During your time abroad, you may want to start up a blog. Whether for fame and fortune or just to keep your friends and family updated on all of your new adventures, your new travel blog needs to have a name.

As travel blogging has become more popular, you’ll need to choose a name that stands out to compete with the hundreds of blogs that are created on a daily basis. (After all, your friends, family, and future fans need to be able to remember the name of your awesome blog!)

With the start of so many blogs, though, the onslaught of bloggers offering their rules and advice for success has also started to pour in – and at a much faster rate than the soju is poured at your school dinners, I might add.

I’ve waded through all the tidbits of advice I found online, and made a keep it, trash it list that is just my own personal opinion about the rules of choosing a blog name.

1. Keep: Choose with your personal brand in mind

[bctt tweet=”Your blog’s name should reflect who you are as a person.”] If you’re not a sunshine and daisies type, don’t pick a sticky sweet name. Choose words or adjectives (if you decide to use adjectives) that reflect who you are as a person.

People should get a beginner’s feel for who you are immediately when they read your blog name.

2. Ditch: Use a location-based name

I know that you’re spending your first year abroad in China, but don’t limit yourself to just one place. You never know what the future may hold; maybe next year you’ll find yourself in South Korea or Taiwan.

Do you really want your blog to be JudithInChinaForeverAndEver.com after you’ve left China and have decided to continue blogging? The great thing about travel is that you never know where your journey will take you. Just as you want to be free to roam the world, don’t put blocks and dampers on yourself as a blogger.

3. Keep: Avoid words that are too hard to pronounce or spell

French words, words that are uncommon, or made up words might sound unique and interesting, but they make it incredibly hard for people to find you online. You want to make it as easy as possible for future fans and for your friends and family to find, read, and share you blog.

4. Ditch: Using your full name

So, this one is just a personal opinion. Feel free to ignore me altogether. Using your full name ties you to this blog forever. Remember, anything you put on the internet is there for all eternity (even if you delete it).

If this is going to be your career or something you pursue full-time, then by all means, go for it. But, if this is something you’re just starting for fun or as a hobby, don’t use your full name as your blog name. You don’t want a blogpost about the time you swam naked with guinea pigs to pop up if a future employer Googles you.

5. Keep: Choosing names that have available dotcoms

Maybe you’re blogging for fun, and don’t want to pay for a dotcom. But, what happens if you become insanely successful and want to move over to a dotcom that’s already taken?

That’s not my only concern. If you give your blog name to a friend but the dotcom is taken, which web address will pop up first if your friend Googles the name?

That’s right. The dotcom will come up before yours. Don’t make your friend sift through a million websites to find your WordPress site. Remember, the name of the game is to make it easy for people to find you.

Be sure to check out some of the Reach to Teach teacher blogs if you are looking for some inspiration.

Calling all travel blogger experts! How did you choose your travel blog’s name? Do you agree with these keep and ditch rules? Do you have any tips to add onto this list? Share your answers with other expats below!