a guide to creating a good business name

Ultimate Guide: How to Create an Effective Business Name for Success

Naming your business is the pivotal starting point for building a strong brand presence. It's the cornerstone of your brand and identity.

Crafting the right name and the right brand name, is vital, as it reflects your company's image and essence, resonating with your target audience.

Discovering the perfect business name can significantly enhance your visibility, customer interactions, and recruitment prospects while fostering valuable partnerships and supplier relationships.

Are you currently pondering these crucial questions?

What is a good business name?

How do you find a good business name?

What is a good business name made out of?

What makes a good business brand?

Recognizing the significance of these inquiries, our team at The Branded has dedicated ourselves to composing this guide, aiming to navigate you toward the right answers.

At The Branded Agency, we pride ourselves on being a startup branding agency uniquely tailored for independent ventures. We offer cost-effective branding and marketing strategy solutions designed to accelerate your journey to achieving your business objectives, all through a single agency partnership.

Define Your Brand Identity and Mission

Before you start brainstorming a good brand name, spend time defining your brand's mission and what makes it unique.

What are the qualities that make your business stand out from competitors? What do you want your customers to associate with your company?

Once you have a clear idea of what you want your business to be known for, it will be much easier to find a name that reflects those values.

Research Your Industry and Target Audience

The next step is to research. You need to know what names are already out there, who they appeal to and why they're successful.

This will give you an idea of what works and what doesn't work so well.

It also gives you an idea of what potential names that are available if you want to get creative with your naming process.

Once you have researched your industry and audience, think about how you want people to perceive your brand when they hear or see it for the first time.

Do you want them to feel happy? Excited? Trustworthy? Friendly? Adventurous?

Think about how each word feels and consider how it fits into your brand identity as a whole.

Then, narrow down the list until it feels right for your business and its customers.

For instance, if you target young adults, then names like ‘Fun Zone' or ‘Party Central' will work well.

If you are targeting older consumers, then names like ‘Gentleman's Club or ‘Old Town Library Cafe' will do well.

What Makes a Good Business Name

When creating a new business, it is always good to get inspired by other companies that have already created their brand identities.

You can learn from them by looking at their logos, websites, and social media profiles. You can see what works for them and why it works.

This will also help you create a compelling brand identity for your company!

You may also want to check our most recent blog post on Brand Naming

Four Types of Business Name Ideas

There are four types of names to consider when naming your business:

Descriptive Names

A descriptive name tells your potential customers about what you do. For example, Plumber, Dentist, Insurance Agent, or Lawyer.

While these names are great for describing what you do, they can be limiting because they only tell people about your service offerings.

If you are trying to grow your business, it may be time to consider changing your name from a descriptive one to something more unique.

Evocative Names

Evocative Brand names use suggestions and metaphors to bring to mind the experience or positioning of a brand.

For example, if you're setting up a meal delivery service for busy professionals who don't have time to cook during the week, try something like "No More Cooking Mondays" or "Sorted Dinners."

As they leave room for interpretation, evocative names enable you to tell a powerful brand story, creating a bigger brand than just the products or services you offer.

In this way, an evocative name can be the brand pillar or cornerstone of a brand's positioning, whereas other types of brand names cannot. Most Iconic brands that you are familiar with have evocative names.

Lexical Names

Lexical Brand names use puns, phrases, compound words, alliteration, onomatopoeia, intentional misspellings, and foreign words.

Invented Names

Invented names are the most popular type of business name, but they can also be the most challenging to create.

Invented names are made-up words related terms or phrases that may or may not be based on actual words.

Think about a name like Google, for example.

It's an invented word, but it's made up of a real-world — googol, the number one followed by 100 zeros.

The advantage of an invented name is you can create and attach any meaning you want to the name; the challenge and disadvantage of invented names are that it may be difficult and expensive to create brand awareness and acquire customers.

Naming Your Business

It's time to find a name that makes sense for your business. You don't have to limit yourself to one name. Instead, it's recommended to brainstorm a list of names that you can choose from.

When choosing a name, always remember two words:

Be Unique

If you are thinking of naming your business after a person or using an unusual word, make sure it is not already used for another business.

For example, if you want to use your name as the title of your business, do not use it if it appears on other companies in a similar industry in your area. This may lead potential customers to think that they are dealing with another business.

It is also essential that you choose a name that does not contain any offensive words or phrases. This will help ensure that your brand remains professional and serious.

Be Relevant and Memorable

Ensure that your business name is relevant to your product or service.

The obvious example is Coca-Cola, whose name means "the real thing."

