9 Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing a Business Name

Choosing a business name isn’t easy. A good name needs to reflect what the business does, and it needs to be catchy without being silly. Before making a final decision, business owners should try to avoid these nine business naming mistakes.

Many startup owners don’t know how to choose a business name. It’s a tricky part of the startup process. After all, a business name that’s appealing and memorable can help build recognition and bring in business. On the other hand, an inappropriate or poorly chosen name can raise eyebrows and keep customers away, or just make the new venture easily forgettable.

Some aspects of selecting a business name are subjective and reflect the personal wishes, preferences, or even the owner’s existing name recognition (especially for those who’ve already created a personal brand). However, as a business owner, it pays to avoid these nine common business naming mistakes when starting a business and choosing a business name.

Understanding the Importance of a Catchy Business Name

Choosing a catchy business name is a crucial decision that can impact a company’s brand identity and customer perception. A business name is the single most important identifier for a company, and it can make or break the company’s brand recognition, taking it from just a business idea to an actual company.

A good business name should be memorable, unique, and easy to spell, and it should reflect the type of brand, products, or services the business develops. A good name can be a combination of words, initials, or a single word, and it should be easy to pronounce and remember. When potential customers see or hear the business name, they should be able to immediately get a feel for the business’s identity. If their first response is confusion, then the name probably doesn’t work.

After a new business owner comes up with a promising business name, it’s essential to research whether the name is already in use by another company or individual. That means running a business search (or hiring someone else to do it) at the state level. It’s also wise to ensure that the name doesn’t infringe on any existing trademarks.

Brainstorming Business Name Ideas

Brainstorming business name ideas can be a fun and creative process. To get started, business owners can consider their brand identity, target audience, and the type of products or services they offer. It’s helpful to think about what makes the business unique and what values the owners want to convey to their customers. Entrepreneurs can even use a free business name generator tool (like the ZenBusiness business name generator) to help them come up with ideas.

Here are some tips to help with brainstorming business name ideas:

Use a word bank to generate a list of related words.
Consult a thesaurus to find words with similar sentiments.
Design a mood board to establish the words, colors, and images associated with the brand identity.
Use a business name generator to come up with creative business names.

How to Choose a Business Name: 9 Mistakes to Avoid

There are millions of business name possibilities, so the sky is nearly the limit to naming a company. If an entrepreneur avoids these nine mistakes, they’ll be well on their way to creating a great, memorable business name that will help them build a strong brand identity from day one.

1. Picking a Business Name That Limits Business Growth

Generally, it’s wise to choose a business name that’s wide-ranging enough to give the business growing room. For example, geographic business names are popular. Suppose someone named their cleaning business “Hidden Springs Housecleaners.” What would happen if they wanted to expand their geographic coverage area or even go national? That’s why it’s often wise to avoid using geography in a business name unless the plan is to stay in a specific location.

The same goes for naming a business after one product or service: the name “Al’s Refrigerator Repair Service” would need to change if Al decided to take on air-conditioner repair.

Lastly, stay away from names that describe current fads or trends. For instance, when the new “Millennium Diner” opened in 1999, it might have sounded timely. But just a couple of years later, it sounded dated (although a bit longer, and the kids might label it a “retro” diner instead).

This could also apply to a business owner using their own name in their business name. While they’re doing things solo, that might work well. But it could cause problems if, later on, the business owner brings in a partner.

A well-chosen name can help a brand stand out in the market long-term and connect with customers with an accurate reflection of the business’s values and offerings.

2. Choosing a Name That’s Too General

While a business owner doesn’t want their business name to limit the future growth or direction of their business, they also want to ensure it’s a catchy but clear business name that gives a sense of what they do. To someone who doesn’t know the actual business, a company named “Fast Home Services” might be a plumber, roofer, pest control service, or even a home inspection service.

3. Using Unusual Spellings of Common Words

Cute business names or uniquely spelled ones might be appealing, especially if someone’s having trouble finding a name that’s not already in use. For instance, an arts and crafts store owner might want to call their store “ArtzNcrafts.”

This temptation is best avoided unless the owner has a lot of time and money to build brand recognition (and spelling recognition). The reason? Someone who remembers the business name but doesn’t remember where it’s located is going to go online and search for “arts and crafts store.” Google and Bing will most likely show them all the arts and crafts stores in their vicinity. And, if the business hasn’t done a good job optimizing its site for search, that customer may never find it.

Similarly, if someone told them about the shop, they might think the store name includes the owner’s last name, and as a result, run a quick search for “Artsen Crafts” instead.

4. Using a Business Name That’s Too Long, Difficult to Understand, or Hard to Spell or Pronounce

Ideally, a brand’s new business name should be made up of words that are easy to remember, spell, and say. It should also be short enough to fit on a business card or display on a sign and fit neatly in a corner of the website. If someone chose the name, “Floccinaucinihilipilification Company,” few people would remember it to pass along or to find on the web. That’s an exaggerated example, of course, but the point remains: if the name’s too complicated, it won’t work.

Fun fact: “Floccinaucinihilipilification” means the “action of estimating something as worthless.” And frankly, that’s probably what would happen to any business using that word — or anything even half that length — as their name; it would become worthless. In short, if the brand’s customers can’t remember its complicated name, they’ll get what they want to buy from someone else.

