|
31
01
2012
|
Company Name Ideas |
What’s in a name? Quite a great deal, actually. It would be hard to label all of the different aspects that go into names whether it be a child’s name, a company name, or a name for a new book. In fact, there’s so many different perspectives that go into that choosing a name can often divert focus from the original goal in the first place. For instance, if you’re writing a novel and you have to sit around coming up with a name for the book, you may get sidetracked from actually writing the book. It’s the same thing with marketing: Trying to sell the book can divert your attention from doing the real work at hand. That’s all a name really is, if you think about it: Just a form of advertising. What I’m going to do here is try to explain all of the steps involved in creating a company name so that hopefully you can get back to what really matters: Creating your company.
What’s Your Company’s Objectives
The first thing to consider with coming up with a company name is the overall goal that your company is trying to accomplish. What are your objectives? Take a nonprofit organization, for example, who’s main goals are to feed and clothe the homeless. Obviously that organization should have a name that centers around feeding and clothing the homeless. They would want to have a name that draws in attention and makes it clear what they’re trying to do. A name like Hard Times Depot makes it clear that it’s a place where people that have fallen on hard times can come and get the things that they need to succeed. When choosing a name, sit down and write out your company’s main goals and see if you can come up with a name that fits.
What Services Does Your Company Provide
While your thinking about your main objectives, also write down the services that your company provides. You have to drive it home that your a company that provides such and such services. Think about your local utility companies, for example. A utility company wouldn’t choose a generic name like “Johnson’s Co.”, but instead they would choose a more specific name like “Johnson’s Water & Power”. Don’t overdo it by loading your company name full of services like “Johnson’s Water, Power, Trash, & Lawn Care. Just try to pick one or two main services that you offer and include them in your name.
Make It A Household Name
Some of the most successful companies got where they are because they have a friendly sounding name that is easy to remember and just fun to say. Like Coca Cola, for example, has that bubbly sing-song tone to it that makes it so common that even kids in Africa know what you’re talking about. Pick a name that’s friendly and cool. Let your company name make you stand out from all the other companies that offer similar products. Try to make your company name redefine the products that you offer. Using our earlier example of Coca Cola, you can see how a company can completely revolutionize the entire industry. The word “coke” no longer applies to just Coca Cola but is now used in conversation to refer to any type of soda.
Location
Another key factor to consider when choosing a company name is the location. Obviously, if your company is only going to be operational in one specific place then you can use that to your advantage by making the locals feel more at home. For example, my home town has a website called Ocala4Sale that specializes in everything relating to my city, specifically buying and selling. Someone that’s coming from somewhere else may not know of the website but its a household name among the residents of my city. Try to do the same thing with your company by just adding the city, state, or quadrant (northeastern, southwestern, etc) into your company name.
Where Your Company’s Going
When picking a company name, also make sure to look into the future to decide how the people of tomorrow will interact with your company. It’s very awkward for a business to just change the company name at some random period so if you can make your name just as meaningful tomorrow as it is today, then you’ll be better prepared. For example, a company in the 1980s might have exclusively sold cassette players. As times changed, however, that company was forced to start selling other things like cd players, mp3 players, and Ipods. Who knows what tomorrow may still bring. If that company had chosen a name like “Andy’s Cassettes” then it wouldn’t make any sense to the generation of kids who grew up with cds. Likewise, the kids of today have their Ipods but kids twenty years from now might just download songs directly into their brains. So instead of choosing a name like “Andy’s Cassettes”, the company would be much better off with a name like “Andy’s Media Outlet” as that’s a more broad and accurate name (and catchier if I do say so myself).
Hopefully by reading this guide you now have a better understanding of what goes into a name and don’t just dismiss it offhand. A name can be crucial to the success of a business but don’t forget to live up to the name. If you advertise your company as a leader in the industry then make sure you do everything you can to BE a leader in the industry, no matter which industry that may be. I hope your company sees success and that you find all of this hard work to be worth it someday.
