Bluesky at Home » For Bloggers » 4 Big Reasons to Change Your Blog Name

4 Big Reasons to Change Your Blog Name

Have you ever worried that your blog name and your blog don’t match? Sometimes you need to break up. Let me share 4 reasons to change your blog name and some important things to do afterward.

Five years ago, I was in a conundrum (big word, but fits the situation) for a few months. It’s the reason that today I’m sharing why you should or might want to change your blog name.

Because, friends, it’s a bit of a pain. It’s scary and nerve~racking, stay up half the night worrying and thinking and nail-biting scary.

Remember when you tried to decide on the perfect name for your unborn child?

You didn’t know their personality or what they would look like. You picked a name because you liked it or it was a family name or your kid would inherit millions if you named him Reginald or Hector (Hope I didn’t offend any Reginalds or Hectors ~ and that scenario is true: I had a teacher friend years ago who named her child some God~awful name after her husband’s grandfather because he would inherit like $5 million ~ no kidding.)

We can’t usually change our children’s names; if their name doesn’t fit their personality, nicknames can be chosen.

This post has been updated, but the core information is still solid and valid.

Why, you ask, would you change your blog name?

Well, what if your blog niche changes or you discover someone else has a blog name so similar that it sucks all the Google juice away from your blog, or your domain extension isn’t at the top of Google’s like list? Or your blog name makes people think you write about one topic, but you write about something else?

All four of those reasons are why I decided to change the name of my blog. My “starter” blog, BlueskyKitchen.net, grew up and became . . . .

Bluesky at Home blog logo

What do you think? Like the name, the graphic, the tagline? I love it and I’ll tell you why I changed the name of my blog, what went into my decision and why there are 4 good reasons to change your blog name ~ if you fit in any of the situations I did.

I recently changed my logo to this one:

4 Big Reasons Why You Should Change Your Blog Name

Let’s start at the very beginning. Blueskykitchen.net began in January 2014 on wordpress.com on a whim. I literally flew from Dallas to Atlanta on New Year’s Day to visit my daughters. As I sat in my older daughter’s kitchen, I just did it without much thought or planning. At the time, I’d never read a real blog, never even seen one. I didn’t know what a blog should look like or the proper procedures. I had never been on Pinterest or Social Media. I know, shocker.

I was walking blindfolded in the dark of night. Since the culinary arts and teaching cooking classes for 14 years was my background, I knew I had tons of material and recipes to share. And that’s what I did for 18 months, wrote about recipes and posted them.

Then in May of 2015, I got on Pinterest for the first time. (another shocker!) You can imagine my astonishment! This is what a blog looks like? This is how people write and take pretty pictures? I wanted my blog to look like that.  

I thought I’ve got great recipes and culinary expertise, but I need it to look pretty and have gorgeous pictures. I started reading about graphic designers, contacted a few, chose one and we started the process of choosing a new logo, color scheme, switching to WordPress.org and so on. I still intended the blog to be all about food.

This post contains affiliate links to products that I use and highly recommend. If you should order any product from this site, I may be compensated, but you don’t pay a penny more.

Reason Number 1 to Change Your Blog Name ~ Your Niche Changes

Then during the design process, I went to Haven Conference in July 2015. I loved the lifestyle community. I felt I fit in: I’d been painting furniture for a few years, I loved DIY and crafts. But I initially stuck with the food blog idea, just because I had so much material and I loved teaching cooking classes. But as the blog progressed over the next 2 years, so did my interests.

I love everything about HOME: decorating, entertaining, crafting, tablescaping, gardening. My interests just weren’t in cooking. I had a passion to share more than just the kitchen, but the entire scope of celebrating HOME. And slowly I began posting more about HOME and less about food.

At the beginning of 2017, I started devoting more content to just HOME topics and saved the recipes and cooking for my newsletter and that approach seemed to be working well. However, when I would met people (in person and online), I found that because of the name of the blog, they expected it to be a food blog.

Since that wasn’t the case, I suspected that many readers were confused when they came to my blog and found tablescapes, home decor and DIY projects. After speaking with several blogging gurus at Haven Conference in 2017, my thoughts were confirmed. Either the blog’s content needed to change to match the blog name or the blog’s name needed to change to match the blog content. Obviously, I chose to change the blog name.

After brainstorming and research, I chose Bluesky at Home because that name covers the thing I love ~ HOME ~ and allows me the flexibility to write about anything that has to do with home, including cooking and recipes. The tag line also changed to a concept I feel strongly about: we all should celebrate the home we create, whatever the size or style, wherever it may be, in whatever part of the country (or the world). Whether you love DIY or not, whatever your personal style, your home is your place, your sanctuary and I believe you should celebrate whatever you create in it.

Reason Number 2 to Change Your Blog Name ~ Your Blog Name is Not Unique

Someone else already had my blog name. As I was researching why I should change my blog name, selecting a unique blog name was always mentioned. Don’t pick something that is already used, even if it’s a different domain extension. If someone just searched bluesky kitchen, the other blog would come up first.

