A name is the first introduction to your brand. So before naming a startup you should think twice because first impression matters. Read this guide to know how to find a name for your startup.
If you are starting a new business, it is great news! By the way, have you decided about the name of the company? If not, then are you thinking about how to name your startup? Well, no wonder that this is a major struggle faced by businesses from different verticals. Every night you are checking hundreds of startups to get an idea but you are unable to decide.
Trust us you are not the only one. Every new startup has gone through this challenge. So, today we will find out some of the most effective tips that you can follow when you choose a startup name.
Naming a Startup
It is really hard to name a startup! So, follow these tips to know how to choose a startup name.
1. The Company Should Convey What you Want it to Convey
Remember whenever you think of “General Motors” or “Valero Energy”, you instantly know what they want to convey? The same goes to you as well. Even when a major part of access lies in its branding but when you choose the name properly, it does half of your branding.
So, you have to make sure that you choose a name that conveys your business offerings. Remember all the promotional contents will have the name and hence you need to choose a name that talks about your offering or motto.
2. Brainstorming is a Must
Once you know about the message that you wish to convey to the world, it is time that you start the brainstorming session. Make sure that you use the common words for the services, industry and products.
You can expect that this will take ample time to find out the name. Make a lot of research by choosing the words that convey your offering.
3. Keep Short and Simple Names
If you think again, some of the most desirable companies in the world that you admire have short names. These are simple and very easy to read. Some of the examples are “Tesla”, “Apple”, “Samsung” and others.
Since word of mouth is a lot effective for advertising short business, choosing a simple and easy name would help your customers to retain it in their brain. If you keep difficult names, they will forget and this way you will lose your potential customers.
4. Don’t Narrow Down a Lot
You have to keep in mind about your future while you choose a name for your startup. So if you narrow it down too much to your offering, it might restrict you in the future from expansion.
For example, if you are now offering iPhone accessories and you choose to give such a name, in the future, it might restrict you from keeping accessories of other mobiles. The same goes for any vertical of offering that you wish to make. Narrowing too much can lead to obstructing your business from expanding in future.
5. Don’t Involve Too Many People
It is always exciting to make decisions with your close friends and family members. However, when you are about deciding the name of the startup, this might not become a great choice. This can literally make you go haywire and choose an irrelevant name.
It is always better to seek advice rather than involving them in your decision making process. It is always advisable to select a few and take help from your close friends and families to choose the best name for a new business startup.
6. Don’t Choose Plain Words
We definitely have mentioned about choosing an easy name but not plain words. If you choose the generic words that one uses every day, it might result in forgetting. So, choose easy words that describe your business but not plain words.
If you offer electronics and you choose to keep the name as “Great Lamps”, they might forget it. However, if you choose to be somewhat different like “Mod Home Decor”, it will help your potential users to retain information.
7. Keep in Mind about Geographical Names
If you know that you would not like to expand in your future then you can use your local or nation name. This can be great for people to understand your business location. However, it might become a problem in the future when you suddenly wish to expand your business to other regions.
So, you have to be very careful while naming a startup with geographical location. If you have a strategic plan and still you wish to go for it, you are absolutely free to follow your heart.
8. Don’t Use Obscure Words
Choosing uncertain words is not a great choice as it takes a lot of advertisement to make them work. Like “Floccinaucinihilipilification” is obscure, similarly if you want to create a new name, you have to make sure that you do a lot of advertisements.
9. Get the .com domain name
After finalizing a name you can buy a domain name with .com extensions. There are also other extensions like; .net, .org, or .biz are available to purchase but, for a better established business choose .com extensions. Check the Best Domain Name Registrar to Buy a Domain.
10. Do a Trademark Research
You can do a search on USPTO.gov to check whether you can trademark the name.
11. Don’t Follow Trends Religiously
No doubt that you will want your business to perform even when the trend is over. So, it is always advisable to find a name for your startup accordingly. Anything that shows what your business offers and is understandable will work. All you need to keep in mind is that you have to survive beyond trends.
12. Consider the Competition
When it comes to naming a startup company, you also have to check the competitors. Do not choose identical but you can always choose synonyms which talk about your business motto and offerings.
13. Take Advantage of Tool
If you are still can’t choose a name for your startup you can take from tools like;
- Shopify – Business Name Generator
- Naminum.com
- Visualthesaurus.com
Decide the Name of the Company
So now that you have got ample information about how to come up with a startup name, hopefully it will become easier for you. However, keep a legit expectation of investing a lot of time on naming your startup to get the best results.
