Why Your Extension’s Name Is Your #1 SEO Tool: 3 Lessons Top Brands Won’t Tell You
“A ship’s name determines its fate” — but if you don’t have Grammarly’s ad budget, your “ship” might sink before leaving the harbor. Here’s how to pick a name that drives traffic without millions in marketing.
Lesson 1: Grammarly — Why You’d Have Ignored This Name in 2010
Imagine it’s 2010. You need to check your grammar. You Google “fix typos online” and see a weird word: Grammarly. Would you click? I, personally, would choose some website link which states something "fix grammar online" over "Grammarly"
Why it worked for them:
- $200M+ invested to turn the name into a brand;
- 10 years to make “Grammarly” synonymous with proofreading.
What you should do:
Names you could use instead of grammarly brand
Instead of thinking of some cool brand name just use the keywords like:
- “Punctuation checker” with 27.1K US monthly searches
- “AI for writing” with 18.1K US monthly searches
These are at least guaranteed to be searched for in the google and have decent traffic volume
Lesson 2: Honey — When Metaphors Need a $100M Explanation
Honey helps find promo codes, but word “honey” by itself has zero connection to discounts. Its success relied on a $100M ad campaign to force the association.
Startup-friendly alternatives:
Honey naming alternatives
- “Shop discrount code” with 3.6K US monthly searches
- “Coupon code discount" with 1.9K monthly searches
I think you got the point on this one as well!
Lesson 3: Adblock — The Exception That Proves the Rule
Adblock is a rare case where a generic name became iconic. But it required:
- Being first in the market
- 15+ years to cement the association. If you google it you will find what it was founded in 2009!
Our reality:
Unless you’re inventing something as groundbreaking as ChatGPT (2022), focus on SEO-first names, not branding.
Checklist: How to Name Your Extension (If You’re Not a Unicorn)
- Use action verbs: “Check,” “Block,” “Find.”
- Add context: “for YouTube,” “in LinkedIn.”
- Test for traffic: You can use Google Keyword Planner or other tools like semrush, ahrefs or others. Your goal is to find keywords with high traffic volume.
- Avoid metaphors and fancy unknown brands (Honey, Jar) — they demand ad dollars.
- Check for competition: I would suggest using tools like chrome-stats or CWS Database in order to check for competition for any idea you have in mind. Don't be discouraged if you find out someone have already implemented your idea. It proves you are heading in the right direction!
Pro Tip:
The Chrome Web Store is your free SEO cheat code. With a Domain Authority (DA) of 100/100, your extension’s page will outrank websites people build for decades just in a few months.
Feel free to use CWS Database in order to make your extension shine! This community has a lot of outstanding developers and products, I would like to help them see the world!
Final Takeaway:
Your extension’s name isn’t a creative experiment — it’s your first growth hack. Until you have $1M for ads, give users exactly what they’re already searching for.
👉 What is your current extension name? What name will you choose?