here are 12 helpful suggestions on how to come up with a gain mention for your business :
1. Avoid hard-to-spell names.
You don ’ metric ton want potential customers getting confused about how to find your business on-line. ( I never understood why “ Flickr ” was pushed as the mention for the photo-sharing locate. ) You want to avoid having to continually correct the misspell adaptation of your name. Keep it dim-witted.
2. Don’t pick a name that could be limiting as your business grows.
Picking besides narrow of a name may cause you problems down the road. Imagine if Jeff Bezos had picked the appoint “ OnlineBooks ” alternatively of “ Amazon. ” So invalidate names like “ Wedding Dresses of San Francisco ” or “ LugNuts Unlimited. ” You don ’ triiodothyronine want to limit your business to a particular product or a specific city .
3. Conduct a thorough Internet search.
once you have determined a name you like, do a network search on the identify. More frequently than not, you will find that person else is already using that clientele name. While that won ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate be a sum show-stopper, it should give you pause .
4. Get the .com domain name.
My solid preference is that you secure the “ .com ” sphere appoint for your occupation quite than alternatives such as .net, .org, .biz, or early possible world extensions. Customers tend to associate a .com name with a more established business. undoubtedly, person will already own your desire .com name, but many sphere owners are volition to sell their name for the right price .
think of acquiring the .com name you want as a business investment. You can check on the handiness of a domain name on sites such as GoDaddy.com or NetworkSolutions.com, and if the world name is taken, you can much track down the owner of the domain name and see if they are will to sell it by using the “ Whois ” tool at GoDaddy or Network Solutions .
besides make sure to grab your hope business mention on popular social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest .
5. Use a name that conveys some meaning.
ideally, you want the clientele name to convey something meaningful and positive related to your business. Can people immediately get what your occupation is about ? While meaningless names like “ Google, ” “ Yahoo, ” or “ Zappos ” have some entreaty due to their catchiness, these kinds of names will cost you a lot more to brand .
Some examples of clear, elementary, and intriguing world names include Canny.com, Cling.com, Afire.com, and Administer.com. A domain diagnose like “ OnlineTickets.com ” is genius as it conveys the intend of the clientele and is helpful for search locomotive optimization purposes .
6. Conduct a trademark search.
Do a search at USPTO.gov to get an idea as to whether you can get a brand or military service mark for the name.
7. Conduct a Secretary of State search.
Since you will likely want to structure your business as a pot or LLC, you should do a search of the Secretary of State ’ south records to make certain your name won ’ metric ton be bewilderingly like to a business name that ’ s already registered. If it is besides alike to an existing name, the Secretary of State may not allow you to register it. Your corporate lawyer can help you conduct this kind of search. ( See “ 10 big Legal Mistakes Made by Startups. ” )
8. Assess if the name is catchy.
obviously, you don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate want a boring identify for your business, but you besides don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate want to choose something that ’ s besides “ out there. ” You want your employees to be able to say where they work without hesitation, and you want your name to resonate with your target audience .
9. Get feedback on the name.
Come up with 5 or 10 names and then run them by friends, family members, and trusted colleagues. Get feedback from your target audience a well. And make sure that the name doesn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate have any negative connotations ( such as when GM named its fresh cable car model the “ Nova ” without realizing that the name meant “ doesn ’ metric ton go ” in spanish ) .
10. Make sure the name sounds good when said aloud.
sometimes name seem fine on paper, but sound atrocious when said loudly. And if it ’ second said loudly, make certain people aren ’ thyroxine confused as to how it ’ second spelled .
11. Use resources available for brainstorming names.
There are a count of sites that can help you brainstorm names, including :
- VisualThesaurus.com (gives you a visual around a keyword)
- Shopify Business Name Generator (generates business name ideas and checks domain availability simultaneously)
- NameMesh.com (provides a startup company name generator)
- Naminum.com (allows you to generate names based on a theme)
There are even appoint branding experts such as Alexandra Watkins at Eat My Words .
12. Make sure you are personally happy with the name.
You as the business owner will have to live with the name for a long time, so make certain you are glad with it and believe it will resonate with your customers. Take the time to get it right from the beginning .
Copyright © by Richard D. Harroch. All Rights Reserved
Read all of Richard Harroch’s articles on AllBusiness.com.
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