Naming your business

Congratulations! You have chosen to become your own boss, you have your business idea, you love it and now you have to think about creating a business name that you are happy to announce to the world.

It’s trickier than you think. Firstly, you want a business name that people won’t forget. Secondly, your business name must not be the same as an already existing business and the domain name must be available, it wouldn’t be the greatest idea to come up with an amazing name only to find that you couldn’t create a website or blog because someone has already chosen it. Thirdly, and there are many things to consider I couldn’t possibly name them all, you must have a business name that you can be confident presenting to the world. Being confident in your business name, for me, is one of the most important considerations.

Some businesses will hire companies to spend months strategising and analysing the market to come up with the perfect name to drive the company forward. I’m guessing that you don’t have the cash flow nor the time to invest in such a way to develop your business moniker so you must spend some time developing it for yourself. I’m sure you’ll be happier with the result once you’ve achieved your perfect business name.

Some simple suggestions are to brain storm alone and then with friends and family who’s opinions you trust. Try not to merge words together, they may seem like a good idea at the time but they come across as forced. Also try to avoid replacing letters for phonetically sounding alternatives – replacing a qu for a k for example. This would make it harder for your potential customers to find you.

When brain storming write down 10 descriptive words about your business, look at your competition for ideas, not to copy them but for inspiration. Did you know that there is a list of words that you can’t use? Check with Companies House for an up to date list. And don’t forget – never make your business name specific geographically. You may be based in and around your county now but who knows where you might be in 3 years time!

Essentially, you need to create a business name that is clear, easy to remember and pronounce, ideally give your customer an idea of your business and most importantly available.

There you go, you have you very own, unique business name – YOU MUST NOW REGISTER IT so that no-one else can steal it from you! Sole traders and partnerships must register through HMRC and Limited Companies must use Companies House to register.

If you need any help, just drop me a message to info@claircarrington.uk or tweet me on @ClairCFAR