Wondering how to create a catchy Business name?

I know, it can seem overwhelming naming your new business. No worries. As an experienced Marketing Consultant, I am here to help you come up with a great business name.

Come along with me as I show you how to name your business step by step, using real life examples with the exact business naming process I use as a marketing consultant to help my startup clients come up with their best new company name. 

Getting your perfect business name requires research, brainstorming, knowing the different types of Business Names and how to register them plus protect your new company name with trademarks. 

Once you have created your unique new business name, one that is both catchy and memorable, you can use its brand building power to grow your business. A creative business name is a significant competitive advantage for success.

Entrepreneurs, let’s get busy naming your business!

STEP 1- RESEARCH

Different Types of Business Names

Know that businesses don’t just have one name. In fact, all businesses need five (5) different types of business names including; company name, brand name, legal entity name, website domain name, and social media profile names.

Each business name type has a different format and usage – plus a different way to obtain and protect. The table below contains the information you need to know (including costs) about each business name type and how to get your perfect business name reserved.

Learn the important differences between your business name and your domain name and if they should match in my article here.

5 Types of Business Names Every Company Needs

Business Names in Your Industry & Competitors

Study your industry and competitors to discover the most effective brand names for your market.

Are the most successful firms using invented words such as Kiddeo (children’s clothing) or are they using descriptive words such as Measured Results Marketing (a consulting firm)?

Knowing this information will help you to come up with a business name which will work well in your industry, stand out among your competitors, and not be confused with other existing firms.

Your Company Point of Difference

Remember your name will be your customer’s very first contact with your company. As such you want to make it strongly communicate the benefits of your products and services.

To do so, begin by analyzing your offerings to deter your company’s point of difference and value proposition. These fancy words simply mean: what makes your business stand out from the competition and why should people buy your products and services.

• What does your business stand for? Top-quality, low cost, innovative solutions?
  
• What products or services are you selling and their ultimate benefit? (you would be surprised how often beginner entrepreneurs forget to consider this!)
  • SERVICE: Salon services = BENEFIT: looking beautiful, feeling confident, attracting a mate

• Who is your target audience? Consider their demographics (age, location, economic status) as you brainstorm names for your business. You want your potential customers to understand and relate to your business name positively.

STEP 2 – BRAINSTORM

24 Pro Tips to Come Up with a Business Name

1. 500Business Name Lists – Read lists of business ideas such as these that I publish regularly to get inspiration for your best business name:
   
   Restaurant name ideas
   Bakery name ideas
   Photography business names
   Consulting company name ideas
   
   PS: You can also check for name availability free with one click on my name idea lists.
   
   
2. Combine Two Words – Blend real names of two or more owners into an interesting compound business name. Learn the many ways to combine names in my article here. 
   
   
3. Founder’s Personal Name – Some founders elect to use their own personal name as their business name.
   
   Generally, I do not recommend naming your business after yourself – except in a few instances – read more in my article here
   
   
4. Owner Initials – Some new entrepreneurs decide to use their initials as their company name. This is not a good idea, because names such as SMA Motors are easy to forget and hard to spell and say.
   
   
5. Acronyms – An acronym is different from a name made up of owner initials because it creates a new word.
   
   Some examples; IBM is an initial name (for International Business Machines) which is spoken as each letter separately – I -B- M.
   
   An example acronym name is LEGO (short for Leg Godt – danish for “play well”) and is pronounced as one word.
   
   Use this online tool to brainstorm some creative acronym business names.
   
   
6. Wordplay and Puns – Puns are jokes that exploit the different possible meanings of words – a play on words. They can make funny and catchy business names.
   
   Some examples of business name puns; Cake my Day, Live Free or Pie, and Food Mood. Have fun and get business name inspiration with this free Pun Generator tool.
   
   
   
7. Portmanteau – This French word describes newly created words that blend the sound and meanings of two words.
   
   An example is the word creation of the two words motor + hotel – motel. Experiment with creating your own Portmanteau with this free online tool.
   
   
8. Rhymes – Using a rhyming name can make your brand more memorable such as StubHub and 7-Eleven.
   
   Business names that rhyme has a musical quality that helps them stick in customers’ minds. Try this free online rhyme tool
   
   
9. Foreign Words – Go outside of the English language and consider using Foreign language words that are generally understood in America (or your country).
   
   For English-speakers examine words from similar romance languages such as; Spanish, French, and Italian. Examples are Italian restaurants named Prosciutto and French salons named Elan (means style in French). 
   
