The Art & Science Behind Naming a Business

What’s in a name? It’s hard to say, but when a business name is right it can come to stand for far more than just a title. Branding your business with a stellar name can help build a reputation, elicit interest and can come to represent your organization on many levels. Much like a logo, business names can elicit feelings and memories that can grow brand trust and awareness.

The first step to developing a great name for your business is taking a step back. Starting a business can be a long and grueling process. You’ve been knee-deep in business plans, financial meetings and emailing contractors since the start. As a business owner, you may be too close to the action and too emotionally involved to think objectively about name options. Hiring an expert who can help to provide an outside opinion may be tricky because you’ll want someone whose opinion you trust. Naming firms exist to help with naming businesses by using elaborate systems to pitch the perfect names. Often times, these firms will charge a pretty penny for their work as they will include other branding and design work as well. There are also smaller firms that will charge much less for business name development. Whichever you choose, this is an important investment that may be worth making. By investing the time and money for an outside opinion, you will increase your chances of finding the perfect name for your new venture.

So, what should you consider when kicking names around? You’ll first want to consider what the mission of your business is and the niche in which you preside. This can help narrow down your ideas to be as specific as possible. Additionally, you’ll want to consider whether you want a targeted name or one that is more broad. Targeted names may use a location or product name while broad names are open to interpretation. Entrepreneur Magazine offers these helpful tips when naming a business:

• Choose a name that appeals not only to you but also to the kind of customers you are trying to attract.
• Choose a comforting or familiar name that conjures up pleasant memories so customers respond to your business on an emotional level.
• Don’t pick a name that is long or confusing.
• Stay away from cute puns that only you understand.
• Don’t use the word “Inc.” after your name unless your company is actually incorporated.

Another helpful tip may be to try jotting down a list with many different name options. This will give you the opportunity to get creative and then narrow down the list to hone in on the best choices. After you name your top choices, investigate trademarks laws on business names in your state to ensure you aren’t infringing on another business’s trademark. This should narrow down the field of names as well.

Once you have whittled down your options, it’s time to test them. You can do a consumer test or use a focus group to narrow down to the last two. After this point, the final call on the name is up to you. Some owners go with a gut feeling while others may choose at random. A great method is to go back to the beginning of the process and review your naming criteria, organizational mission and goals. Finalize your new business name by officially selecting one name, filing the proper paperwork and start to build buzz.

The process of naming a business can be a challenging one but you can streamline by following the steps discussed above. Naming a business is just one step in a series of many when laying the foundation for a strong and successful business. Fortunately, it can be one of the more creative and enjoyable! Once you have chosen a business name, the next step will be to create a logo and other branding materials to help build buzz.

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