The name says it all

[t4k]

If you do first class work and you are friendly and personable with your customers, they will remember you and keep your card no matter what your name is. I do very little retail work but when I do, I have some customers who put my name and number straight into their phone so they can't loose my contact info. Good luck!

[just chippen away]

A thought being a lady in the industry, If I were you, have your cards in a light pink with what ever print color you would like.... This also will stick out among the rest of the cards they have for when they need you again.

If there is a theme name in your town or city tie your name around that also.

"Brandy's Personal Touch Windshield Repair Service"

[clearquest]

I say leave the woman part out of it entirely. No offense but there may be people who think a man can do a better job and look beyond your name. It's just the way this world works sometimes because the general public tends to associate the auto repair industry in general as a man's world. Not that it's right but why have a female gender related name in a society with those views?

[just chippen away]

I personal would hire a woman to work for me over a man for lots of reasons, I would also have a woman work on my W/S or body damage to my truck knowing that MOST women are more apt to try harder that most men to prove every one wrong on that thought... There has been a study in the past on this in different fields of work...

Lets look at a nurse. they have male nurses in this field now days,,, Isn't this known to be a woman's world....?

Lets be opened minded. If a woman, lady wants to learn a so-called mans trade please do... When I see a woman doing a job a man would normally be seen doing, I will give them a thumbs up and they smile back and give a thumbs back....

In the past we had a woman / Lady on here and other forums from N.Mex that was highly looked up to. "Grace @ gold star w/s repair. She faded away back in 05.

I also would think a woman would call on a woman if she knew there was one around.... Having her name on her cards would let one know she was there.

[clearquest]

I wasn't knocking a woman doing wsr or their ability to do wsr. My wife can probably do just as good a job as I do and she's been trained but I think basing your name on making sure potential customers know you are a woman is pointless.
Let them judge you on the quality of your work and the professionalism of your business first and they will walk away saying, "wow, that woman did a great job"!

[Frank EU]

just chippen away » 03 Mar 2011 23:25

I am with Don, I would prefer a woman too to be working on my windshield. Period.
We, our organization/company, have looked into this for a long time, and all I can tell you guys is that this lady has a few benefits over most guys.
I happen to know a few ladies (self-employeed) in our trade, all are located in the US, and they are doing fine.
BTW: my own daughter is doing this, in a very succesfull manner.
Good luck girls!

Brandy (TN) may contact me, if she likes to do so, to discuss this matter.

[clearquest]

I chose who does repair work for me based on quality not gender. If a monkey happened to do the best work in town I would take it to the monkey! I wasn't knocking women in the wsr industry. I was only saying place the emphasis on your quality and performance, not on your gender based business name.

[Frank EU]

I wasn't saying you did.
Mavericks, idiots and monkeys too claim to be the best, performing quality work only.
Pushing on quality work in your communications doesn't work if you indeed do not offer the quality.
I would say: Do your best, let the customer decide about what they feel is right.

[clearquest]

I'm all for Brandy finding a catchy name. Just saying basing it on her gender will not make a difference other than the pride she may take in being a female wsr person. Do quality work with exceptional service in a professional manner. That's what really matters.

[mend master]

Making a start in a new market often requires being creative and hopefully differentiating your company from your competition. Naming a business can be a very labor intensive and expensive venture. It doesn't have to be, but the fact is there are companies which specialize in naming, branding, positioning, and marketing businesses. If your goal is to be a sole proprietor and never grow beyond that, then you can call yourself whatever floats your boat, because you will only be able to handle a certain geographic area and a finite number of customers within that area. As long as someone else doesn't already have the name you choose or it isn't too close to someone else's identity, it will probably not matter that much, especially if you do good work. If on the other hand, your dreams and/or desires are bigger, that is where the naming, branding, positioning, and marketing become very important. You can do a "poor man's" name search simply by Googling your prospective name. This approach may also give you an idea of an even better name than your first idea. I made several lists of potential names and said them out loud to myself and others. If people get real quizzical looks or appear like they just swallowed a bug, you can pretty much just scratch those right off. I've had several years of sales and marketing training, so I wasn't inclined to pay anyone for something I figured I could do just as well myself.
Think about what you are offering and who your target market is. Amazingly enough, many potential retail customers have no idea that their windshield can be repaired, so using technical or "trade" jargon is not necessarily going to work in your favor. A good name will communicate quickly and clearly who you are at least a hint of what you do. Sal's Service doesn't say anything. Its a waste of ink. Can you tell what type of service is being offered? Of course not. It could be anything from garbage hauling to brain surgery for all we know. That being said, if there is a tag line attached to Sal's Service, like "Certified Chimney Sweep", well that narrows it down quite nicely. My business is Mobile Mend Master with the tag, "Appearance Reconditioning Service". We offer on-site cosmetic reconditioning and repair to dealers and individuals.
I see absolutely nothing wrong with touting your gender. Like it or not, being a female can be a distinct advantage in the marketplace. You don't see Go Daddy using hairy legged men for their ads now do you? Does it work? They are the largest domain name company in the world at this point. You don't have to go to market as a *** starved vixen or a Hooter's girl, but there is certainly nothing wrong with working a female business owner angle. You could use something like "The Green Girl", playing on gender and the green movement at the same time. A name like that gives you something to build a brand, identity, and marketing strategy on.
When its all said and done, your long term success will be determined by your ability to provide quality workmanship, business acumen, people skills, and your desire to succeed, regardless of what you call your company.