How to Find the Best Business Name for Your Business

Naming a business is like naming your firstborn child. The name needs to be perfect. You don’t want it to be cliché, overused, too normal, or too weird. The ideal name is unique, easy to remember, and expresses the essence of your business. Business naming trends may be similar across an industry. For example, childcare services exude an atmosphere of learning, compassion, and fun. Tech companies often sound a little scientific and a little futuristic. But do you want to stick with the trends or stand out? Here are five ways to find the best name for your business.

Keep Your Eyes Open

Once you begin brainstorming a name for your business, you’ll see inspiration everywhere. Snazzy words will jump out at you from signs, and catchy phrases will dance around in your head while you sleep. Keep a notebook with you or use the audio recorder on your mobile phone to keep track of every flash of genius that comes to you. Don’t be quick to reject ideas, either. Make a note of every possibility. Something that may not seem right initially may work within a different combination of words that comes to you later. 

Mix and Match

Think beyond the way you’re used to speaking and writing. Juxtapose ideas and contrast words. Putting together words that normally don’t belong together can evoke a unique idea that completely represents your business. In fact, you may want to combine parts of different words. Break off a word in the middle and jam it up against a different sound. For example, Mozilla is a combination of the words mosaic and Godzilla.

Parlez-Vous Francais?

When you can’t find the perfect name in your own language, look to a foreign tongue. Maybe you want to reflect your passion with the word fire, but that’s just a little too short and boring in English. The Italian word for fire, fuoco, is exotic enough to attract attention but still sounds passionate and memorable. Better yet, invent your own language. Google wasn’t a verb before the company existed. Intentionally misspell a word and you may have the perfect business name.

Let the Music Move You

Pull up a playlist of your favorite musician’s songs. Perhaps there is a song title that resonates with your mission and company values. Maybe some memorable lyrics will inspire you to come up with a few new ideas. When you feel like you’ve come up with thousands of options and still none of them seem right, ask friends and coworkers what their favorite songs or lyrics are. They may throw your brainstorming in a new, constructive direction.

Try Using Business Naming Services

Business naming services can give you a different point of view. After throwing ideas around for so long, everything begins to sound the same. You may get stuck on a particular path that’s hard to veer away from. Business naming services can bring you angles and ideas you might never have considered.