Many clients come to me with an idea of startups they want to create a business from. But, most of the time they don’t have a clue how to choose a business name for their startup which is easy to remember, meaningful and unique. Choosing a business name is probably the most significant decision you make. This is for a simple reason because the name of your business has a great impact on how customers and investor’ see you. In today’s digital world, it’s a world-wide decision, because your business would be seen from people across the globe.
Whether you agree or not but trust me your business name speaks volumes about your business and also entails the understanding of the world you are about to enter.
The wrong business name can do worse than fail to connect with the right customers. It can also result in legal hurdles.
Whereas, a clear, well-researched, and powerful name can be extremely helpful in your digital marketing and branding efforts.
Tips to Choose a Business Name
In the next paragraphs, we would be discussing how to choose your startup business name, and what should you keep in mind while doing so?
Here are some helpful suggestions on how to come up with a winning name for your business:
Choose a Catchy Name
It is for sure that you don’t want a boring name for your business. And you would also not want to choose a name for a business which is too common.
Choose a catchy name that resonates with your target audience and also your employees can say it without hesitation.
For instance, it is easy to say that we work at Victoria’s Secret, Zivame, or Clovia than to say we work with Emily’s Undergarments. Think that, isn’t that funny!
Easy to Spell
The business name should be simple to spell and easy to find online. People should get it online without mistakes or confusion. Don’t keep hard spellings which you have to correct many times when you are telling it to someone over the phone. Just keep it simple.
Avoid Unusual Spellings
Staying with usual words that can easily be spelled by customers is the best idea. Though some startup founders try unusual word spellings to make their business stand out.
This can be difficult for the customers when they try to find your business on ‘Google’.
Unusual spellings are also difficult to spell out when your customers want to refer your business to someone. For instance, there is a company called “Shuttl” which offers buses for office goers.
But, when someone wants to refer it to someone they have to spell it and say that in the end avoid word “e” which is in the usual spelling “Shuttle.”
If they won’t people would search “shuttle” word which is usual spelling. And it would be confusing for them.
Use Resources Available for Brainstorming Names
There are a number of sites that can help you brainstorm names, including:
VisualThesaurus.com, Shopify Business Name Generator, NameMesh.com, etc. But, the problem is that too many people are using it and the domains which they suggest are really expensive.
So, you can take the help of your friends and family to suggest some good names for your business.
Get Feedback on the Name
Come up with 5 or 10 names and then run them through your friends, family members, and trusted colleagues. Get feedback from your target audience as well. Once you are convinced about the name then only go for registering it.
Don’t Choose the Limiting Words
Avoid choosing names that don’t allow your business to move around or add to its product line when you want to grow your business.
This simply means that you should avoid using words that are meant for geographic locations or product categories.
For instance, if want to run a business of restaurants and choose a name like “Calgary Delight” then you will find it difficult to set up another restaurant in Quebec or in some other country with the same name unless it becomes a well-known name globally.
Simply, keep in mind that with these specifics, customers will be confused if you expand your business to different locations or add on to your product line.
Prefer Top Level Domain Address
Everyone will assume that your company name is your domain name minus the tld (top level domain) “.com” or the standard suffix for your country. If these suffixes are not available for the name you prefer, pick a new name rather than settling for an alternate suffix like “.net” or “.info” and the tld of your country.
For instance, if your business is based in Brazil then booking all four tld is a good idea, i.e., .com, .info, .net, and .br. Get all four suffixes if you can.
My strong preference is that you secure the “.com” domain name for your business rather than alternatives such as .net, .org, .biz, or other possible domain extensions. Think of acquiring the .com name you want to make a good business investment.
Your Business Name Should Give a Clue
Try to adopt a business name that provides some information about what your business does.
For instance, if you want to start a business of selling juices, then a name like “Fresh Juices” or “Shakes & Melons” is appropriate.
But if you want to sell packaged juices then the same name would not do well for your business. Try to choose a business name that reminds your audience and customers what services you provide.
Keep it Short and Simple
The business names which are shorter in length are better. Try limiting it to two words. Avoid using hyphens and other special characters in the business name. Because it’s not easy to type names with hyphens or special characters.
Business Name Should Make Some Sense
Occasionally, business owners choose quirky words for their business names that are nonsense and trademark-proof. Also, you should check the international implications of the names you choose for your business.
Make sure the name you choose for your business doesn’t have a negative or even an obscene connotation in another language.
Or it would be embarrassing later when someone else would tell you that. For instance, the company called “All School Stuff” when abbreviated was called “ASS” which was embarrassing.
Make Sure the Domain for Your Chosen Business Name is Available
This may sound obvious, but a miss here will cost you dearly. Your company name and Internet domain name should probably be the same, so check out your preferred names with your State Incorporation site, Domain Registrar for the domain name, and your Country’s Patent Office for Trademarks.
Conduct a thorough Internet Search for Your Business Name
Once you have determined a name you like, do a web search on the name. See if someone else has already a business in that name. If so start again and think of a new and unique name.
Duplicate or similar names are quite confusing for the customers. It’s always better to have a unique business name so that your customer can find you out easily.
Check the Availability of Social Media Names and Handles
Since in every online business social media plays an important role. Hence, you should check on each social media website you intend to use that your business name is available to make accounts and claim handles/URLs there.
Otherwise, you will have to use prefixes and suffixes to create your business page on social media which doesn’t look good.
Make Sure the Name Sounds Good when Pronounced
Sometimes names seem fine on paper but sound awful when pronounced. Hence, you should make sure people aren’t confused as to how it’s spelled.
Make Sure You are Personally Happy with the Name
You as the business owner will have to live with your business name for a long time, so make sure you are happy with it and believe it will resonate with your customers. Take your time to brainstorm and get it right from the very beginning.
Choose a Timeless Business Name
Over time the naming trends change. For instance, there was a time when people started to avoid some alphabets from the regular words, Flickr, bitly, etc., were names that came up at that time. It’s better to choose business names that are timeless.
For instance, names like Apple, Amazon, Starbucks are timeless names.
Conclusion
Choosing a business name is the next thing you should be focusing on after you have validated your business idea. Take time to brainstorm some ideas to come up with a unique, short, and simple name for your business startup.
If you are still unsure of yourself on choosing the right business name for your startup, you can get in touch with us and we will help you to get a unique business name that can be created into a global brand.
