How to Choose the Perfect Business Name | Pie Insurance

The right business name can help make or break your new company. Ideally, it should express the expertise, value, and uniqueness of the product or service you’re selling.

While some business names are abstract, others are descriptive so customers know exactly what the business does. Here are some tips on how to choose the perfect name for your small business.

Questions to consider

When thinking about what to name your company, consider:

• What message do you want to portray through your business name?

• What do you want people to think and feel when they see your business name?

• Will your business name be abbreviated?

• What are the names of your competition? What do you like or dislike about those names?

Brainstorming the perfect name

Once you’ve thought about the questions above, start thinking about potential names. A good way to do this is to brainstorm.

• Write each potential name down and keep writing as long as you can. Read 10 Longtime Brainstorming Techniques that Still Work for some brainstorming techniques

• Bounce your ideas off a colleague or partner

• Review the list and remove any that don’t work

• Group similar names together

• Highlight the names that resonate with you

• Take a break and let your ideas percolate for a day or two

• Review the list again, and delete those that no longer seem right

• If none of the names that are left feel right, start the process again

Other tools to help you find the right name

Here are a few more resources to help you with this process:

• How to Name a Business

• 12 Tips for Naming Your Startup Business

• 8 Mistakes to Avoid When Naming Your Business

• Shopify Business Name Generator

Once you have a shortlist of names…

Before you register your business name, check to make sure it hasn’t already been trademarked. Search Google and the federal database of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) to make sure the name isn’t already in use. You also want to check that the domain (website address) is available.

Thanks for reading our educational resource! Any above reference to a specific company or product is meant for educational purposes only and is not specifically endorsed by Pie. If you’re a small business owner, see more small business resources or get a workers’ compensation rate in 3 minutes.