First, I ask you “What’s in a name?” What is so difficult about coming up with a name for your own business. Well – for anyone that has tried to do this for their own company I think you know the answer: Plenty! How about hours and hours of deliberation. Lists of “buzz words” or potential combinations. I Google searched “How to come up with a company name” only to go cross-eyed with more possibilities. I even used an Excel spreadsheet to make endless combinations. (Many of you who know me well won’t be surprised with that one.)
At times I questioned whether I was thinking about it too much. Maybe I was getting too close and needed to step back. But the truth is – I am up close because it’s mine. I get one shot at coming up with a name that sounds good, has some meaning and – most importantly – I can live with for years to come.
So here I present to you the path that led me to “Blue Dot Marketing”.
Many of you know what a big fan I am of movies. There is a film called “The Last Mimzy”. In the movie, some scientists look through a powerful telescope at a stuffed rabbit (Mimzy) and are astounded when they see…an Intel logo. The doll had travelled from the future through a Mandala. I was fascinated with the different types of Tibetan Mandalas and began to research them.
At first, I thought of Mandala Marketing – but Mandalas are so complex and colourful that I know my embroiderer would have fainted at the sight of the logo. (21 colour changes minimum). Another concern is the mistake people could make thinking it was Mandela. So the search continued. I ended up deep in the rabbit hole known as Google.
It was about 3 AM when I came across the photo of the Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan.
The Pale Blue Dot is a photograph of planet Earth taken by Voyager 1 from a record distance, showing it against the vastness of space. Both the idea for taking the distant photo, and the title came from scientist and astronomer Carl Sagan, who also wrote the 1994 book of the same name. In 2001, it was selected by Space.com as one of the top ten space science photos. (Wikipedia)
Pale Blue Dot as republished by NASA in 2020 for the images’ 30th anniversary.
I was really struck by how simple yet striking this little dot looked from a distance. Yet – the closer you get you will know it is so much more. It becomes more colourful, vibrant and full of energy.
I then realized that’s sort of like me – and the company I want to build. At first glance, it seems small but even at a distance it stands out – and once you see it you can’t NOT see it. The closer you get – you realize it is full of colour, movement and energy. So much going on in that little dot. My Dot. My Blue Dot.
So, I decided to test it out – Blue Dot Marketing.
A final check with my panel of experts who gave their resounding approval, and it was done.
And so, it began….
