Someone using my biz name!

[Jodi_Lane]

:computer2:
Hello everyone:

I just wanted to let all my good friends on this forum know that there is an individual out there trying to use my business name, "Muscle Bling" as their own.

myspace.com/musclebling is me....musclebling.com is NOT ME.

Just to clarify, I've been in business longer on myspace.com/musclebling. I'm sure most of you knew that already! My service and communication will probably out-shine it because I truly try to treat my clients like like gold. I pride myself on that.

So, I wanted to make sure you all knew about this because its just sort of lame that someone else would stoop to that level. No respect man...lame! I searched and searched prior to taking on a name because I felt like it was necessary.

I, however, will be remaining the original...They bought the domain musclebling.com thinking that would make it official but it hasn't. Nope! I will just let my customer service decide who honors the name.

So, if you're looking for the original muscle bling just make sure you get this email address jodi_sturdevant@verizon.net or site address myspace.com/musclebling because that's ME...hehe.

Ciao!
Jodi
:sherlock:

[JLB001]

Jodi,

Was the domain name already gone when you started doing suits?
That's the first thing I snatched up when I started doing them, sat on the domain name for a little while as I had my site built, then took it public. I added myspace and FB after I had the site up and going well. Usually our customers find us via our websites.

This person has that name tied up til 2014, so if you decide to have a website you might have to go with a .net or one of the others.

Sorry to hear this has happened. :(

[Jodi_Lane]

Yeah, it's a bummer and no she didn't have this domain at all prior to me starting my small business. That's alright. I'm going to law school. This isn't going to by my life business. I have plans as for the current situation however. :) Thanks for the concern...it is annoying isn't it! :o)

[toese]

I saw her website and yours on myspace. Your suits are much better by far.

The same thing happened to me w/ my business. I just don't know why people can't be original and just come up with their own name. Pisses me off.

[Jodi_Lane]

Linda,

Thank you so much for posting about this. I really appreciate it. I truly think that girl, Melisa (I think that's her name), took my name because she thought it was cute when she seen it on Diva Exchange. That's typically where I advertise my suits for sale. I sell a lot on there. Well, I really do think she saw the name and didn't see that I had the ".com" for it and grabbed it instantly. The reason I think that is because of the fact that almost ALL of the girls in her picture gallery are herself! LOL! That's fine, because I'm sure she made those suits but it just proves to me that she's not been in business as long. Which to me just shows that she grabbed my name real fast. That's fine, I'm not going to grapple over it...just yet :o).

It ticks me off too. Because the first thing I did when I thought of the name "Muscle Bling" was search like 100 times on yahoo, google, and lycos just to make sure! I'm not going to worry too much about it at the moment because I believe my work will speak for itself!

Thanks again for the support, I really appreciate it!

-Jodi

[TameMe]

Happened to me too a couple of years ago. When I starting doing suits I bought the domain name Go Figure Suits, of coarse I let it expire and when I went to renew it (couple months later) someone had taken it and started doing suits under that name... So I changed to Go Figure by Tamee Marie. I tell girls if my signature isn't on the label then it's not mine. Maybe adding your name or initials might help? Muscle Bling by Jodi?
Good luck!!!!
Tame

[toese]

Jodi,
You have a good attitude and I can totally understand. I had to send out a lawyer to a woman that did the same thing to me (I own a clothing store). SHe still answers her phone w/ my name but she did take the name off her store front window. It's crazy and I still don't know why people can't come up with their own name.

I wouldn't worry though. I google a lot and her name never popped up but your myspace name does plus if you are on this forum and bb.com then thats probably where most of the potential clients are at anyways.

[vancouverchick]

this is awful!!!

In canada you have to register your business name with the Government --- pay a fee of course to save the name and keep it from ever being used by anyone else.

Even when looking for a name, you have to search the database and it won't allow you to even come remotely close to anyone else.

if I were to ever come across anyone using my business name, I can make them stop, or sue them!!