   
10. Descriptive Word Phrases – Use keywords that describe your products and services with their benefits to create interesting and powerful business names.
    
    Begin with your business type -“photography”. Then create a list of related words such as; click, snaps, shoot, smiles, image, art, shutter. Check out this free online related words tool
    
    
11. Metaphor – Metaphors are figures of speed that express an idea with symbolic meaning to another concept.
    
    An example is Amazon, which is the world’s largest river and is meant to convey the extensive range of products available on Amazon.com.
    
    
12. Misspellings – Sometimes a mistake can be golden! Try some creative wordsmithing for your business name by misspelling words that describe your products and services like Chick-fil-A, Flickr and Tumblr.
    
    Experiment with removing vowels and phonetic word variations. 
    
    
13. Create a Word – Make up your own new word to stand out in a crowded marketplace. Be as creative and quirky as you like.
    
    Helpful tools would be a good online thesaurus with a dictionary and a list of synonyms, such as Merriam-Webster.
    
    
14. Random Real Words – Shake up your industry by using words outside of the norm that is sure to be distinctive. Look at what Virgin did in the airline industry and Apple in electronics.
    
    These words do not necessarily need to be related to your products, instead, they should tell a story about your company mission or startup.
    
    In 1984, Richard Branson named his airline – Virgin – because his flight to the Virgin Islands was canceled. He then chartered his own plane and sold tickets to his fellow stranded passengers. 
    
    
    
    
15. Location-Based – This technique is where your business name includes your market area or headquarter location.
    
    The advantages are that your customers will know your service area, however, it can be extremely limiting for expansion and relocation.
    
    As such, I recommend that if you want to include geographic references in your company name to select regional terms, as opposed to specific cities. Examples would be Central Texas Auto as opposed to Austin Motors. 
    
    
16. Domain name focused – This approach is to focus primarily on the domain name as the company name.
    
    It is a good naming strategy for online-based companies such as e-commerce stores and blogs, however, I do not recommend this approach for brick and mortar, consulting or service firms.
    
    Examples would be company names that include domain extensions such as Overstock.com and names that are chosen primarily due to their internet advantages – short, easy to remember, simple to type, or contain SEO keywords. 
    
    
17. Visual – Use descriptive words that are evocative of the feeling you want to instill in your customers when they think of your brand.
    
    Include colors, scents, sounds, and emotional words that are sensory (perceived by our senses). The science behind sensory language is that it is more powerful and memorable than ordinary words because your reader’s imagination and brain literally light up which increases desire.
    
    Match the word to your product’s benefit. A good example of a restaurant name would focus on the sensation of taste and use such words as; creamy, luscious, savory, ripe, tangy, and zesty. Use this list of sensory words to get you started.
    
    
18. Alliterations – Create a poetic name that has a catchy (and memorable) musical beat to its pronunciation.
    
    Alliteration is the repetition of the same sound at the beginning of two or more words in a phrase. Famous brand names who used this naming technique are Krispy Kreme, Coca-Cola, and Best Buy.
    
    
19. Emotional – Remember people often make buying decisions with their emotions, more than their logic. Capitalize on this with an emotional brand name.
    
    Start with the emotion you want to evoke such as joy, wonder, love, fear, or worry. Then select words that have that type of emotional charge. Famous examples of this naming technique include Triumph Motorcycles, Benefit Cosmetics, and Riot (music festival).
    
    
20. Name Phrase – Shorter is not always better for company names. Sometimes a multi-word phrase can better achieve your marketing objectives.
    
    Longer phrases are easier to remember and allow you to pack more meaningful words into your company name. A few famous examples included Fruit of the Loom and I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! (long and unforgettable)
    
    
21. Ingredients – If you are a restaurant looking for a unique name consider using your key menu ingredients such as Vanilla Bean, or Tomate (French for tomato).
    
    
22. Culture and History – Use words with historical and cultural references, such as Nike, who is the ancient Greek goddess of victory. Their famous swoosh logo symbolizes the movement and power of her wings. 
    
    
23. Fiction – Get inspired by fictional characters from fables, books, songs, and movies. Did you know that Starbuck is a fictional character (the first mate) from the classic book Moby Dick – thus the logo designer created a siren mermaid as their design.
    
    
24. Luck and Numerology – Lucky names are based in cultural superstition.
    
    Did you know that Toyota cars started their company with the name Toyoda, but the name was changed because in Japanese the name Toyota has 8 brushstrokes which are considered lucky? You can pick a lucky business name using numerology.
    
