Coming up with the company name and domain for an online business can feel like a daunting task. In many cases it will be your customer’s first impression of the brand and what you’re selling. As you build up social media accounts and you further invest in the brand, it will be necessary to further commit and build on this initial decision. The good news is that it is possible to rebrand at a later date if you decide to – here’s a great article on Moz’s rebranding, but starting off with a promising initial brand will minimize the need for changes down the road.
- Think simple – Word of Mouth is very important, so you will want your clients to be able to remember the company name and site they’re referring. There are various strategies for coming up with a brand name. One simple method is to review your mission statement, your points of differentiation, and any other qualities you want customers to associate with your brand, and list associated synonyms. Try some of these alone or as combinations of descriptor and product offering.
- Brand / Domain Congruence – In most cases the domain should closely represent if not be the exact brand name of the company or organization.
- Check search results – beyond ensuring that your desired domain is available verify that when someone searches your desired company name or domain no companies come up with the same name. While not a showstopper this may increase the risk of brand confusion. Additionally, you will need to verify that you’re not infringing any trademarks or registered business names.
- Verify that you have the right – Conduct a search at the Federal, State, and County levels to make sure you have the right to conduct business under your desired company name and website domain.
- Federal – US Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Search
- State – Go to the Secretary of State website for the state where you will be registering to conduct business. For California, CA Secretary of State Business Search
- County – Visit the County website for the county where you plan to conduct business. For San Francisco, SF County Fictitious Business Search
- Check Domain Availability – Using Whois.net or the domain search tool from a hosting provider, type in your desired domain including the extension (“.com” for example). The “.com” extension is the most common extension for businesses and the “.org” extension is more common for Nonprofits or For Profit Social Enterprises. Try to avoid selecting a domain with a “-“ unless it is part of your company name or brand, since it may be more difficult to remember.
- Social Media – After you decide on your preferred company name and domain, verify that the name is available in the major social media channels. Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Pinterest, Instagram, and YouTube are the most commonly utilized. While having to pick a different social media account name isn’t a show stopper, it’s not the preferred route.
- Get Feedback – Once you’ve identified a few potential brand names and domains that you feel good about and are available, run them by trusted friends and/or family to get some initial reactions and ideally honest feedback. As the entrepreneur, you’re intimately acquainted with the business concept and offering, and as a result you’re judgement of what is conveyed by your brand may get clouded. Some fresh outside perspective is helpful in assessing what type of typical snap judgement an uninformed user may make.