Picking a Blog Name

So you want a title for your new blog. Or maybe you'd like to change your old title to something fresh and relevant. Here are some techniques I've found that work well when I'm choosing names for any of my sites.

1) Write down things that interest you.
Do you like the colour green? Write it down. Do you like potatoes? Write it down. Anything at all… adjectives and nouns, verbs and adverbs. Once you think you have enough to work with, start playing with them by putting two random words together.
Jumping Lollipops? You never know, it might catch on one day.

2) Find a handy-dandy Blog Name Generator. I like using http://namethingy.com for inspiration. If you decide to use it, just click each name that might be useful for coming up with your blog name. Play around with the words it provides. The name for this blog originated from "Tangy Darkness". My mind exploded in all different directions and grasped the idea of tangible darkness. It seemed like a neat concept, and a good blog title.

3) Say words out loud. When I said my title idea out loud, it rolled off the tongue very nicely. Even though the first word might be a mouthful, to me the name seems easy to remember.

4) Ask for opinions! If you're talking to some people online, and you have more than one title idea, ask which they like best. Your readers know what they are attracted to in a blog, so take their advice. If more people that you speak to are attracted to "Green Potatoes Weekly" than "Jumping Lollipops," it's likely that reflects the opinion of the general public.

5) If you're into the name you chose, your enthusiasm will show. This energy will be carried into your writing, and your reader will be more engaged in what you say. If you're not enthusiastic about your material, neither will your reader. It's okay to change your blog's title. Although it may be best to do this early on when you don't have a large readership yet, you could do it virtually any time as long as you advertise the change so as not to confuse your readers.

If you have any suggestions or tried-and-true advice of your own, feel free to leave a comment! I'd love to hear what you have to say.