You took your idea and put it together in a business plan. After long, grueling hours or market research, analyzing your competition, coming up with prototypes, you’re finally ready to put this plan into profitable business action.
You even have a plan to raise funds to get your idea off the ground. But… before you proceed any further, you need a name for your startup. Sure, you may have an idea or two but how do you know it’ll work?
Most entrepreneurs consider naming their startup as the most undervalued aspect of their business. On the contrary, this name is going to stick with your business for its whole life. It’s the most valued aspects of your business. You need to get it right from the beginning.
If you don’t, you might end up with a name that doesn’t add value to your business and changing it down the road is a headache you don’t want to deal with.
With this in mind, here are ten quick, simple and effective tips to keep in mind when picking a name for your startup.
1. Keep It Short
The name of your startup should roll off the tongue. Your business shouldn’t sound like a sentence. People shouldn’t have to take a breath or think twice before pronouncing your name. Think of some of the top brands that dominate the world: Puma, Apple, Microsoft.
Some examples of startups that have short names (and domain names) include:
2. Make It Easy To Spell
Let’s say someone hears your brand name somewhere–maybe in a conversation or on the radio. They search for you online but can’t find you because your brand name’s spelling is too complicated.
Choose names that are spelled exactly how they sound. Using the number ‘8’ instead of ‘ate’ or using ‘Z’ instead of ‘S’ to sound cool or come across as different may cost you potential business in the long run.
Some examples of startups whose names (and domain names) are easy to spell include:
3. Check For The Domain Name
Once you have an idea, some direction as to what your name could be, go to the domain search and look for the domain name. Now, you may find that the domain name you’re looking for is already registered but fret not. You can still get the domain name of your choice on a new domain extension that will not only give you a short, snappy, keyword-rich and unique domain name, it will also communicate the industry you belong to.
Examples of some startup-relevant new domain extensions include:
- .TECH
- .STORE
- .SPACE
- .SITE
- .ONLINE
4. Say It Out Loud
Your name may look attractive on paper, but what happens when it’s spoken? The pronunciation of your name matters. Make sure when said out loud, it doesn’t get interpreted wrong or gets confused with something that could be inappropriate.
For example:
- www.devteam.space instead of www.devteam-space[.]com
- www.advantage.tech instead of www.advantaegtechh[.]com
- www.louder.online instead of www.louderronlyn[.]com
5. Check Social Media Profiles
This is similar to doing a domain name search. You need to ensure that your brand name stays consistent across all your marketing channels. Consistency is the key to building your brand and growing your trible across platforms. You can use tools such as KnowEm to figure this out.
6. Do Trademark Research
As a new business, the last thing you want is legal trouble. So, before you finalize the name check the trademark and copyright database to ensure it is safe from any legal hassles. Do this search not only for your own country but globally (think long-term).
7. Make It Catchy
Being in the early stages of your business, it is difficult to guess whether the name you’re choosing will be catchy or not. However, try to keep the long-term in mind when selecting a name.
How will the name sound in your marketing campaigns? Can you craft a fun tagline or slogan around it? While there aren’t any tools to help with this, you can still figure it out based on the feedback and your gut feeling.
Some examples of catchy domain names include:
- www.thatmerch[.]store
- www.breakinto[.]tech
- www.allwork[.]space
8. Make It Relevant
Your name should be unique and catchy, but don’t pick something that’s obscure or random. Let’s assume your company focuses on Artificial Intelligence. Don’t name it ‘Coolest Technology LLC’.
(That example was probably a bit extreme. But you get the point.)
9. Ask For Feedback
Write down all your ideas. Then narrow this list down to five or maybe ten names.
Now, reach out to your friends, family, business partners and see what they think about the names. If one name stands out in the crowd, give that name extra attention compared to others.
10. Don’t Restrict Growth
Maybe at the moment, you’re only selling leather bags but that doesn’t mean in the future when your business grows you won’t sell leather shoes. Naming your business ‘Cool Leather Bags’ then would be a bad idea. Always keep the future in mind when making such choices.
Lastly…
What’s in a name? More than you can imagine. Your startup name is your business’ identity. So, consider all angles before you make any decision.
Author:
Alisha Shibli
Alisha is a Content Marketing Specialist at Radix, the registry behind some of the most successful new domain extensions, including .STORE and .TECH. You can connect with her on LinkedIn. For more information about the new domain name extensions like .press, .site, .store, .tech, .online, .space, .fun, and .website, visit https://radix.website/