Choosing the best possible name for your business is an important step that is often overlooked by even the most thorough entrepreneur. The name of your business can literally make or break your company when it comes to successful advertising, internet marketing, and just overall success in general. You need to be sure that the name reflects your brand identity and is appropriately fun or professional or both.
How Does it Look and Sound?
The first thing you should consider when naming your business is how the name looks and sounds out loud. Write it out several different ways and try to picture it in any place that you might advertise it. Say it out loud and ask others to read it out loud as well to make sure that it is easy to read and pronounce. It’s also important to make sure that it is memorable as well. You may have the most interesting or unique name on the planet but if no one can remember the name it won’t do you any good at all.
Consider Your Web Address
In today’s digital age you not only have to wonder how your business’s name will look on a business card but you also have to consider your web address. If you want to name your business John’s Cupcakes you may run into trouble when you realize that johnscupcakes.com is already taken. You can also have an issue if it becomes difficult to read or spell once it no longer has capital letters. Cori Interior Design looks great when it’s separated but put it all together for a domain name, coriinteriordesign.com, and it’s just asking for trouble.
Check for Trademarks
If you’re planning to build your brand as much as possible it’s a good idea to check out trademarks as well. Sites such as USPTO.gov and Trademarkia.com can help you determine if the name you’re considering is already trademarked. That way you’ll avoid any frustrating issues further down the road.
Check AdWords
The “find keywords” tool on AdWords will list similar search phrases and also how many searches each phrase is getting. This is beneficial in case a similar name that you may not have noticed is getting more attention. This is a great way to prepare your business for online marketing before you’ve even started it.
Coming up with the perfect name can seem like a daunting task at first but if you spend some time brainstorming and double checking our tips and tricks you’ll be much more likely to find the right name. Don’t get too hung up on the specifics, however, and find the best solution as quickly as you can so that you can move on to getting your business moving. Think it through but don’t obsess and your business will end up with the perfect name without too many headaches.
