Your personal name is an unmistakably strong part of your identity – and chances are that this name was decided upon after a lot of diligent thinking. You should be similarly dedicated when trying to determine, for your business, a name that you hope will stay with it for years.
These days, thinking up a good company name is complicated by the matter of how it will come across online, given the sway of digital marketing. What steps should you take on your naming trip?
Think about what your brand stands for
Take a pen and paper and write down much of what you associate with your company – or, at least, would like your target customers to associate with it. You could note down simple things, like “bike” or “helmet” for a cycling equipment retailer, but also go deeper into your brand’s ethos.
A tech company, for example, would want to be deemed knowledgeable and reliable in its specialism, while a seller of party supplies could benefit from a more light-hearted image.
Consider what customers or clients you want to attract
Unless you are trying to rebrand a long-established company, you can’t be certain what types of people will be drawn to your business. However, you probably have a good idea of who you want to target – and this goes deeper than just considering age, gender and income levels.
You should also consider what exact problems you want to solve for your customers or clients, as well as the action you want them to take, such as ordering a product through your site.
Look at names of rival companies
No, the objective here isn’t to steal any names; neither should you attempt to closely replicate another firm’s branding strategy. Choosing a trademarked name would be especially risky; you don’t want a cease and desist letter to land on your doormat.
However, by checking out what names other firms in your sector are using, you could spark some valuable inspiration for a name capable of effectively differentiating you from the pack.
Begin experimenting with various possible titles
By now, you probably have a list of potential titles or, at least, words from which you could forge titles. Now’s the time to unleash your experimental streak by mixing and matching a few words to see if any of them form a title that makes you instantly think: “That’s it!”
Make sure that you can source a suitable domain name
You’re still not out of the woods once you’ve got a company name you like, as it needs to fit nicely into a domain name as well. While a .com domain would be ideal, if the one for your chosen name isn’t available, then a .net, .org. or .co.uk. domain could be a good alternative.
You can task our team with registering your domain name. Other extensions which you could consider include .org.uk, .biz and .info. We also offer web hosting, so we warmly invite you to call 01325 582112 for more information on all of these services.