[Jodi_Lane]

I'm going to work toward something similar to that nature. What happened was this was something I started doing for friends and it progressed into a lovely business for me. So, I really didn't "start" it with a business in mind but then it sort of carried over into that unplanned. I love it! I think lots of great businesses start this way so I'm fortunate! I'm planning on doing something to prevent my name from being abused from now on...just might take a couple of weeks or months...eek! LOL!

[Jodi_Lane]

Happened to me too a couple of years ago. When I starting doing suits I bought the domain name Go Figure Suits, of coarse I let it expire and when I went to renew it (couple months later) someone had taken it and started doing suits under that name... So I changed to Go Figure by Tamee Marie. I tell girls if my signature isn't on the label then it's not mine. Maybe adding your name or initials might help? Muscle Bling by Jodi?
Good luck!!!!
Tame
That's an excellent idea! THANK YOU!

[Jodi_Lane]

Jodi,
You have a good attitude and I can totally understand. I had to send out a lawyer to a woman that did the same thing to me (I own a clothing store). SHe still answers her phone w/ my name but she did take the name off her store front window. It's crazy and I still don't know why people can't come up with their own name.

I wouldn't worry though. I google a lot and her name never popped up but your myspace name does plus if you are on this forum and bb.com then thats probably where most of the potential clients are at anyways.
That's sort of what I was thinking too. I mean, people are going to KNOW which one is me and which one is not. This other girl that's using my name is nothing like me. In fact, I have never seen her before ever. She competes in (to me) an unknown federation. It says on her website what competitions she's done and I've not heard of a couple of them. She SAID that she was going to be at the Arnold with her suits, but I didn't see her there and nobody else I know did either! Crazy huh? So, I think she tried to hurry up and make her suit site look developed when its clear to me that it is not. I'm sure she's an okay person and a decent suit maker but I agree--come up with your own name peeps!

[asuit2rememberJen]

I think you have the right attitude! Your work will show for itself and that is what will sustain you in the long run.

I too started out making my own suits and suits for friends and like you said it has snowballed from there. When you love what you do I think it shows in your work. I also think what we do requires a creative mind and what does that say if you can't come up w/your own name? Just makes you think.

[Musclepapa John]

If you believe the domain name is rightfully yours then you can pursue action against the current owner for so-called cybersquatting. The preferred method of course would be to purchase the domain names you want relative to business names, personal name, etc as otherwise it is open season for anyone that wants to drop $5-15 to purchase it.:)


:computer2:
Hello everyone:

I just wanted to let all my good friends on this forum know that there is an individual out there trying to use my business name, "Muscle Bling" as their own.

myspace.com/musclebling is me....musclebling.com is NOT ME.

Just to clarify, I've been in business longer on myspace.com/musclebling. I'm sure most of you knew that already! My service and communication will probably out-shine it because I truly try to treat my clients like like gold. I pride myself on that.

So, I wanted to make sure you all knew about this because its just sort of lame that someone else would stoop to that level. No respect man...lame! I searched and searched prior to taking on a name because I felt like it was necessary.

I, however, will be remaining the original...They bought the domain musclebling.com thinking that would make it official but it hasn't. Nope! I will just let my customer service decide who honors the name.

So, if you're looking for the original muscle bling just make sure you get this email address jodi_sturdevant@verizon.net or site address myspace.com/musclebling because that's ME...hehe.

Ciao!
Jodi
:sherlock:

[Jodi_Lane]

I think you have the right attitude! Your work will show for itself and that is what will sustain you in the long run.

I too started out making my own suits and suits for friends and like you said it has snowballed from there. When you love what you do I think it shows in your work. I also think what we do requires a creative mind and what does that say if you can't come up w/your own name? Just makes you think.
That's so true! If you can't make up your own name how can you come up with pretty suit designs! I mean, I welcome the competition too. It's not like I'm jealous of other suit designers, I welcome the variety of designers. I don't however welcome competition that is going to try to hurt someone else's business. I sometimes recommend girls to other designers LOL. I think that's the way to be, people who I have helped will return in the future. I will just try to continue being myself and you're right people will remember it!