Finding a new company name is simple and complex at the same time.
It’s complex because it should be structured very well and the process of finding it should be broken down into individual steps.
Therefore, we have summarized the six most important steps for you below so that you too can establish your business idea quickly and profitably in your industry and the competitive market.
Step 1: What does your company stand for?
A good business name usually allows conclusions to be drawn about the company’s purpose and also addresses the desired target group, says businesspally magazine chief editor.
Therefore, certain questions that you answer when developing the business name idea are also important when looking for the right business name.
Here are some of the questions you should ask yourself before you coin the name for your business.
- What do I want to achieve with the company?
- What is my unique selling proposition or USP?
- Who is my target group and what attributes and needs do my customers have?
- Which image do I want to build?
- What values do I represent?
- What are the characteristics of my industry?
- How creative can I be without offending other businesses?
- What company name do my competitors use?
- What should the business name do for the customer?
Step 2: Market and target group analysis
Who should find the name appealing?
After you have outlined your company’s purpose and your ideal customers, you can analyze the existing data and think about what feelings you arouse with it.
Of course, it’s important that you like the company name, but it’s especially important that your customers like it.
It makes a difference whether your company should address a professional and serious target group or whether your customers might expect a modern and robust name.
Your market analysis, competition analysis and target group analysis can help you to draw conclusions for your company from the information collected.
All in all, the package of company purpose, company name and target group must always be consistent so that entry into the desired target market is a complete success.
Step 3: brainstorm
Finding the right name can often be frustrating because favorite ideas can fall completely off the table in the refinement process.
In this context, brainstorming can help to quickly generate new ideas and thus provide important impulses.
The brainstorming works better in a team, so that you can best conduct a session with your colleagues or friends.
All ideas are allowed for a predefined period of time and any kind of criticism is prohibited during the brainstorming session .
Step 4: make a shortlist
After the brainstorming, you can evaluate the results and get direct feedback on the various suggestions.
The list of names must then be prepared in such a way that only the most promising names are on the list.
These can then be evaluated and rated. Some possible evaluation criteria are, for example:
- Is the name easy to write and pronounce?
- Does the name harmonize with the corporate purpose and the target group?
- Is the name still available or does it infringe existing trademark rights?
- Can the name also be used in other countries?
The business names that meet these criteria should be shortlisted.
Step 5: test the company name
How do your potential customers find the name? Is it well received?
What do you associate with it? Is it advisable at this point to get some feedback that is outside of your circle of friends?
Personal interviews can also help you to find out more about the effect of your desired name.
This gives you the opportunity to either receive positive confirmation or new suggestions that you can use to adapt the name again.
