GROWING YOUR BUSINESS: What’s in a name?

by Dan Beaulieu
Business consultant

Who you gonna call? The name of your company is one of the most important aspects of building your business. The scary thing is that you have to have a name to even start a business. So, you have to come up with the right name even before you leave the proverbial parking lot to start your business ownership journey.

This means that you have to come up with the right name from the very beginning. And I mean getting it right immediately because you are going to have to live with that name forever. Once you start your marketing and branding it is incredibly difficult to change the name of your company.

With that in mind, here are some tips and ideas to consider when choosing your company’s name:

• Avoid hard to spell name (Tell me about it! Check out my name, you can’t spell it you can’t say it! And you sure as heck would not want to be stuck with it as a company name which is why I used my initials, DB Management Group
• Use names that might put you at the top of any directory listing. (Some people live by this rule, frankly I’m not sold on this idea)
• Use a name that means something, a name that indicates what you do is a good idea.
• Don’t pick a name that indicates too narrow business capabilities, something that could limit your company’s growth in the future.
• Use a name that is catchy. A name that people will remember.
• Conduct a domain name search. Sooner or later, you are going to have a website. You will need a domain name, make sure you consider this when choosing your company name. In fact, you should conduct a domain name search and choose your domain name as part of the naming process.
• Check out the legal viability of the name you choose. Check out trademarks. Check it out with your Secretary of State. Make sure you are not inadvertently stealing someone else’s company name.
• Ask your friends and family what they think of the name you are thinking of using. This is a case where more opinions and insights are better than going it solo.
• How does the name sound when you say it aloud? Some names look great on paper, but they sound like something else when said out loud.
• And finally, make sure you like the name. You are going to have to live with that company name forever, so make sure it is a name you not only like, but actually love!

Naming your company is just about the first important decision you will make when starting a company. Make sure you treat that decision with the importance it commands. Choosing the right name can go a long way for growing your business.