The Green Canopy

I was going to talk about something else entirely today, but I was working this morning and something exciting has happened that I had to share! So this topic, which I was going to hold off on til later, is being posted now.

Names!

Every store, every site, every catalogue, every company... every anything has a name. The better the name, the more attracted the guest will be to learn more. When you're selling something, your name is the first thing a potential customer knows about you. If you were walking through a mall and saw a store called The Smelly Foot, would you want to shop there? No Way! But good stores give you a name that is either an explanation of what you'll find inside (which is a good reason to stay away from The Smelly Foot) or leaves you asking the question, "I wonder what they sell in there." Hot Topic is a good example. Its creative and inviting and makes you think that whatever's inside, its going to be cool. Yankee Candle is another good one.

A physical store also has a storefront to invite customers in. When dealing with online stores, websites, Etsy shops, etc., the only thing you really have to go on is the name. Coming up with the perfect name is a big step, and this morning, I think I did it.

It started with me doodling names on a piece of paper, just willing something to hit me. Its tough, because the name has to be good. It has to get the concept across, but at the same time not be lame. It needs to be something I won't be embarassed telling people when they ask. This is what I came up with this morning:

First: Black Spiral. It just sort of popped into my head, and I instantly hated it. Its not a bad name for, say, a rock band. Or an evil ritual. That's just it - it sounds evil. I don't want to make that impression. So I tried to make it sound less bad... and thought of Golden Spiral - which is just as bad, just not evil. Its too goody goody, it sounds like the Golden Compass, and it makes me think of Gryffindors bouncing around in their tower. I don't want the name to be evil, but I don't want to give that impression either! A name I was going with for a while was Memory Lane, and I don't exactly remember where I came up with it. I liked it at first, it was cute, it sounded like a brand name for something. Its lost its appeal to me though, as most of the names do. I never planned on having Gazing Skyward as the shop name, just the working-blog name, so I didn't even consider that as an option.

There was one, however, that I thought of this morning that I did like: The Green Canopy. I actually thought of it while staring at the decorations in the gym (green paper trees; the theme of the book fair is SAFARI), but thinking about it, it works. The green part can be a representation of the "green" and "organic" approach and feel I'm trying to utilize in the shop. And then there's the word Canopy. You can think of a canopy, like a tent, that you have parties under or hide from the hot sun under. Or a canopy of a circus, the big top, a place of fun and excitement. Or, the one that first came to mind, a canopy of leaves in a forest - helped along by the adjective "green". A canopy of leaves is relaxing, soothing, with its filtered light and filtered sound. Its practically magical. The Druids of the Celtic people thought groves of oak trees, with their green canopies covering them, were places of serious magic. So overall, the name The Green Canopy conjures thoughts and feelings of fun, relaxation, oneness, and magic. I think I can get behind that for a shop name. Now, to see if its taken!

Well, the website names are all available; I tried www.thegreencanopy.com, www.thegreencanopy.org, www.greencanopy.com, and www.greencanopy.org. So any way, I get a domain name. Yay! I tried google, and the only things that came up were pictures of forest canopies. A good start... And its available on Etsy too, and gmail has greencanopy taken but not thegreencanopy, and its available for blogger too! Last check, and one of the most important: Yahoo. If its not available there, then I can't buid the website right away, and that screws up the entire plan. So, lets check. Cross your fingers!

Aaaaaaaaand......

Its good! We're good! The Green Canopy is all registered under all the sites I need (so far). I haven't picked a name so far that's had everything unregistered everywhere. I think this is a good sign.