Hello guys, My father and I are going to start doing a bit of excavation/demo/trucking work. I am 21 years old, and he just traded in his old skid for a Deere 320D (which we bought together as well as a FL70 dump truck) and we decided we would start advertising and try to get a small business going. We farm, (well him and my uncle farm, I farm as well but not near enough to make a living yet) I have 2 years left in college so if business is slow for a while that is okay. If somehow it picks up quickly my father, uncle, and their hired man are available other than planting and harvest season to cover for me if I am in class. Equipment we have: Skid: Deere 320D Backhoe: Deere 410G Dump Truck: Freightliner FL70 with 10' dump box Other trucks available (figure if work picks up may use a bigger tandem for a bigger job if needed, but not planning on it because all our other trucks have farm plates) I am having trouble deciding on a name. Here is the work we plan on doing and have some experience with: Teardown of garages Demo of other smallish buidlings Removal of concrete (sidewalks.. driveways.. garage floors.. old building sites..) Small tree removal possibly Hauling and spreading of dirt and rock (gravel for drive ways.. etc.) Misc. Skid Steer and Backhoe work as well.... Field Tile Repair Anyway, I am thinking the name should be: Smith's Trucking and Excavating Do you guys think that name covers it well enough? We are meeting with our insurance man this week, we are not sure on if we want to set it up as a LLC or not, if we do it will be quite a bit cheaper... Anyone else have any suggestions as to a name or as to getting off to a good start? My father and uncle used to do a lot of backhoe work about 10 years ago and they also want to get back into it somewhat but I will be the main guy so to say. I will need their advice to begin with on some jobs of course. Thanks!
Also, I plan to advertise via word of mouth (farming community will hopefully pass my name around) and for the surrounding towns (one of which has a pop of nearly 100,000) I will probably take out a add in the phone book depending on cost and my sisters fiancé is good at making websites. I figure a website would be great for more in town jobs so people can see my list of services and what not. Name and number will be on the FL-70, as well as my every day pickup.
Where in Il. ?
East Central... How about you?
I'm all for using your name for your business name, it shows a commitment to what your are doing and that your name stands behind it. If your name actually is Smith however, check around for the reputation of other contractors called Smith. In my location there are about a half dozen Smiths that do paving and they all have a reputation.....BAD!!
What I'm most concerned about is whether or not excavating is the correct term for the services I plan to offer...
I'm all for keeping names short and if you can keep your name in there, it does have more effect, unfortunately, as Steve says, that could be a bit of a problem. How about Smith Contracting, or if there are other Smiths in your area, include your first name, eg; Greg Smith Contracting, the other option is if your father is in the business as well and I know it probably sounds a bit corny these days, Smith & Son Contracting. By including your name, people will get to know your business and you, much quicker than if it is just a place name or some other obscure name, because they associate the person with the business. Just my thoughts. RnR.
near peoria. You mentioned tile repair. Hard to charge what it takes to make money doing repairs. What about getting into tileing? Seems to be a shortage of contractors available.
Our farm has considered getting into tiling, but for now I do not think we will. I am from around the Champaign area.
Your reputation is your key asset, for a start up company, figure out what your going to be doing most then have that in the title somewhere, otherwise go with tom smith enterprises or something like that, I started with just my name on my truck and equipment, along with a number to call, but above all don't let the quality of the work you do ever slip, it'll shut you down quicker than anything. If there are a lot of smiths in your area, you need to somehow advertise differently than they do, by not only the name but also style of logo's they use, especially if they have a bad reputation, if there are some with smith that have a really bad reputation, don't use smith at all in the name. There was a guy years back that used the logo of "the digger man" on his stuff, look through the catchy company logo's here on this site to see what others use from different area's that may apply to you in your area. some others are the 'the backhoe man" or I've seen just a number on equipment to call, with no name. I wouldn't get too hung up on a name at first, you just need a way for people to get ahold of you, a number is the most important thing to have on anything.
How many posts do i need to have to be able to write a new topic i thought it was 3!?!?!?!?
