These days, it’s so hard to choose your business name. With so many people opening up shop to start their own small business, it’s easy to get frustrated coming up with a name for your business. You’ve got an idea of what you want to make or how you want to serve your audience, but you’re stuck on what name to put on it all.
I know how it goes friend. I’ve helped countless others brand their business and I’ve seen the struggle again and again. But through all the struggles, I’ve come up with a pretty good list that will help you choose a name for your business.
Where To Start
The hardest part of choosing a name is simply starting. So to overcome this, grab a piece of paper and just write whatever comes to mind. Seeing all your ideas on paper will help you brainstorm more, so be sure not to skip this step.
What Do You Do?
Describe what it is that your business will do. Are you a flower shop? A baker? A photographer? Having some sort of descriptor word in your business name will make it clear to your audience exactly what you do. Otherwise, they may be left confused!
Make It Personal
Now that you’ve got a good start with your descriptor words, it’s time to have some fun with what goes with it.
A really easy way to come up with a name for your business is to use your name. This makes a lot of sense for your business if you are the one running it and people are interacting directly with you. This option often works great for those in the service industry like a photographer or designer.
If you aren’t keen on using your own name, try using the name or names of someone who you are close to and has made an impact on your life.
Location
If your business is local, it may be a good idea to include the location in your business name. (ie. Seattle Food Mart)
Or maybe there is a place that is special to you in one way or another. It could be a street name, a city, you name it! Think about different places that have made an impact on your life and see if something sounds good!
Use Nouns
You can also think about various things that are important to you. Maybe it’s a plant, a material, or even an animal. It can literally be anything!
Get creative and see what type of things you can come up with.You might be surprised by an object that has made an impact on you and your life.
Narrow Down Your Choices
Once you have some good ideas laid out on the paper in front of you, get playful with the combinations! Try pairing your nouns with names. Or you could try a location with the descriptor word.
Once you feel like you’ve made a bunch of combinations, it’s time to weed out the ones you like from the ones that just aren’t working. Be sure to keep a handful that you like as options, because we aren’t quite done narrowing it down just yet.
Make It Unique
With the amount of small businesses out there today, you want to make sure you stand out. So the next thing you’ll want to do is see if anyone has already taken your business name. A simple Google search will do the trick. If you Google the business name and you aren’t able to find the same name out there, you’re likely in the clear.
Cross out any business names that don’t appear to be available or are too close to what someone else has.
Do a Domain Search
The last thing you’ll want to do is a domain search. You don’t want to file for a business name unless you know you can have a website with a domain to match.
Doing a domain search is uber-easy. Just go to Instant Domain Search and search for the domain that matches your business name.
When it comes to choosing a .com, .org, .co or any others, it’s usually best to stick with a .com since most people are familiar with .com. Not to say that you can’t go for the others, but it’s just something to keep in mind
Viola!
Just like that, you have your business name! If you went through the process and still have a few options, ask your family and friends for their opinion. They usually give the best advice!