5. Failing to Test the Name in Online Searches

Sometimes an entrepreneur can become too fixated on a name they like to realize that it may be associated with something else. For instance, suppose an owner has red hair, and everyone calls them “Red.” They decide to open a poster shop called Red’s Posters.

If they didn’t test that name in search, they might spend a lot of money on store signage and other branding before someone tells them they couldn’t find the brand when they searched online. When they searched for Red’s Posters, what they saw was a lot of listings of places to buy Cincinnati Reds posters.

To avoid that debacle for their own business, entrepreneurs should make sure they run internet searches of their own unique business name to check what results come up. If it’s another business or another product, they might decide to tweak their name.

6. Not Considering Domain Name Availability

When a business owner is considering their perfect business name, they also need to consider domain availability to ensure they can secure a matching web address; that helps with brand consistency. Even if they don’t plan to set up a website immediately, they might consider reserving the domain they want to use to be sure no one else takes it. Most domain registrations only cost about $10 to $20 a year, so it’s a minimal expense.

Matching a domain name to the business name can be difficult, though, because so many names — particularly common ones — are already taken. For instance, suppose a business owner’s name is Linda, and they want to name their new design company LindaDesigns. If they searched a domain name registrar for the domain name Lindadesigns.com, they’d discover someone has already reserved the name and is trying to sell it for nearly $2,000!

But if someone types their name into a domain search bar and find that their top pick is already taken, most domain registrars will show a list of alternative versions of the domain name to choose from. If they don’t see a suitable name among the alternative suggestions, they might want to consider choosing a different business name.

A word of caution: domain names go fast. What’s available today may not be available tomorrow or next week. It can be worth spending a small sum to reserve one or more domain names that would work with the business names under consideration.

7. Getting Stuck in Alphabet Soup

In the days when print advertising and printed directories reigned, a business name that came at the beginning of the alphabet could be a plus since many business listings were alphabetical. And some businesses still seem to think this way in naming their businesses.

A quick search of today’s printed yellow pages still shows a staggering number of businesses starting with the letter A and more than a couple that start with the somewhat nonsensical: “AAAAA Locksmith” and “AAA Active Appliance.” Other than another word that starts with the letter “A,” what purpose does the word “Active” serve?

Using A, B, or C as the first letter of a business name can help the name show up first in a printed directory, but getting found in print isn’t terribly important anymore. Think instead of how the name will show up in a listing of local businesses in a Google or Bing search.

8. Being an Island

After a business owner has thought up 15 business names that are in their final running, they might think they’re all pretty good. Now is the time to get some feedback. It’s prudent to run those names by some close colleagues, family members, and friends. Third parties can help spot things the business owner has overlooked in their creative fervor. A little constructive objectivity goes a long way when choosing a business name.

9. Failing to Check If the Chosen Business Name Belongs to Another Business

Before settling on a final name, a new business owner needs to ensure that they won’t be violating other businesses’ trademark or service mark rights. After all the work involved in creating a name, a small business owner will want to avoid being forced to change their business name in the future and possibly paying monetary damages. Legal trouble is the last thing small businesses need to deal with.

These checks are especially important if the entrepreneur used a brand name generator.

Here are some ways to avoid using a name that’s identical or confusingly similar to an existing one:

Type the prospective business name into a few search engines to see if the same name comes up.
Check with the county clerk’s office to see whether or not a potential name is already on their list of fictitious or assumed business names, also known as a DBA or a trade name (see the DBA definition page for more information).
For corporations, LLCs, and limited partnerships, the Secretary of State’s website has a business search tool that allows users to run a business name search of the state database in a few clicks.
Search the federal trademark database to see if a chosen name has already been registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Business owners can run this search through their website, www.uspto.gov. Once there, go to “Trademarks” and then “Search Trademarks.”

For a fee of at least a few hundred dollars, it’s also possible to hire a professional search firm to do a trademark search. Just the peace of mind alone that nothing has been overlooked can make this investment worthwhile.

Trademarks also happen at the state level. Business owners can usually run an online search through their state’s trademark office (many of these offices provide a specific trademark search engine to use).

Final Considerations: The Impact of a Business Name on Branding

Once an entrepreneur has chosen a business name, it’s essential to consider the impact it will have on their business branding. A business name can affect brand recognition, customer perception, and overall success. Here are some final considerations to keep in mind when starting a business and naming it:

Make sure the business name is consistent with the company’s identity and values.
Ensure that the business name is available as a web domain and social media handle.
Consider the potential impact of the business name on the brand’s target audience.
Use a trademark search engine to help ensure that the business name doesn’t infringe on any existing trademarks.
Keep in mind that a business name can be changed, but it’s not always easy or cost-effective.

Coming up with a business name isn’t particularly easy, but if new owners follow these business tips for names — and invest some time and thoughtful effort — a great business name should be well within reach. By considering these factors and taking the time to brainstorm and research business name ideas, an owner can choose a business name that reflects their brand identity and values, helps them establish a strong online presence, and grabs their ideal customer’s attention.

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Disclaimer: The content on this page is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or accounting advice. For specific questions about any of these topics, seek the counsel of a licensed professional.

Business Naming Ideas