How about the "DIRT SMITHS" My main suggestion would be to pick an original sounding name that reflects who you are and where you want to go. Its tough to change it later. I would avoid Smith backhoe or something like that. The name limits you, much like my name does.
First name... Phone book a waste of money, as the dozen or so I get a year go straight to the trash. Internet is the way, when picking a name, google it.... If that name shows up with tons of lawsuits avoid it... Porn well DUH... just make sure your name is short and easy to remember. Remember if you pick a web site, keep it up to date, paid up, if you site is closed then people will think your business is closed "Joe's" Construction Services with a logo of a skid steer and backhoe... they will know you have a dump truck if you pulling the equipment.
Hi, I have a small Buiz., I wish now that i had left my name out of it, i get a lot of call from people wanting the other people that have the same last name. Also keeping your name out of the Biz. may allow you too sell it, and still work there, or you may want to do something else. And the value may go up more if you have a catchy name, try one that rimes.
around here alot of the logging contractors name their company after creeks,rivers or lakes. _ _ _ _ CREEK LOGGING, _ _ _ _ LAKE LOGGING. Some pretty good names seem to show up this way. If you have a creek,river ,lake or some other geographical stand out in your area of work it may be a nice change to the normal names seen. Nothing wrong with "Smith's Trucking and Excavating". Just on your trucks,business cards,web sites etc. have the statement "specializing in Excavating,Demolition and Landscaping" or something to that effect. Good luck with the new business. Stew
I like "services" in a name.. that way you don't get locked into one thing if you evolve and change directions some day.... For example, my company is Yellow Dog Services, Inc. A lot of people seem to like dogs, they think of a big old lab when they hear Yellow Dog and the name isn't too hard to remember.. At least that is some of the feedback I've gotten over the last 20 years. You need to find something that fits you and your personality because if you are successful, you will wear that name for a long time. If you are in an area serving "east central IL, you could be East Central Trucking and Excavating or East Central Dirt Works... Play with it..
could take the m out of smith and have sith demolition and gravel.
What about just shortening it to S.T.E. Just leave it at that remember short & Sweet is never a bad thing.
You or your dad have nick names. Hougie's been a family nickname handed down it our family so i named mine Hougie's Hoe Service.
As a Star Wars fan, I support this.
Hmmm I can imagine the calls from "lonely individuals" looking for solace and comfort late at night...................... Remember the alphabetical order of the yellow pages etc, and the name need to be remembered at a glance or have a good tag line and logo, preferably something easily recognisable....................
I went with Green edge contracting as my business name was going to go with Green edge excavating but thought I would limit my opportunities with excavation in the title, makes it easier to diversify in the future.
Some good ideas here so far. My thoughts: 1) Don't waste your money on the Yellow pages. No one uses them anymore. I made that mistake and got nothing out of it. On the other hand, make sure you have a top-shelf website and lots of links to it. Make sure you can be found easily via Google and Yahoo. Use Craigslist to start for sure. Use local newspaper ads if you can afford them but don't cheap out if you do so. Flashy, well-placed ads work... not so much for small cheapy ads in the back pages. 2) Get rid of "excavation" in the company name unless you like paying double insurance and being confused with the big track excavator boys. Yours is essentially a backhoe and trucking service with a little demo work thrown in.. You can explain to folks what you do on your website and in your on-line directory listings. 3) As someone else mentioned, the word "services" in the name tends to be a plus. Keeping your name more general will also allow you greater flexibility as your business develops in unpredictable directions. Don't try to cover everything you want to do in your company name. 4) All that said, I personally like short, sweet, easy to remember names... the more unique and pithy, the better. But I also happen to like the word "trucking" in the mix too since it differentiates you from the average, run-of-the-mill Bobcat service. Dougster
I have always been partial to "Joe Dirt Contracting" Joe knows dirt!
Randy: I thought the same thing reading through this thread..... It's funny you should mention catchy names......I recently started working with a trucker from Oronoco, MN and his trucking co was called Double HP trucking. When one thinks about it Double HP kind of sounds like...... get there with twice as much HP and twice as fast don't it? By the way I think he really does live up to his name.... without being reckless of course.
