THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE NAMING YOUR COMPANY
Giving your company a name is something a lot of people struggle with … I know I did … when I launched The Editor’s Touch almost 4 years ago (how has it been that long!!???) I wanted something that brought my background (being a blog editor for 8 years) and what I was leaving into my future developments … and so:
THE EDITOR’S TOUCH
was born! But even after I had settled on the name, I wondered if it sounded perverted … lol … and I still question it, even though it’s the name that has stuck and will probably stay until I stop being relevant!
NAMING YOUR COMPANY ISN’T AS SIMPLE AS 1, 2, 3
When you name your company these days it’s not as simple as just deciding and going with it … there are ‘things’ that have to happen before you can legalize it and make it yours … below are some things to consider before you start ordering business cards and having a logo and website designed:
GOOGLE IT
If you believe you’ve struck gold with the name you’ve chosen, the first thing you need to do is search online for other businesses that have the same name. If it’s YOUR given name as the company name, you’re probably safe … but regardless of if your name is unique or not, you really should give your Googling fingers a go and double, triple check to make sure it’s not already the name of a business.
Beyond the reasons of just protecting yourself legally from a lawsuit if someone else has trademarked the name, it’s also important for SEO purposes … you don’t want people to get your business confused with another one … especially if they are looking specifically for you online!
CHECK THE INITIALS
I know it sounds silly, but check the initials of your chosen company name if you are using 3 words or more in the title … we are living in a world of acronyms … the LOLs, OMGs, STDs, DTFs(??? … you don’t want those …) … so make sure that if your company is ‘shortened’ or if you ever want to go down a monogram ‘logo’ road, you’re safe to do so without it being awkward ;)
LOOK LOCALLY
Are there companies doing what you are going to do who are local to you with the same ‘word’ in their company name? If you have a ‘buzz word’ in the name you want, be very careful! You could unknowingly piss someone off who would have been happy to refer you business or be a good networking outlet … or, as stated above, it could start causing confusion out there for you and the other company!
DO A DOMAIN SEARCH
A .com is what you want for your company, not a .net , not a .biz … a .com … you can also have a vanity domain with a .co or .design … or something fancy for promotional purposes … but your MAIN URL should end in a .com … so make sure your business name or something you love that uses your dream business name is available in a .com BEFORE you move forward and make a commitment!
CHECK FONTS YOU ADORE
Each letter will look different when you choose your fonts … it may sound like a small thing, but a font is VERY IMPORTANT and if you have your heart set on one, be sure you love it in the script, serif, or san serif of your choice! Also, make sure it’s legible ;)
XO~ Heather
