on a name change

So we just switched our URL, business name, etc. over from Ambitious Green to Mintsy. It’s nice finally have a URL that’s six letters, offers more imagery / symbology opportunities, and just sounds “cuter” (yeah, I said it) and more fun.

Whenever I start something new, picking the name is simultaneously the most fun and most challenging aspect of it — and, yeah, finding a free URL is also 90% of that challenge.

Mintsy to us means refreshing, green, cute, fun, playful, and curiosity.  We thought that fit pretty well with what we’re trying to do here.

Here’s how we came across it:

• created a spreadsheet that took root words, prefixes and suffixes and auto-generated words (I can’t tell you how many times we clicked the refresh button)
• looked at brands we admired and sought to find something where we could create a standalone, recognizable logo image…for example, Apple without the words “apple”
• lots of visits to http://nameboy.com/
• two bottles of wine and six hours

Once we decided upon Mintsy, we searched the Trademark and Patent offices for any instances — and also checked to see if the usernames were available across social networking sites. The only downside is that a username squatter on Twitter has ‘mintsy’ registered, and there’s nothing we can do about it — at least for now.

If you ever find yourself in this situation, make sure to remap your URL correctly so that you preserve your old links.  For example. a link to ambitiousgreen.com/products now redirects to mintsy.com/products.

So there’s our story. I’d love to hear what you think of our new direction!

Join us for our friends & family event

We’re having a 20%-off friends and family event going on at the store!

And if you’re joining us on the blog, we feel like you’re our friend. Or family.  Your pick!

So mosey on over to the shop and just add the FRIENDSFAMILY coupon code for 20% off your total order.

We love you.

Hugs!

How Ambitious Green works

I’ll take a minute and explain how we look at products at Ambitious Green and present them to you.

You’ll notice that when checking out one of our products, you’ll see:

• A description
• Why it’s green
• Why we picked it

…in addition to all the other product details.  

Beyond the product description, “why it’s green” and “why we picked it” are where we talk about the green merits of the product, what makes the product or company significant in a “green” way, and anything else we thought made the product special (its design, its colors, the educational merits, etc.).

For example, this Dancing Alligator toy page not only talks about Plan Toys and their manufacturing processes, but what makes this toy particularly special in how it’s safe for your toddler and the awards it has won.

Next up, I’ll talk about how we compile and publish information about the biggest environmental concerns that affect your buying decisions. Comments and feedback are appreciated!