Be sure to check out How to Name Your Company, Part 1 & Part 2 before reading this post to know how to apply these steps like a pro.
“Don’t talk about it, be about it.” - 2Pac
Don’t you love articles that start with a quote? I typically hate them, but when the line comes from one of the greatest West Coast rappers of all time, I’ll give.
This is when we stop talking about how to name your company and jump headfirst into the ‘be about it’ realm. Putting pen to paper, rubber to road, and nose to grindstone.
This article will be a bit different than the last couple in the series. It will be a walkthrough on the steps to take to find your name. It will act as a practical application of the foundations in Part 1 and Part 2, ideally leading you step-by-step through finding your brand-new, wonderful name.
Preparation
Before you start writing anything down, you will need to make sure the foundation is set, ready to discover your company name. Readiness comes when you are mentally and physically locked in, having the space to do the work.
The first step in mental preparation is to have the foundational knowledge top-of-mind, ready to explore concepts, themes, and moments related to your new venture.
Know thyself
Chances are, if you are the one charged with naming this company, you are more than likely the founder, product builder, service executor, and/or CEO. This means your opinion matters more than anyone else’s - even when it comes to your customers’ perceived tastes.
A few years ago, we were creating clothing merch for a company I started, and were at a bit of an impasse about which stylistic direction to head. While trying to decide on which designs to go with, my business partner at the time asked me, “Would you wear it?”
My quick answer was “No, but our people might.” To that, he said, “Let’s make something you want to wear. If you’d wear it, they will too.”
That was a pivotal moment for me. The reality is that designing for what you think people want is a dangerous game, and typically ends in boring and lifeless outcomes. In contrast, designing (or in this case naming) for your personal taste has the highest chance of resonating with the leaders in your audience as well as making you happy as you live daily with your brand.
Mental preparation begins with being confident of who you are and your place in your niche. You are closer to the problem you are solving than 99% of the people in your market; enough to create a company around creating a solution for God’s sake. The work of being in tune with your opinion and tastes is the most valuable preparation you can make.
Know thy people
Having a deep knowledge of the market you are entering is also key before beginning the naming process. Understanding your market’s primary demographics, age, income, education, as well as where they like to hang out (both physically and digitally) is invaluable knowledge.
In addition, spend some time identifying what other brands have weight and affinity with your demographic. These can be brands inside and outside of your given market, understanding and discovering the threads that connect your people to these companies and their values.
Know thy environment
You will need space to work.
The only way you can make creative progress is by carving out space to dwell on the problem. This might mean a weekend away at a hotel, booking a conference room for a couple of days, or maybe some headphones and white noise in your living room. You need to carve out the space to think.
I also like to encourage people to use a pen and paper.
The act of placing pen to paper tends to connect me a bit more to the ritual, but I recognize everyone is different. The most important thing is that you feel freedom to record and curate ideas with focus, without distraction, TikTok, or insecurity getting the better of you.
Ok, onto the practical steps.
I’m going to fly through these steps in this article, but know some of these will take 10 minutes while other steps might take days.
Step 1: Brain Dump
I like to set up a sheet of paper into two columns. One side is “names” and the other is “themes”. The names side is where I capture anything that _might_ work as a name, and the themes column is where I drop in any concept, words, or thoughts to further explore.
Goal: Get it all out. No filter, no curation or revising (yet). Just drop everything into one of the two columns.’
Ideal Amount: 20-30 names + themes
Back of mind names: Assuming you have been thinking about this company or offering for some time now, I can almost guarantee you have been thinking about your brand’s name to some extent. There have probably been some names you have already floated to friends or family that may (or may not) have been received well. Write them all down in your names column.
Themes and concepts: How have you been describing your new company? You have presumably been talking about how powerful or unique your idea is - what specific words have you been using in conversations? Do you find that you have go-to phrases that perfectly describe your new company? What about moments or activities that happen in your market? Write those down, along with any verbs (action words) or adjectives (descriptive words) that come to mind in your themes column.
Anything and everything: Let your mind wander. Move from practical to impractical, conceptual to weird. Write down everything that pops into your mind.
Step 2: Build List
This next piece is probably the toughest part of this process, where you want to turn your creative dial up to eleven. It’s where we take themes and concepts and shift them from the theme column over to the names column. Remember, during this step we are still not removing anything. We are simply evolving themes or concepts into potential names on our name list.
Goal: Shift all themes and concepts over to the name list.
Ideal Amount: 20-30 names
Start with Synonyms: Most of my names develop from a theme or concept moving into the name list by deep diving into synonyms for those words. Practically, I love to use Thesaurus.com. I’ll drop a word in there and continue to click and follow synonym trails until potential names emerge.
Follow rabbit trails: Learning to recognize when words or concepts excite you is key to finding a great name. Sometimes it’s the meaning, other times it's the shape or look of a word. Keep pushing and start noticing why you like certain words over others.
Alternate Spellings? Smashed together or made-up words?: I get nervous throwing alt spellings out as an option, since it takes a combination of market intelligence and finesse to pull it off. But brand history is full of these types of words that have become household names (Kleenex, for example). It’s tough to pull it off in the era of people searching for you on the www, but it definitely can be done!
