How to Choose the Perfect Business Name: Tips and Tricks for Finding the Right One and Protecting it
Margarita Eberline
Founder of Marketing Boss | Fractional Chief Marketing Officers for Law Firms
How to Choose the Perfect Business Name: Tips and Tricks for Finding the Right One and Protecting it
Starting a business can be exciting. One of the most important decisions you will make is what to name your business. It can be fun to pick a name that is unique and memorable. There are resources you can use to come up with something amazing that is available for you to use for your brand. We will give you some tips and tricks for finding the perfect business name whether you are starting a small business or a big business!
There are resources you can use to come up with something amazing
Think about how you want people to feel when they hear and see your brand
When your future prospects and customers hear and see your name, how do you want them to feel? Do you want it to be something that makes them feel happy, hopefully, curious, or excited? Maybe you want them to feel nostalgic? There are no wrong answers here, but it's important to get an idea of the feeling you want your name to evoke in potential customers. You can then use fun tools like the business name generator online to play around with different ideas.
Is the name available for you to use?
If you come up with the perfect name and someone is already using it, you may want to reconsider for various reasons. For one, the name may be legally trademarked, so you could get into some hot water if you use it without permission. Additionally, customers may be confused if they see two businesses with the same or similar names.
customers may be confused if they see two businesses with the same or similar names.
Do a quick Google search of your business name and make sure there are no other businesses using it in your area or nationwide. You can also do a search on the United States Trademark and Patent Office USPTO website to check for any federally registered trademarks.
You can also check with your state to see if there are other businesses registered with your desired name that may already have rights to the name but may not be advertising it so even though they have not trademarked it, they may have rights to it that can affect you in the future. This is common with small business entities that may be registered and doing business but not advertising online or marketing on a big scale. Check with the secretary of state before committing to a name to be sure that it's available with no strings attached.
Here is a list of secretary of state websites around the united states:
4. Arkansas Secretary of State
5. California Secretary of State
6. Colorado Secretary of State
7. Connecticut Secretary of State
8. Delaware Secretary of State
9. District of Columbia Secretary of State
10. Florida Secretary of State
11. Georgia Secretary of State
15. Illinois Secretary of State
16. Indiana Secretary of State
19. Kentucky Secretary of State
20. Louisiana Secretary of State
22. Maryland Secretary of State
23. Massachusetts Secretary of State
24. Michigan Secretary of State
25. Minnesota Secretary of State
26. Mississippi Secretary of State
27. Missouri Secretary of State
28. Montana Secretary of State
29. Nebraska Secretary of State
31. New Hampshire Secretary of State
32. New Jersey Secretary of State
33. New Mexico Secretary of State
34. New York Secretary of State
35. North Carolina Secretary of State
36. North Dakota Secretary of State
38. Oklahoma Secretary of State
40. Pennsylvania Secretary of State
41. Puerto Rico Secretary of State
42. Rhode Island Secretary of State
43. South Carolina Secretary of State
44. South Dakota Secretary of State
45. Tennessee Secretary of State
48. Vermont Secretary of State
49. Virgin Islands Secretary of State
50. Virginia Secretary of State
51. Washington Secretary of State
52. West Virginia Secretary of State
53. Wisconsin Secretary of State
54. Wyoming Secretary of State
Research other businesses in your industry
This step is important because you want to make sure your business name fits in with other businesses in your industry. It would be confusing for customers if all the businesses in your industry had names that were very literal and descriptive of what they do, but then there was one outlier with a completely different type of name.
For example, let's say you are starting a home cleaning business. All the other businesses have names like "Maids by Melissa" or "The Cleaning Crew." But then you decide to name your business "Sparkle & Shine." While this may not be a bad name, it might be confusing for customers who are used to seeing it without descriptive words like "maids" and "cleaning."
Does the name fit your brand?
Your business name should be a good reflection of what your business does. A name that is too specific may limit you if you want to expand in the future, but a name that is too general may make it difficult for customers to understand what your business does. You want something unique but not so unique that people can't figure out what you do!
Your business name should be a good reflection of what your business does.
For example, let's say you are starting a dog walking business.
A good name could be "Wag Time" or "Pawsome Dogs" or even just "Dog Walking."
A bad name would be something like "Best Dog Walker Ever" because it's not only too general, but it's also not unique.
However, if you have a clever idea for a name and it does not fit your brand, all rules can go out the window if you have a marketing plan to make it work. Consider google and yahoo for example. They didn't go with anything that fit what they are per see but they poured a lot into their marketing and made it work.
Get feedback from others
You've brainstormed a list of names and narrowed it down to a few favorites. Now what? Get feedback from others! If you have a budget for it, put together a focus group or two of your ideal customers and do some testing. If you have a small business and want to keep your start-up costs low, you can ask people you know. Ask friends, family, colleagues, and even strangers their opinion on which name is the best. People's gut reactions can be telling. If someone doesn't like a particular name, ask them why and take that into consideration.
Once you pick a name protect it!
Once you decide on a name and have plans to use it there are four ways that you can protect it:
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) there are four main ways that you can protect the name you want to use for your business. You can register it as an:
- Entity with your state
- Trademark
- Doing Business As entity
- Domain on the web
Each way of registering the name serves a purpose and offers different protection.
Entity with your state: This is typically done when you form a corporation or limited liability company (LLC). Registering your business as an entity with the state will give you the exclusive right to use that name within the state for the purpose of conducting business.
Trademark: A trademark is a federally registered symbol that indicates that you own the right to use and sell a particular name, phrase, or logo. Trademarks can be registered through the USPTO website and do take some time and effort to obtain, but they offer nationwide protection of your brand identity. You can get help from an attorney with this process. Check out my business directory for some top attorneys in this space. Read my article on intellectual property for more insights on protecting your creative rights.
Doing Business As (DBA): A DBA is a way of legally registering a trading name for your business under the umbrella of your main business. For example, my business is registered as Margarita Eberline, LLC and my brand name, Marketing Boss is registered in the state of Georgia as a trade name. Both are technically one business but the names are different.
Choosing the perfect business name can be a daunting task, but it's important to take your time and choose something that you love. Follow these tips and tricks, and you'll be well on your way to finding the perfect name for your business! Thanks for reading!
Author of “The Art of Giving Back” | Inspirational Coach | Host of the Podcast, “Free Talk With Mr B”
2 年So true and secure it as a URL or Domain Name soon after. Correct Margarita Eberline ???
International Keynote Speaker | Life, Conscious Parenting & Spiritual Coach | NLP Practitioner | Montessori Educator | Alternative Healing | Author
2 年Amazing thanks for sharing !