Finding a good brand name is one of the essential parts of starting a business. With a solid brand name, you can describe your business and products to your market, increase your market recognition and trust, and draw clients to your brand.
However, choosing a weak or generic name for your company might confuse customers and get you into legal trouble. And one great question we often get from fresh entrepreneurs is, “What makes a brand name good or bad?”
So, to answer this question, we’ll reveal what a good brand name looks like and how to acquire one for your business.
Let’s get going.
How to Pick the Ideal Brand Name
1. Your Name Should Support Your Brand Positioning
Brand’s positioning and target market must be considered before you begin searching for great business names. Your brand name needs to be created with your target audience in mind and must evoke the feelings and mood you want people to associate with your company.
Think about the feelings you want people to associate with your brand and the impression you want them to have of your company. Do you want your business to be seen as a luxury, fun, friendly, practical, or low-budget brand?
Whatever you decide, remember that your brand’s name must reflect your brand’s tone to strengthen and promote its positioning.
2. Look for Powerful Visual, Metaphorical, or Emotionally Charged Words.
As you brainstorm, creatively search for and write down words that fit the tone and character of your company. When coming up with unique names, consider using metaphors and visual imagery.
One great example is the cosmetic brand “Urban Decay.” The brand’s name uses words packed with powerful visual imagery and emotions. It presents the brand as bold and daring. Meanwhile, the beauty brand “Dove” uses the name as a metaphor for communicating the brand’s gentle, peaceful, and elegant personality.
Like these brands, you can create a memorable brand name for your business by utilizing metaphors, emotions, and visual imagery to your benefit.
And since your brand name also shapes your domain name, while brainstorming, ensure you keep an eye out for a business name with an exact-match domain name that’ll enhance your brand positioning. Whether you choose to brainstorm or instantly get some great squadhelp domains for sale doesn’t matter.
3. Make a List of Every Potential Name You Find
Yes, you may not like all the names you find, but make sure you write them down. Who knows what you’ll see once you start critically analyzing them?
Also, keep in mind that your preferred name option may not be appropriate for your company and that, more often than not, the best option for your brand is the diamond in the rough. So make sure you keep an open mind during the brainstorming process.
Your brainstorming session’s goal is to generate as many ideas as possible so you can have a diverse pool to draw from when you start evaluating your list.
Also, don’t forget to look into the names of leading companies in the market and learn why their names are successful. Doing this will give you greater insight into what succeeds in your niche, and that information will guide you through the naming process.
4. Always Perform Audience Testing
Once you’ve selected your top names, test them with your intended audience to ensure they resonate with them. This will give you a chance to hear feedback from your target market and verify that your company’s potential name truly captures the spirit of your brand in their eyes.
When conducting audience testing, use caution when posing questions. Don’t just focus on asking your audience which names they like. Concentrate your questions on which names grab people’s attention, motivate them to take action, and immediately conjure up images of your company.
5. Verify Your Names With Trademark Search
Once you’ve narrowed down the names on your list to a handful, it’s time to validate them through a trademark search. And that’s because using another company’s trademark will result in serious legal issues, including a cease-and-desist letter from the trademark holder.
Check your names to determine if they have already been registered as trademarks. If not, ensure you trademark it quickly to protect your name against possible trademark infringement from others who may want to trademark the same name as yours.
Start Looking for the Perfect Company Name
It may be challenging to name a business, but with the right strategy, you can come up with a name that stands out from the competition and persuades clients to buy from your company.
We’re sure that sticking with the above procedures will enable you to create a unique name for your brand that appeals to your target market and supports your company’s growth.
Grant Polachek is the head of branding at Squadhelp, a 3X Inc. 5000 company that develops catchy, concise brand names for Fortune 500 businesses and startups. As one of the top crowdsourced naming companies in the world, we meticulously examined over a million names and created a complete list of memorable company and domain names for business owners anywhere.
