The entrepreneurial bug has bitten me again. Just started work on an Education startup that will be working on an interesting mobile App (more on this later – watch this space).

While we work on the features, coding and marketing, there is a stage we have to cross – the brand name. Even if all names would smell as sweet, having the right name can mean a lot. The sweet taste of success aided by the right name would mean a lot.

 

 

This is my short checklist of what the business name should (and shouldnt) be

  • easy to remember
  • short
  • easy to spell
  • no unusual spellings (flickr also owns flicker.com)
  • coool (and hopefully not outdated like most fashion in a year)
  • relevant for business
  • try two words if one isnt available
  • try a word variation
  • try a phrase
  • try something that rhymes
  • look up suffix and prefixes
  • get inspired by word meanings
  • something we can protect (talk to a good trademark attorney)
  • a .com domain name should be available (do a quick whois search to eliminate some names)
  • use a thesaurus or a domain name suggestion tool if necessary
  • facebook and social media pages should be available
  • the meaning or pronunciation should be appropriate for all major customer segments
  • positive meaning (Remember Reebok’s Incubus?)
  • give you competitive advantage
  • not too narrow a niche
  • think AAA if alphabetical sort order will give more business

Happy gaming naming !