Company Name Brainstorming and Development

Your business name is one of the most important aspects in business. It tells customers who you are, what you do, and more than a little about how you do it. Your business name differentiates you from your peers, peaks customer interest, and invites further investigation. Cloake Creative can help you choose a name that will represent your business well and help you establish a quality brand.

Usual Naming Methods

Using personal names Naming your business after yourself is easy to do. Some would say it adds credibility and integrity to your business. It could be your full, first or surnname. Using your initials is also common. The business may be a partnership of two or more people, which provides more possibilities. The downside is if you will to sell your business, will the "personality" be transferrable too? i.e LL Bean, McDonalds, RM Williams

Descriptive business names Generic, descriptive names make it easy for customers to work out what product or service your business provides. However there is a concernt that you will outgrow a descriptive name. The other consideration is whether people will remember the full name ore resort to shortening your name to three letters. Initials have no personality or vitality. The name becomes a liability instead of an asset. Unless you have a considerable marketing budget to educate your consumers. Descriptive names are usually generic, thus hard to trademark.
i.e International Business Machines (IBM), Kentucky Fried Chicken (now KFC)

Arbitrary names are existing words used for products that have no logical relationship to the goods for which the term is used. Examples of “arbitrary” names include “PeachTree” (for a computer software firm), “Virgin” (for an airline company) and “Apple” (for a computer company).
Evocative names elicit or draw forth a positive association. Evocative names are short and meaningful and call up a good feeling. Examples of “evocative” names in the Brandings inventory include -- BlueSurge, MegaBath and BlueberrySkyr.
Literal names are fairly straight forward. Literal names follow the primary or strict meaning of the word or words and are not figurative or metaphorical. Examples of “literal” names include -- SupplyDepo, VetStores, CherryGlaze, RiverDubai, TryPeru, ContactsOnly, and FuneralAid.
Generic names have no legal protection and cannot be registered or protected. “Linoleum,” “zipper,” “escalator,” and “aspirin” are all examples for brand names that were once registered trademarks and are now generic names because of the failure of the firms to maintain distinctive brand identities.

Combined business names A combination of descriptive terms and personal names is also common. It allows you to add a personal touch but also to include your products or services in your business name.
I.e. Ford Motor Company (Henry Ford), Dell Computers (Michael Dell), Dunlop Tires (John Dunlop)

Brandable business names A non-specific name can launch your company and become your umbrella brand. Any company name can become a brand; simple, 'nonsense' words are probably the easiest to brand though, especially if they are easy to remember. I.e. Amazon, Google, Microsoft

Invented names are created from brainstorming and creative development processes. These names are unique and without question the most brandable and “trademark qualifying.”

Testing Your Business Name

When it comes to naming your company or organisation you may like to consider the following list to avoid a naming disaster. A great name will:

Suggest the content or subject of your business/organisation?

Does it represent who you are?
Is it distinctive and authentic?
Sell your products, services or ideas

Is it interesting?

Does it spark interest?
Is there a story behind it?
Is it unique and sensory?

Make a positive impression on your target market?
Can be easily pronounced and spelt ?

Can the proposed name be pronounced easily?
Does it read quickly and clearly?
Can you say it and others understand it, without having to spell it?
Is it spelled as it sounds?
Is it short? (Less than eleven letters and maximum of four syllables is ideal).

Is legally available for use
Has an available domain name

Protecting Your Business Name

So you’ve done it. You’ve found what you believe to be the perfect name for your new business. But … there is a big difference between finding a great name and finding a great name that is both available and brandable. Once you have come up with a suitable name we recommend considering the following:

Try searching Google for your potential business name (put it inside double quote marks when searching). See if there are any other businesses with the same name.
Hire an attorney to do a trademark search.
Check that no one else is using your desired name as a registered company on the NZ Companies Office: www.business.govt.nz/companies
See if your preferred domain is available: http://whois.domaintools.com
Cloake Creative can also help recommend the most suitable option and arrange your domain.

Refer also to these free online resources for business name availability in various English-speaking countries:

New Zealand: www.companies.govt.nz/pls/web/dbssiten.main
Australia: www.abr.business.gov.au
United States: tess2.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=tess&state=6da0uq.1.1
Canada: hstrategis.ic.gc.ca/cipo/trademarks/search/tmSearch.do
United Kingdom: www.companieshouse.gov.uk

Having trouble coming up with your own name?

Introducing the Fictionary!

The most brandable names are invented names. Geoff Cloake created a meaningless word generator named "The Fictonary" to create over 60,000 meaningless words based on the English dictionary and syntax rules. Using the same algorithms, we can generate thousands of meaningless and invented words that are relevant to your business.

One of our clients came to us for name brainstorming help, they wanted to come up with a Brandable Business Name. So we came up with a list relevent to thier product and target market. (Vitamins, Vitality and Berries) and generated a list of random Fionctionary words.
After considering the branding brief and brainstorming the list, we suggested the name Viberi.
Our clients undertook a company search and worked with a lawyer to check that the name was legally suitabile and adopted the new name.

Ask us about our Fictionary Package for developeing your new company name...