How to Name a Business

1. Understand your business.

Before deciding on a name, you should have a clear idea of your business's mission, goals, target audience, and value proposition. If you've already created your business plan, this will be a great resource for you to review.

You should be able to answer the following questions:

• What does your business stand for?

• What product/service are you selling?

• Who is your target audience?

2. Think of descriptive keywords.

Once you know the core focus of your business, take some time to brainstorm keywords that describe your business. With a few descriptors of your business and brand, you'll be able to find the ones that reflect the image you'd like to create.

For example, if you're starting a photography business, words like "camera," "snap," "shoot," "capture," and "lens" are all good starting points for your business name.

3. Consider SEO in the naming process.

Part of a good name is the ability to get found by potential prospects. For this reason, consider how well your name can position you on search engines.

Consider the following as you make this evaluation: 

Search Volume

One strategy is to name a business based on a highly searched keyword to make the business relevant for that keyword. For example, 24 Hour Fitness may appear when someone searches for their brand and when someone searches for any gym that's open around the clock.

Search Volume Checker

Authority

You don't want to choose a name in which the SERPs (search engine results pages) are too heavy with competition.

For example, let's say you chose "Five Star Restaurant" as a name for your new establishment. You later notice the SERP for this keyword is dominated by review sites like Yelp and local newspaper columns.

In this case, you may not get enough authority to compete, resulting in you not being found even when prospects are actively searching for you.

Intent

When thinking through your business name, make sure it matches search intent. For example, naming a tax business "Maximize Your Refund, Inc." may not be a good idea. Searchers looking for "maximize my refund" aren't searching for a business but rather strategies.

You can evaluate your names based on these three considerations using a combination of manual Google searching and SEO tools such as Ahrefs and SEMrush.

4. Choose a name style.

How do you plan to create a unique name? You can use the keywords in your business name.

Here are a few other naming options to consider:

• Include the names of the company founders.

• Use a single word.

• Change, add, or remove letters from keywords.

• Combine two or more words.

• Use a metaphor.

• Create an acronym.

5. Tell a story.

After you've settled on an idea, think about the thoughts and emotions you want the name to evoke. If it doesn't align with the mission and value proposition of your business, you’ll need to return to the drawing board.

Make sure it reflects the story you want to tell customers.

6. Ensure the business name is not trademarked.

If another organization has trademarked a name, you risk having legal action taken against your business if you violate that trademark. 

If you're in the U.S., you can search the United States Patent and Trademark Office database for your potential business name to make sure that there isn't an existing trademark for it.

7. Ensure the business name is not otherwise taken.

If there's no trademark, a business name is fair game. However, that doesn't mean there aren't other businesses operating under the name you want.

The best business names are unique so that you can avoid confusion. You may want to check your state's Secretary of State entity filings and DBAs for other businesses operating under the name. Each state will have a different process for this.

It's also good practice to run a Google search for your desired name to see what's out there. This can also alert you to existing organizations that have similar names.

8. Verify that the .com domain name and social media handles are available.

You can verify domain name availability by searching on a domain registrar such as GoDaddy or Namecheap.

If a .com domain name isn’t available or if it’s too expensive, weigh your options between choosing a different name or going with a less desirable top-level domain (TLD). While other TLDs are fine, .com remains the most widely used and is the easiest to remember.

In addition, it would be a pain to settle on a name only to find out that your social media handles are taken. Having variation between social media handles could confuse prospects, so it's best to avoid this where possible.

One easy way to verify the availability of social media handles is by using a tool such as Namechk, which checks multiple platforms with a single search.

9. Register your business name.

Once you've researched and decided on your name, you're ready to register your business name.

Depending on the type of company you're registering for, the registration process will vary. You may also need a DBA if you're a sole proprietor.

This resource from the U.S. Small Business Association will help you determine which registration process is right for you and your business.