Step 3: Refine
This is where our thoughts and ideas start to come into focus.
Ideally, at this point, we have anywhere from 20 to 30 words written down on the name list, presumably with our new name buried in there somewhere. Now we just need to allow it to emerge!
One key thing to remember during refinement is that once you decide to remove a name from the list, don’t look back. It’s tempting for some personalities to make a decision, only to end up overthinking then regretting it. If you get to the place where you choose to remove a name, know that it is the right call! Only move forward from there.
Goal: Clean the list to only have viable names (or names you’d be proud of) leftover.
Ideal Amount: 2-3 names
Immediately ditch: At this point there are names that you look at and mentally eye-roll. You probably second-guessed even jotting those names down in the first place. Cross those off your list.
Immediately ditch, part 2: Are there any standouts with hard spellings or concepts that will be lost in your market? See ya later, dumb names.
Next level throwaways: What names are there that you just aren’t into? Maybe the concept is right, but the word looks wrong or is tough to spell.
Vaguely familiar: Sometimes when choosing potential names, we can get a little too close to the original inspiration. Are there any names on your list that are too close to other companies in your market? How about in parallel markets? If you think they might be too close, they probably are. Ditch those bad boys.
Last gut check: At this point, you might have around 5-7 potential names. We need to get you down to at least 2, or maybe 3 solid names. Which of these names do you like more than the others? You probably have a couple of favorites at this point, so remove all except those. Trust me, you’ll come to the same conclusions whether or not you make this call immediately or wait a couple of weeks to stew on it.
Step 4: Choose your top 2 names
You’ve done the work, and now you’re looking at 2–3 bangers, any of which you’d be proud to carry into your future endeavor. You can trust that by moving through this naming process, you’ve gotten the best outcome you possibly could. The names are authentic to you and your market, and they feel timeless and easy to communicate.
Goal: Choose your name, maintain one for backup.
Ideal Amount: 2 names
How do you decide what the name will be?
Go with your gut: I’m a big believer that even though sometimes we don’t have words to explain the “why” behind a decision, sometimes our bodies just know. This is one of those cases when you have to listen to your gut. Which of the 2-3 names do you like the most?
Real world test: One of the most impactful real-world applications of a name is in your company’s URL choice. The URL is typically informed by your name choice. If you find yourself between 2-3 names, start brainstorming your URL/email address. Make sure a decent choice is available by using instantdomainsearch.com for quick assessments and options. Remember, it needs to be easy to spell, easy to find, and not super long. Also, ideally land on a .com if possible. Even if you somehow can get “cars.xyz”, that will be a tough one to communicate to your audience since 90% will head to cars.com first.
Check USPTO: If you are bouncing between names, do a broad search in USPTO.gov to check the trademark database to see if there are any potential conflicts with your names. You might find that one of the three is super close to another company in your market and cannot use that name, which can help your decision along. Or, you might find that there is nothing even close to your favorite name, giving you confidence to move forward.
Ask 2-3 people you trust (but only if you have to): I know in the startup world, asking for customer feedback is a key part of the process. Be careful who you ask opinions from in cases like naming, realizing they aren’t nearly as close to the process as you have been. I sometimes like to use others as a sounding board to help me recognize what I actually want. Sounds a bit weird, but I try my best to pay attention when I receive feedback, noticing what I wanted them to say, rather than what they actually said. This allows me to identify what I really wanted all along, rather than what they prefer. Either way, ask the question but don’t let their answers send you back to step
Make the call!
Now you are ready. Lean in and own it! This is the name for your new company, and you should be able to sell it to any audience.
Back-up?
Use the next closest name you didn’t choose for a backup name. Keep the back-up close to you, just in case we find out down the road that you are unable to trademark your name, or uncover out-of-the-blue naming conflicts.. Sometimes you need to fight for your name, but it’s nice to have a backup just in case.
Oh, and be sure to purchase the URL for that back-up name while you’re at it. You can always choose to not renew it if you get the TM for your name, but it’s comforting to have it in your back pocket.
Last things to remember.
Here are some practical thoughts as you think through this naming process. Especially for first-timers, we just don’t know what we don’t know! Hopefully, these give you some context and a little bit of freedom as you live with your naming decision!
You don’t need to use your corporation's name for your product or service: Many companies use their product name when speaking about their offerings versus their corporate name. Don’t get too hung up on the company name if you are planning on selling a keystone product. It matters, but most people will be looking for your product, not your company.
Trademark ASAP to make sure there are no infringements: If you’ve landed on a solid name, spend the money with a decent IP attorney to help you trademark as soon as possible. This will put you at ease that your name is unique (and yours), as well as raise any red flags of potential infringement before you get too far down the road in your market.
Your opinion will always matter the most: There will always be haters. As a designer, I have learned the art of listening to opinions, taking what’s helpful, then ditching what isn’t. I call it “eating the meat and spitting out the bones.” Typically, people’s opinions are rooted in some form of truth, but when it doesn’t resonate with your truth (especially in the case of naming) spit it out.
Congrats on your new name. Be confident and build something magnificent.