Or have you ever searched a blog name that is so generic that the “thing”, not the blog name comes up?; for example, let’s say your blog name is pinkspraypaint.com. Search pink spray paint and in all likelihood, a can of spray paint will come up, not a blog. Try it.

With a list of possible names in hand, I searched Google, GoDaddy, and Bluehost (my host). I crossed through names that already were already used. With my list narrowed down to 3, I took the next step.

Reason Number 3 to Change a Blog Name ~ Top Level Extension

A couple of weeks ago I posted about how to write the best URLs for your blog post. One way to increase your blog’s trust factor was to use a .com domain. I didn’t know that made a difference until I started my research on SEO. Blogs with a .com domain have a higher trust factor and a higher click rate than those with other domain extensions. So I was determined to choose a new name that could have a .com domain.

Once I determined the new blog name, which started out as my second choice, with a .com domain, I purchased the domain name and it was mine!

Reason Number 4 to Change Your Blog Name ~ What is Your Blog About

We all love cute, catchy names. But it helps if your blog name in some way hints at what your blog is about. That’s one big reason I wanted HOME in the name since HOME is my niche.

It may help a bit with SEO, but hopefully it tells Google searches that this blog is a HOME (lifestyle) blog. If you have a blog about gardening, you might want the word “garden” in the title; of if you are a mommy blogger, the words  “mom or kids” might be in your title.

This reason goes back to one of the misconceptions about my blog: kitchen = food = food blog. Granted, there are some super popular huge blogs in the lifestyle niche, but, according to what I read so many of them started before SEO, social media and Google keywords were so important.

Since it’s actually harder to develop a large following these days. I want all the help I can get.

Next Ssteps After Your Change Your Domain

A blog name change is the easy part of this transition. The real work is behind the scenes.

It took about 2 weeks of emailing back and forth with my graphic designer to finalize my new logo with new fonts and graphics. The graphic in the logo (my utmost thanks to Cristina at Elan Creative Co. for designing it all and never “rolling her eyes” with my tweaks and changes) evokes a bit of whimsy without being too specific to any one theme.

The 2 branches were pointing outward, denoting growth and optimism. The colors of the leaves are my favorites; the blue is the same aqua blue I have had, but the pink is a bit darker for a stronger and more confident feel ~ plus it’s a bit easier to read.

* Last year, I updated my logo to the one you see at the top of this page and on all my branding. I love that it has a little home in it.

Installing the New Domain and Redircting Posts

My web designer Cristina (she’s both a graphic designer as well as a web designer) put on her techy hat and made all the technical adjustments. BlueskyKitchen.net became BlueskyatHome.com. All the existing posts were redirected to the new blog name. It was a little very scary, but I trusted her expertise.

There is a good chance that your blog will be completely “down” for a day or 2, but if you’re lucky, the internet fairies will sprinkle a little magic dust and all will go as planned. We also added a SSL certificate for greater security.

Remember: Even if you hire someone else to make all the changes, it’s still your responsibility to check and recheck that everything transferred correctly and smoothly.

Social Media and Email

Since you want your blog name to be consistent across all your social media accounts, you have to go in and change your account name. It’s not hard, but it takes time. Set aside an hour to do this. Immediately.

You also need a new email that is consistent with your brand. And you have to let all your contacts know that you have a new email.

  • your email provider, such as Yahoo, gmail
  • your domain host
  • WordPress
  • your email marketing provider
  • Google Analytics
  • newsletters you subscriber to
  • software providers, such as PicMonkey, Canva, Lightroom
  • plugins you use
  • courses you subscribe to

Unsubscribe from any contacts that you no longer need or want. It took months and months for people to stop using the bluesky kitchen email. I actually just did close the email account

I didn’t do this, but you might want to have an email with your blog name after the @. I wish I had done that.

*In May 2020, when I switched from Mail Chimp to MailerLite, I changed my email to a domain email: [email protected].

A New Theme

You might want to give the new domain a new theme ~ that’s the look of the blog in blogspeak”. A new name needs a new look. At Haven, I met the team at Restored 316 and fell in love with their blog themes.

I originally started with the Captivating theme, but switched to Farmhouse in 2021. I can’t say enough about the high level of support they provide.

Resources If You Want to Change Your Blog Name

After returning from Haven and deciding that I definitely wanted to change my blog name, I started reading and researching. Here are some of the best articles that I found.

Melissa at Blog Clarity has a 2 part series on the ins and outs of choosing and changing a blog name.

Nosegraze offers a checklist on why, what, and how to change your blog name and what’s involved. (I thought her information was excellent, but honestly wondered why her blog was named nosegraze.)

I found this article at Blogging Basics 101, although several years old, still offered great advice about how and why to change the name of your blog.

According to Chris Garrett at ChrisG.com, there are some factors to consider when choosing a blog name:

  • How original and unique is it?
  • How descriptive is it?
  • What image does it convey?
  • Would you remember it after seeing it once?
  • Could you spell it after hearing it once?

