Why My Company Has "Communications" As a Plural

I'm asked now and then how many employees are in my company. In response, I like to joke that Boo the Blue Ferret does my PR for me. However, I never thought about why people were asking me that question.

Until today, of course. It was prompted by a discussion thread on the Well-Fed E-Pub Yahoo Group List about pluralized company names being misleading and/or dishonest. My company name - Blue Ferret Communications - is indeed plural.

After deciding I wasn't intending to be misleading with the "CommunicationS" part, I remembered the reasons I chose "Communications" in the first place. Let me explain:

1. I provide several services. Writing, editing, consultations, speaking, project management. All of these involve communication. Hence, for a unifying term, communicationS.

2. It helps explain what I do. I help companies communicate better - in their marketing materials, online, even in their positions & branding. The multiple is inherent.

3. I don't have employees, but I do have partners. Printers, graphic designers, web developers, even other writers. Strategic partnerships are specialized and efficient - no bureaucracy, no Multiple Desks Syndrome. Plus, it's a lot of fun sharing the perspectives and creating unique working relationships along the way.

While I can readily understand how, in some cases, using a pluralized company name for sole proprietorships would be dishonest, I'm sure that's not the case all the time. I'm only asked that question about a third of the time, so maybe that's representative. In any case, there are some good reasons for using a pluralized name, IF you hold to the services and positions you evoke by it.