I have a problem with doing construction work with a Farm license..... I pay the fiddler, shouldn't you?
Grandpa whats a farm license you refer to on a truck?
Did I miss something again gramps? I know I've been off the radar a while, but.............????????? Sometimes ya just got to explain it to me I guess...........lol
Dunno about other state's, but here in Minn. the state issue's T license plate's, they are for farmers doing farm type work. These license are considerably cheaper than the regular issue truck plates. Yet I often get to bid against these "Farmers" in various types of construction projects. I can and will compete against anyone if the playing field is level.... thus my thoughts on Farm license..... Gramps.
I dunno......I sincerely hope that is not what is been happening to ya.
Are you bidding on lawn renovations or? The difference in plate due's ,while high, is not substantial in my eyes. In WI standard Heavy Farm Truck plates will run you $640 for 80k for 1 year. Standard Heavy Truck Non-Farm plates will run you $640 PER 1/4 ($1,920 difference). I also realize you don't need to license your truck for all 4 quarters of the year either. However, I do agree with your concerns that those people should be running proper licensing with proper authority and insurance. I also understand the insurance difference is also a large factor, however they are subject to the same DOT reg's and run the same fuel as you too. In the end it is not right, but I would say if its causing your business to go under then you have some other issues. If the guys running around with farm plates haven't been caught yet, they obviously don't do that much work or haven't been around long, thus the quality of work in turn should be low and as long as your number 2, who do they call to fix it? You, and then you get to make more money. Farm Plate laws are vague and all in the interpretation, most farm vehicles don't need them as long as they do not haul to a point of sale. This would include feed trucks, manure trucks and apron box silage trucks. Dump body trucks are a grey area. You may only haul silage with it, but your options are very open with that type of box and if they want to pinch you they can. If hauling your own product to a point of sale you need farm plates. If hauling anything for hire you cannot run farm plates. Are the farmers screwing you over? In a way yes they are making it tougher on you but the licensing isnt the killer, its their overall price. I'm a dairy farmer myself so time is always of the essense, but all of the CBM (Corn, Beans, Miami) farmers need something to do the other 363 days a year they dont have to work, so they often buy a truck and start trucking or start excavating, in order to keep busy they undercut because they don't have to make a profit. Good luck in the future though. To the OP. I like to keep names out of the name. I agree it adds a personal touch, but there are better ways to do it than with your name. Your name limits you. Why would a guy whos name is tom buy joes dirt digging? The reputation would be lost if he switched the name. Enterprises or Services keeps your options open, but I tend to think of those as "blanket" names. They sometimes end up being the operating company when people diversify and or split up their divisions. Lets say you settle on Smith as the name (which i highly advise against as it is the or one of the top names in the country). Trucking can be Smith Transit/Smith Transport/Smith Trucking/Smith Logistics/Smith Transfer. I think "logistics" is a little over the top for what you want to do, however it is the most professional sounding as it usually means your running a larger fleet and doing all of the actual "logistics" stuff in house and offer your "logistics" knowledge to others. Transit has always been my favorite I guess. Trucking sounds like a "good-ol boys" name to me, many people like it but its just not me. Transit sounds more professional and modern i guess. Think of identifiers. What landmarks/natural features are in your area. What are your hobbies, what do people know you buy? Find something unique to you, your area, and your operation. That is what people will remember you by. If you raise hogs for a living, something as corny as "Squealin' Transit" . A person in our area named his manure hauling business "Dairy Aire Trucking". Think of something catchy on the "edge". Thats what more people remember, unfortuneatley you may loose some business to ultra conservative people which in illinois could be an issue. A buddies baling business's motto is "Because We Know You Like Em' Tight". Try to stay away from fads in the name. Things like "Black Smoke Trucking" are going to look bad and you will regret it down the road when your mind changes. Or use the cash grain farmer acronym "CBM Transit" (CBM= Corn, beans, Miami) Good luck to you.
Me And Dad Excavations
A Hole Excavations. .