Studio 42 Workspaces   •   April 30, 2020

Choosing the name of your new business is not a small decision. It is the name you’ll need to answer the phone to, have in your email signature and it is by and large – an extension of you. We don’t want to scare you, but the name you choose will be connected to your brand’s identity for the foreseeable future. The wrong name can reduce your connection with customers or even worse, result in overwhelming business and legal hurdles.

We definitely don’t want that for you, so here are our top tips for choosing a business name in the modern era.

Don’t Get Complicated

We all have words that to us, seem inspiring and amazing. Unfortunately, these words and phrases are often pretty complicated or confusing to the wider public. Try to avoid any names that are hard to spell or pronounce as its likely to confuse and frustrate your customers. If you are going for an unusual name, focus your marketing around how to spell and pronounce the product so customers can find you online. If you’re in doubt – simple is always best!

Don’t Limit Your Potential

Imagine is Jeff Bezos called his company “Online Books” rather than Amazon… Just because you’re only offering once service or product right now, doesn’t mean that will be the case in 2 years. Business growth is often rapid and unexpected, so changing names or trying to explain what you offer now to your customers is going to be a big pain for you. Pay attention that you’re choosing a name that can be interpreted in a couple of ways so you can always grow!

Do Your Due Diligence!

We cannot stress enough just how important this step is! Make sure you check trademarks and domain names to make sure you’re not encroaching on the territory of a big conglomerate that can bury you in legal bills. Chat to those you know and google the name to make sure there are no hidden connotations to the word that will catch you out. Another key thing to look out for is popular translations – while you may not be global now, you definitely don’t want to offend a whole nation because you chose a French swearword as your business name!

Find Your Meaning

Your business name doesn’t necessarily need to represent you specifically, but you want to make sure to have an overall meaning for the values of the business. You can always incorporate family names or geographical names but remember that you don’t know the operational direction of the business in 10 years times so proceed with caution in this department. It is always nice to choose a fun family memory or anecdote and pull out a key phrase. Remember that even though it needs to be simple and resonate with customers – it is still your pride and joy, so pick something you’re proud to run.

Be Unique

Your business name is your first chance to stand apart from competitors, get creative with word combinations that will put you in bold. Try to avoid picking common phrases and words as it is often very difficult to secure trademarks for these down the track. Make sure that every associate involved in the business loves the name – its a big decision and a hard one to change if someone disagrees in 3 months.

Make Use of The Resources

Like everything in the modern era, there are thousands of online resources available to help you on this journey. Make use of thesauruses, random word generators and word meaning pages.

Good Luck!