If you're selling organic produce, the last thing you want is for people to think of soda when they hear your company name.

Your business name should also be memorable enough so that people will remember it in their heads when they think about your product or service.

For example, Apple Computer might not be the most memorable name for a computer company, but it's a good name enough since it's been around for so long and everyone knows what product they sell.

Keywords Are Close Friends

When coming up with a great business name, you want to ensure that it includes keywords closely related to your industry or product.

This will help increase visibility in search engines like Google and Bing.

For example, if you own a restaurant called "The Bread Basket," try adding "bread" or "bakery" into the name of your website URL or social media accounts so that people searching for these keywords can find them more easily.

Make It Short, Simple, and Memorable

A good business name should be short, simple, and memorable. It should be easy for customers to remember and pronounce.

The name of your business should be clear, direct, and descriptive. If you sell something, make sure your business name reflects what you sell.

When choosing a name, think about how it will sound when spoken by customers or employees.

Take into account Trademark Search Issues

When choosing a business name, consider whether or not it is already trademarked by someone else in your industry.

If so, you may have to change your name or research whether you can use it without infringing on someone else's rights.

You can check online databases that track registered trademarks, such as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO).

Make sure your name isn't already used by another company in your industry — if someone else is already using it, they might have legal rights over it.

When choosing a domain name, ensure you don't infringe on any existing ones. You can check this using the WHOIS domain name database or Google's search domain name engine (just enter the domain name "site:domainname.com") to confirm domain availability.

Good Business Name Examples

Descriptive business names are often used in service industries.

With product companies, an overly descriptive name may hinder growth and the potential for line extensions or other opportunities.

When building a business, you often need to find a business name that balances descriptiveness with flexibility.

If your industry is complex, it may be helpful to use a descriptive name so that the customer understands what you are offering. Similarly, for new businesses, a descriptive name can attract customers that are unfamiliar with your company. Let's look at examples of descriptive, evocative, and lexical business names.

Harry's - Designed and formulated for a quality shave. Harry's Razor Blades.

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FitPlan - Elite personal training for a fraction of the price. Workout one-on-one with over 40 trainers and 100 fitness programs for every level and goal.

descriptive-business-name-fitplan-naming-your-business-guide-branded-agency.png

Barry's Bootcamp - The original high-intensity interval workout. Barry's Bootcamp tones muscle and maximizes fat loss with a combination of running and weights.

descriptive-business-name-barrys-cootcamp-naming-your-business-guide-branded-agency.png

Netflix - Watch Netflix movies & TV shows online or stream right to your smart TV, game console, PC, Mac, mobile, tablet, and more.

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As you can see, these companies have balanced the tradeoff between descriptiveness and flexibility by creatively naming their business.

Netflix, for example, is a coined word that indicates their service offers "Flix" (TV movies, etc.) over the "Net" (Internet/online streaming).

Descriptive business and domain names that successfully achieve this balance are invaluable to a company as the customer learning curve is not as complex, making your marketing efforts less expensive and more effective.

10 Business Name Suggestions for your New Small Business

Here are 10 cool business name ideas:

1. The Creative Edge - This name demonstrates that you offer something extra and stand out from the rest.

2. Open Door Ventures - An open door implies an empty market and opportunity for growth, which is an appealing concept for new entrepreneurs and businesses.

3. True Blue Solutions - A classic yet clever way to say that your services are dependable and reliable.

4. Sky High Solutions - A great name for businesses that provide high-end services and products.

5. Prime Time Services - A clever way to say that your services are top-notch, always in demand, and ready to go!

6. On the Dot Enterprises - You'll never be late with this great business name!

7. Brainstorming Box - A creative name that implies you have the answers to all kinds of problems.

8. The Think Tank - This one speaks for itself – it's the perfect name for a business that offers innovative thinking and problem solving services.

9. Perfect Pitch Promotions - Perfect for businesses offering promotional services and ideas.

10. Big Ideas Business - This unique business name ideas implies that you offer something extra, and it's the perfect name for a business with big dreams!

Company Name Suggestions for Your New Small Business

Here are 5 name ideas:

1. Innovative Creations Inc. - This great brand name implies that you offer something fresh and new.

2. Go Get 'Em Enterprises Inc. - A great option for businesses focused on ambition and getting the job done.

3. The Dream Team Inc. - Perfect for teams or companies with family members who are passionate about chasing their dream.

4. Bright Ideas Co. - A fun and serious business grows a clever name that implies you have the solutions to any problem.

5. Limitless Possibilities Inc. - This one suggests that whatever it is you do, there are no limits or boundaries when it comes to what can be achieved.