How to check a business name
Most name regret is practical rather than aesthetic: it was taken, or nobody can spell it.
Names are chosen emotionally and regretted practically. A shortlist scored on the same criteria removes some of that.
Step-by-step
- Enter your shortlist.
- Score each on the criteria below.
- Check availability before falling in love with one.
Check availability first
- Company register in your country.
- Trade marks — a name can be free to register as a company and still infringe.
- Domain, and whether the obvious variants are held by someone else.
- Social handles, consistently across platforms.
- A plain search, for anyone established using it.
The trade mark check is the one most often skipped and the one that causes the expensive problems, because rebranding after establishing a name costs far more than choosing differently at the start.
The spelling test
Say the name aloud to someone and ask them to write it. If they hesitate or get it wrong, you will spend years spelling it out on the phone, and customers will fail to find you.
Deliberate misspellings and dropped vowels fail this badly.
Room to grow
A name naming a product or a place constrains you later. "Bristol Web Design" is clear and awkward when you move or expand into something else. Descriptive names are easier to understand and harder to grow out of; abstract ones need more marketing and travel further.
Check it in other languages
Briefly, if you might trade internationally. There is a long history of names that were fine at home and unfortunate elsewhere.
Frequently asked questions
What should I check before choosing a name?
Company register, trade marks, domain, social handles and a plain search. The trade mark check is the one most often skipped and the most expensive to get wrong.
Does the domain need to match exactly?
It helps considerably. If the exact match is unavailable, consider whether a variant will be constantly confused with the site that has it.
Should the name describe what I do?
Descriptive names are easier to understand and can constrain you later. Abstract names travel further but need more marketing to establish.
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