Naming you new business is important, fun, and more difficult than naming your first child. Get it right and you will have a easy to remember name that people will think of every time they are shopping for what ever you sell. Get it wrong and no one will be able to find you and if they do they’ll be mad because you don’t have what they are looking for.
There are many ways to go about naming your business. There is the keyword strategy, emotional strategy, and the just for the hell of it strategy. Which strategy to use is an individual choice. We like that.
The keyword strategy is choosing a name that is full of keywords. I bet you guessed that one. If you sell a niche product a keyword name will be easy to come up with. For example if you only sell purple beaded jewelry and nothing else, you could use purple beaded jewelry as keywords and as a business name.
The downside of keyword naming is that depending on what your selling they keywords can be very competitive and make it difficult to get your business name as a domain name. If you want to try the keyword strategy, check for domain names before you settle on your business name.
Now that I just said that about domain names, I’ll tell that I have know some business owners to just search domain names and then name their business based on what was available. There is nothing wrong with doing that if you find one that really fits your business.
The emotional strategy is of course based on feeling. You choose a name that reflects how you feel or would like your customers to feel about your product. Is it cutesy, funky, snuggly, or romantic?
Your purple beaded jewelry could be elegant lavender bobbles or cool calm relaxation jewelry(yes I know I stuck a keyword in there). Some of my clients like to make a list of words that describe their product both physically and emotionally and test out different combos to find the right fit.
The just for the hell of it strategy is naming your business something that has nothing to do with anything about your business. These names are normally things that just make you smile or very curious. They can be catchy and easy to remember if done right. You may decide to call your purple beaded jewelry business Tiny Cat Tracks, Hot Swiss Cheese, or George. Pull of this strategy and your customers will be telling everyone how much they love Hot Swiss Cheese. You will smile big every time someone writes Hot Swiss Cheese on their checks.
Yes, I realize that there are a ton of other ways to name your business. Some of you will use your own name. There isn’t anything wrong with that if it fits your business and you are fine having your name attached to it. Sure I don’t mind having Delisa’s Magickal Hat company, but I’m not so big on Delisa’s Fresh Potty company.
Come up with as many names as you can. Test them out on friends. I used to sell handmade soap. I was going to call my business Lush Mountain Soaps, until a friend told me that it made her think of drunks and not the beautiful green I was going for. You might not agree with your friends thoughts, but it will give you some ideas on how customers might see your business.
My biggest biz naming tip is to get creative and have fun!