Do you have any advice for choosing a business name ? These are some tips for naming your business .
GENERIC OVER SPECIFIC
Don’t limit yourself when choosing your business name . Often new startups and entrepreneurs use their own name in the business name .
This can be very limiting down the track . Especially if you decided to sell the business . Also , allow some room for growth and movement .
Many of my clients have been in business for a few years and have found that their services / products have changed a little since Day 1 . They then have to go through the process of tweaking tha branding to reflect the new direction .
FOCUS ON AREAS THAT ARE KEY
What words describe the key areas of your business ? Discount , high end , boutique , custom , budget quick , diy , educate , fashion , online , etc ?
Decide what your words are and include them in the actual business name or supporting tagline . This can be great for seo too .
KEEP IT SIMPLE
Make sure your business name is easy to read and say . If someone hears your business name , will they be able to Google it ?
TEST YOUR NAME OUT
When mentioning your business name , what reaction do you get ? Also , consider how different accents will pronounce your business name . This one was really important for me being a Scot in Australia .
I tested out my kids name every time I’d order a coffee or a smoothie to see how an Aussie would say it .
DO YOUR RESEARCH
Find out who your competitors are and make sure your business name is not too similar . It’s a good idea to check any relevant government business registers to see if your chosen name is already being used .
Another very important tip is to check to see if the URL for your chosen name is available . You don’t want to create a beautiful brand , only to find out that you can’t buy the URL and email for it .
DOMAIN NAME
Another tip with regards to domain name is , if you are an online / global business . I’d suggest going for a com URL. If your business is focused more nationally , go for the appropriate country URL ending ( .com.au for Australia , .co.uk for the UK, etc. )
This will be the address for the website and the ending for all email accounts . I also recommended purchasing the other and forwarding it to the main website .
For example , buttercupinks.com is my website but I also own buttercupink.com.au. As if I have clients across the globe , I want my main web address to be .com. If you land on the .com.au page. You are automatically forwarded to the .com site .
This is a great way to ensure that you don’t lose any potential clients / customers and also avoids the issue of competitors using a very similar address .