If you are currently in the naming process then you probably have chosen some favorite names already. There is no need to explain how important it is to select a catchy company name. Here are some tips you might need to get a catchy business name while abiding the law.
State Guidelines
Although every country has its own laws and regulations regarding naming a company yet few things are common among all of them. You cannot register a business name that is already being used by another business. Additionally there are also some words that you cannot use in your business name; for example you cannot use the word “bank” if you are not a bank.
Avoid Competitors’ Names
Not only you have to avoid exactly the same names but you cannot use similar names. If a name is creating confusion because of too much similarity then it is not legal. For example if there is already a business in your area with name “Indigo Nail Care” then you cannot use the name “Indigo Nail Spa” for your business.
You need to do thorough research before you select and finalize a name. Of course it is a frustrating task that seems meaningless but actually it is an insurance policy that makes sure you don’t involve in any kind of legal complications later because of your business name. There are many ways to do this research; you can visit relevant authority’s website to find whether another company is using that name already or not.
Interestingly, a simple search engine research can reveal lots of things. Make sure you use multiple search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo for the same research. In case you don’t find an exact or similar business name on the internet but there is a website that is using a matching domain name then you should check the background of that website to make sure the entity behind that website or company that owns website does not have a similar name. For this purpose you can use services like WHOIS.
Use Easy to Spell Names
It has nothing to do directly with the law but if you are looking for catchy business name then always go with a name with easy spellings. Shorter words are not only easy to spell but people can memorize them more easily that ultimately gives you more business.
Obtain the Domain Name Too
If you are going to have a website or online presence then make sure you get the relevant domain name as well as the Facebook URL as soon as you decide the name. Making your business name web friendly is a must-do thing nowadays because businesses cannot possibly survive or grow without appearing on the internet. Always prefer dot com domain on other domains like dot net.
Finding a unique name for your business needs some efforts but it makes sure your company name stands out in the crowd. There are numerous companies which used uniquely weird names and those names got popular. Let’s see some examples.
Yandex is the leading search engine in Russia and it is one of the most visited websites in that region. Contrary to popular belief, Yandex is not like Yahoo and it does not stand for “Yet another index” but instead it refers to Russian “ya” that sounds “I” in English. Not to mention people remember this name easily because of the pun. Chanel 5 is a well known perfume which is not only popular for its fragrance but also because of its name.
When people hear this name for the first time, they wonder if there is Chanel 4 or Chanel 6 too. There isn’t but surprisingly the creator of this perfume actually made many different perfumes named Chanel 1 to Chanel 5 and Chanel 20 to Chanel 24. The company liked Chanel 5 and they kept the name. Meebo which was a popular IM app and service few years ago was acquired by Google for a whopping $100 million.
Google shutdown the company and rumors are Google has been using the same technology in its revolutionary Hangouts app and service. You probably wonder what Meebo stands for; founders wanted a meaningless yet catchy name and after some research and brainstorming they ended up with Meebo. Tech companies are usually known for spending tons of resources on finding catchy names with solid meanings to convey the message. Meebo’s move was kind of weird and bold.
Types of catchy company names
There are many different types of company names that you can choose from and four of those types are the most common ones; blended names, tweaked names, compound names and made-up names. These categories are self-explanatory enough and let’s clear the concept with some examples.
Compound names are usually made by combining two words together as a whole. Most of the companies which are using this kind of names chose both of those words carefully because it is important to find compatible words that could work together. Not to mention both of them must be relevant to the industry; some examples are YouTube and Facebook.
Blended names are quite similar to compound names; these names are formed by combining two words partially, not as a whole. Blended names tend to be catchier than compound names but they are also more difficult to curate. Two of those words could be relevant to the industry or they could be from entirely different fields. For example Fynamics which is a great name for defining Finance Dynamics.
Another great example is Microsoft which is a combination of Microprocessor and Software. Instagram is also an example of blended names; it refers to Instant Telegram. Tweaked names refer to actual word or multiple words with non-original spellings. Some examples are Digg and Topix. Made-up names are usually selected to differentiate the company from everything else. Some of the popular examples are Zimbra, Meebo and Bebo.
Other types of company names are actual words and abbreviations; some examples of actual words are Apple, Amazon and Fox. And examples of abbreviations are IBM, 3M and HP.