The process of naming a business and creating a brand can be confusing for any business owner as it will determine the business’s reputation and how the public, or potential clients, will view it, therefore it is important to do due diligence when brainstorming and deciding the right business name and brand. Below we will discuss various steps involved in coming up with a business name.

Steps to Naming a Business

The following steps will help business owners have more structure and clarity when deciding how to name their business.

Your Creative Strategy

This step involves brainstorming potential business names to find the one that will fit. It’s recommended to find 4 to 5 choices. A good business name needs to be simple, clearly understandable when it’s read or spoken out loud, original and not copy other businesses in the industry, connected to the purpose of the business, and leave an imprint on whoever reads it.

There are various techniques to aid the process of brainstorming, these are as follows:

• Using your own name or that of a personal connection or memory

Depending on the type of business, owners can use their names or refer to memories or specific connections they have that will indicate what their business is.

• Imagine

Imagining what type of client the business will serve, what type of work it will involve, and what the related words are to define these will assist in finding a suitable business name.

• Acronyms

If there are multiple words that describe the business, it can be organized into an acronym, which will be catchy and hold more meaning as a business name.

• Free Write

Another way to brainstorm a business name is to write down whatever comes to mind on a blank piece of paper.

• Mind Map

Min maps can be valuable visual tools to use for brainstorming a business name. They can be drawn in any preferred manner with a main subject line in the middle, for example, ‘Business Name’, and from there various diagrams can trail off it with possible ideas and concepts.

Once the business name is decided upon it’s important to determine if the legal business name (the name on all the business documents) will be the same as the brand name (the name that will be the ‘face’ of the business – what the public will see), which is usually what many business owners choose. There are three options to consider:

1. Using the business name as the brand name, which will be the name on the formal documents when registering the business. 
2. Using a brand name that is different to the legal business name, in which case a DBA (Doing Business As) will need to be filed.
3. Using multiple brand names that are different to the legal business name (this will also require filing for a DBA).

What Does A Business Have to Do With Naming a Business?

The business name will be dependent on the type of business structure, which can either be a formal structure like an LLC (Limited Liability Company) or C Corporation, or an informal structure like a Sole Proprietorship or Partnership.    

LLC – the abbreviation ‘LLC’ comes after the business name.  

C Corporation – similar to an LLC, the business name needs to include the abbreviation or word ‘incorporated’, ‘company’, ‘limited’, or ‘corporation’.  

Sole Proprietorship and Partnership – Usually the business names require the surnames of the owner or partners, unless they file for a DBA (Doing Business As).

Business Name Availability

Business name availability will need to be checked in three areas, namely, the state, to ensure that it is an original name, additionally, a federal trademark search will ensure that another business hasn’t trademarked the name, and a domain name search will indicate if the name is available for a website. 

Summary

Visit TRUiC’s website for extensive resources and information about the steps to naming a business.