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How to Name Your Business

Authors: Rhett Crites Rhett Crites
Posted Under: Digital Marketing
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How to Name Your Business

You know your business name is important.

I know your business name is important.

But just how important?

Here’s what Entrepreneur.com had to say about the importance of naming your business:

Naming a business is a lot like laying the cornerstone of a building.  Once it’s in place, the entire foundation and structure is aligned to that original stone. If it’s off, even just a bit, the rest of the building is off, and the misalignment becomes amplified.”

Holy pressure cooker, Batman!

So your business name is more important than you thought, AND you have no idea how to lay bricks. But you, my friend, are in luck because the business name generator infographic is like the yellow brick road to naming your business. The yellow brick cornerstone, if you will.

The Business Name Generator Infographic or: How to name a business

Behind all the scribbles, the infographic for naming your business is a really simple framework, stolen from successful businesses and happy people everywhere. It goes like this:

Set goal.

Prioritize.

Trial and error.

Be flexible.

Have fun.

Accomplish goal.

Repeat.

But enough with the life lessons. Let’s fork into the meaty tips that will get you closer to unveiling your shiny new business name.

Keep It Simple With Generic Terms

The infographic focuses first on generic names because naming experts, like Sasha Stack of creative consultancy Lippincot, “prefer using real words, because they already possess meaning and consumers are more willing to accept them.”

A generic moniker can be helpful in most any field. Envision calling someone (or handing them a business card) for the first time. “Hi, this is Ron from Recycle, Inc., and I’d like to talk to you about…”

Instant street cred.

Naming generically is no secret. It’s a supply and demand thing. The business naming infographic would be out of a job if everyone could have the most obvious name in a category.

But if a generic name in your niche isn’t an option, let’s talk invented names.

Get Inventive

What was your favorite tip from the coin-a-name section? My favorite is the mascot. Mascots are just plain fun, but consider growth before you mascot up. Can a mascot grow with your business? Think of it like getting a new puppy: This mascot will be with you for the next eight (Great Dane) to 18 (Chihuahua) years.

Who am I kidding—you all plan to sell your company and retire on an island before that long, right?

Coin a Phrase

Another naming hack we love is adding, subtracting, or swapping out a letter from your business field.

Brian Dean at Backlinko added an O to his specialty, backlinks. The social drinking app Untappd subtracted an E (much like drinking craft beer subtracts my brain cells). Every Movember, thousands of men swap out their clean shaven faces for a moustache in support of men’s health.

Speaking of fall facial hair, do you belong to the No-Shave November or Movember tribe? Not only is it a classic beard/stache battle, but also a perfect real-world example of a descriptive vs. creative brand name for the same thing.

Remember: Trial and error is your friend. Think big, and have fun!

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