He also goes on to say that a good name is

  • Readable
  • Pronounceable
  • Spellable
  • Memorable
  • Concise
  • Unique

And Dana at I Can Build a Blog, wrote an entire post of a step~by~step process for choosing the right blog name.

How to Pick a Good Name for Your Blog

These considerations for selecting a blog name are from HACKZHUB, which advises that there are no hard rules, just good guideline to follow.

1. Use Keywords: Using keywords in the domain name describes your blog. The visitor should get an idea of what the website is about just looking at the domain name. (For Example: the word HOME in my new blog name immediately narrows down the possible niche topics.)

2. Easy To Remember: The visitor should be able to remember the domain name for revisits and if the visitor can’t remember the domain name you can lose potential traffic. So the domain name should be easy to remember. It can also spread through word of mouth if the domain name is easy to remember. (Hey, check out bestblogever.com.)

3. Keep The Domain Name Short: A domain name should have less than 10 characters if possible so that it is easy to remember. If the domain name is too long, visitors may get confused and can easily mistype it in the browser.

4. Use Hyphens If Needed: Use hyphens (-) between your domain name if needed. For example “www.username.com” is taken then you can try “www.user-name.com”. It also helps in improving readability and search engine ranking too.

5. Think Local: If you are doing local business then think about adding your region or state in the domain name. Only do this if it makes sense.

6. Domain Name Extension: Try to get Top Level Domain extension “.com” as it is most popular. It is also the most accepted domain name extension. When people think about a website, they mostly prefer .com extension to browse often. You can also use .net or .org in case if you cannot get .com extension.

Understanding Reasons for Change

Two years later, I was still in transition mode. I hope that these 4 reasons to change your blog name have been helpful. Even if you don’t anticipate changing your blog name now, you should Pin this post just for future reference.

I’ve even recently changed my logo. I also got a blog domain email address which looks so much nicer.

Now I know that change is scary. Whatever that thing you are thinking about changing is, the fear of the unknown can grip us into doing nothing. And nothing ~ well, it doesn’t change anything for the better. Here’s an article that I found that explains that are good reasons to change and some research about change. It just might help you decide to hit the change button.

I can tell you one thing that won’t change  ~ my commitment to bring you valuable content, whether it be a great DIY project, a beautiful tablescape, a holiday inspiration, or a wonderful recipe ~ will always be foremost in my mind. And, again, thank you so much for reading Bluesky at Home. I hope that you will love, Pin, Tweet, and share it.

pin for later graphic in blue
Reasons to Change your Blog Name

 

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20 Comments

  1. Hi! Great tips are given by you to change your blog name.
    Readers can also visit our Site selfdiscovery.ae to know more about the games of numbers that play a great role in deciding the next step.

  2. Hi Carol
    This is the exact post I needed. I have struggled with my blog name for the implied judgement. Did you lose your social media followers! Thanks for the links too! Feeling overwhelmed!

    1. Laura, so happy that the post helped you. No, I didn’t lose any Social Media followers. We did unplug Jetpack before we made changes and I did lose all my followers. That was a bummer. I’ll take any new ones, for sure! I’m going to posts about all the other changes you have to make DURING and AFTER the name change, so stay tuned in.

    1. Sue, as I said I didn’t give enough thought into the name when I started. Since I’ve only been blogging for 2 years, I thought I better do it now. So glad I did.

  3. Congrats on all the changes! I feel your pain. I went from Charm Bracelet Diva to Charm Bracelet Diva {at Home} to Our Hopeful Home! I’m pretty sure I’m done:) Love the new name and I’m sure the transition will go smoothly! Great info! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm! xo Kathleen|Our Hopeful Home

    1. Kathleen, thank you for the feedback. I remember when you made the second change. There is so much more involved to changing a name. Look for more posts about that!

  4. Great advice! I’ve noticed so many people are changing their blogs to reflect their own personal name in order to build a brand around themselves. Not sure I’m there yet, lol! Right now my blog name rhymes (which I’m a sucker for) and it does reflect my life at the moment. Visiting you from Happiness Is Homemade party.

  5. Love it, It fits perfectly. I switched from Blogger to wordpress.org last february and thought that was huge, but a name change and all that is involved there is a wow. I have thought about it, more the branding than the name. Thanks for the tips

    1. Linda, I started with WordPress.com and then switched to WordPress.org and now this. Maybe one day I’ll get it all right!! So happy you like the new name. So far, I’ve only received positive response.

  6. Carol,
    An excellent summary about choosing and/or changing a blog name. I pinned it to my Blog Tips & Sources Pinterest board. Now, I need to remember to update my blog roll to use your new URL when it becomes available. Have you included this as a reminder in your first post with your new name?

    Can’t wait to see your new layout…

    Judith

    1. Thanks for Pinning Judith. My first post to go out with the new domain for the link party on Sunday. And I just added that it’s official. I’ll be sending out notice to everyone I can think of.

    1. Stacey, I so appreciate your support. The blog officially moved today. Some housekeeping on the back end (thankfully, my web designer is doing that), so hopefully no cliches.