging journey, so don’t get stuck on that step for too long. Focus on the end goal instead: which is to have a blog full of awesome content!

Good luck on your journey – and don’t hesitate to ask me questions by leaving them in the comments section.

Use my special discount with Bluehost (only available through my blog) and get hosting for just $2.95/month!