    The ancient art of numerology calculates the numerical energy of your business name using the alpha-numeric Pythagoras chart. Learn more here.

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Use a Business Name Generator

Online company name generators can be a viable option for coming up with unique and creative business names. 

The key to getting good results is to select a powerful name generator with filter options, such as these name generators by industry on my list here . Also be sure to use my pro tips below which will yield the best results:

1. Use Powerful Name Generator – Use a professional-grade name generator such as these; Name Station and Namelix, not a lame one that only gives you a few ideas with choppy English words. 
    
2. Pick Name Generator for Your Industry – Work with company name generators built for your industry-specific needs.
   
   These will suggest the most suitable name ideas in line with your industry’s best practices. Check out my list of name generators by the industry for restaurants, online stores, and salons. 
   
   
3. Brainstorm Seed Key Words – Before you start using these online tools, create a list of keywords to use as “seeds”.
   
   Make a list of the obvious ones (your product type, service name) and descriptive terms (benefits and emotions). Get interesting ideas for these keywords by using an industry glossary and a thesaurus.  
   
   
4. Create Long List Name Ideas – As you get name ideas generated, add them to a long list.
   
   Include both good and just OK names on your list. This is because later as you review this list, those plain OK names may spark your imagination – that with a little twist – can become truly great business names.  
   
   
5. Test The Name Ideas -Review your list of generated names – from the above step – and select the best to form your shortlist.
   
   Please don’t fall in love with a name and not test it thoroughly. Then test each one using our checklist below to determine if it is a good business name for your company.
   
   
6. Do Not Buy Expensive Domain Names – Most of the free online business name generators are selling domain names – often overpriced and super expensive. Do not buy these names.
   
   Instead, search for your domain name directly here and buy for far less money.  
   
   
7. Research Name Availability – Before you decide on your final new business name research name availability for multiple name types.
   
   Keep reading to learn how to research name availability for your business registration, trademark, domain name, and social media profiles and usernames. 
   
   

Business Name Generators: Pros and Cons

Name generators are online tools that combine words, sometimes using AI artificial intelligence to suggest business names. There are both pros and cons to this business naming method. 

Name Generator Pros

• Free – All of these company name generators are free
• Quick – Takes seconds to get name ideas generated
• Easy to Use – Simply enter a few keywords related to your business and click the button
• Lots of Naming Ideas – Typically many different name ideas will be offered

Name Generator Cons

• Generic – Most of the name ideas will be generic and boring – thus forgettable and not trademarkable. 
• Taken – Because others are using the same name generators it is likely that the name ideas are already taken and you will not be able to register them nor reserve the domain name. 
• Limiting – Using the generators limits your creativity resulting in name ideas that are unimaginative. 
• Costly – These online tools are free because the companies are trying to sell you the matching domain name at expensive and inflated prices.  

Naming Services – Explained and Reviewed

Another good way to come up with catchy business names is to hire a naming service. These agencies and individuals will create lists of brand and company names based on your specifications. 

You have many options from creative marketing people on Fiverr (I used some of these gigs for a recent lean startup project with good success) to full- service brand advertising agencies. 

One of the favorites that I recommend to new entrepreneurs is Squadhelp.

They will help come up with a great name for your business by combining the power of crowdsourcing with sophisticated technology (including AI, machine learning, and gamification) and agency-level creative services. 

For less than $200 you get started with a naming contest. Plus you can add additional requests for tagline slogans and audience testing. 

Here are some of my favorite recent Squadhelp name ideas:

STEP 3: TEST AND SELECT

How to Choose Your Perfect Business Name

Having followed the steps above, you now have a terrific shortlist of possible company names. Next is the critical phase of testing your name ideas and selecting the final name. 

To help you I created the checklist below complete with a number score system to objectively consider your name ideas. 

Take each one of your possible names and grade them then add up their total score. To

Grades: 0= poor, 1=fair, 2=good, 3=excellent

Checklist to Choose Your Best Business Name

1. Communicates Your Product and Services
2. Easy to pronounce 
3. Easy to spell
4. Easy to remember
5. Distinctive – Positively stands outs and is original
6. Unique – Unlike competitors names to avoid customer confusion
7. Expandable – Flexible to for new products and locations
8. Reasonable Length – Not too long
9. Funny or Rude?
10. No negative meanings – especially in your targeted foreign markets

The post How to Come Up with a Catchy Business Name: 24 Naming Tips appeared first on Best4Businesses.com.