There's a lot to love ❤️
Watch a demo to see the BigCommerce platform in action.
What you'll learn:
Five proven naming strategies match different business goals. Descriptive names offer clarity, suggestive names evoke emotion, arbitrary names (like Kodak) create memorability, foreign language names add depth, and acronyms work only for established brands.
First impressions form in 7 seconds and directly impact revenue. 77% of B2C customers make purchase decisions based on company name and reputation alone, requiring 5-7 impressions before consumers remember your brand.
Your name must support future expansion, not limit it. Apple dropped "Computers" and Amazon ditched "Cadabra" because restrictive names prevent entering new markets as businesses grow and diversify.
Use structured brainstorming plus tech tools to test viability. The word dump strategy (10-30 minutes of free writing), combined with business name generators and domain availability chequers, prevents falling in love with unusable names.
Your name is everything.
It is your handshake.
It is the very first impression you’ll ever make.
Believe it or not, some of the world's most iconic companies started with a bad idaea. BackRub was the name of a new search engine before its founders landed on Google. Netflix began as a DVD delivery service called Qwikster.
The simple truth? A great business name is forever — or it should be.
The true cost of getting the name wrong
Choosing a brand identifier is one of the most critical decisions you will ever make. Changing it later is cumbersome, time-consuming, and expensive.
A comprehensive, quality rebrand for a small business to a medium-sized one can cost upward of $150,000 and take over half a year to complete.
That's a high price to pay for a poor first draught.
The power of a first impression
Consumers are making snap judgements in real time. It takes people just seven seconds to form an impression of your brand.
That impression can directly affect your bottom line:
77% of B2C customers are likely to make a purchase decision based on a company name and reputation alone.
It takes 5 to 7 total impressions for consumers to begin remembering a brand.
Finding a name isn't about "sounding cool." It's about finding the best name — a memorable, catchy name — that accurately reflects your mission, connects with your target audience, and generates revenue.
The following are strategies for selecting a name that will make the best first impression — and last a lifetime.
Get a free 15-day trial of BigCommerce.
No credit cards. No commitment. Explore at your own pace.
Why your business name is important
Your name sets the standard.
It is a promise.
It is the heart of your brand identity.
Why this matters. Choosing your business's moniker is about much more than finding a catchy word. It’s an immediate, high-stakes communication tool.
The tone and first impression. The name is the foundation of your customer relationship. It hints at the experience, product and service level you provide before anyone even clicks on your site.
The name is the first thing a customer sees. It shapes their initial impression — and the impression of potential investors.
It will serve as the headline on all your marketing — from a Google Ad to your social media bio.
Essential for discoverability.
Search-engine friendly: Your chosen title must translate seamlessly into a domain name and social handles.
Simplify: A name too similar to a competitor's or one that's hard to pronounce will seriously dent your discoverability online.
The brand storey and future growth
Ideally, your brand name conveys what products you offer and the general purpose of your brand.
Look deeper: Think of the words you would use to describe the product, the customer service level, and the overall atmosphere.
The power of suggestion: Names like Zappos or Google are meaningless on their own. They cost more to brand, but intriguing names tend to be more memorable once established.
A flexible name to expand upon.
A name that works today may limit you tomorrow. Don't pick a restrictive title that prevents you from entering new markets as your business grows.
Apple Computers famously dropped "Computers" to reflect their diversified product offerings — including the iPhone and iPad.
Amazon ditched its initial trade name, “Cadabra,” after it was misheard as “cadaver.”
Your unique market position.
A catchy business name differentiates you from the competition. It’s your unique position in the industry.
It should denote:
Trust
Authority
Expertise
This isn't about fitting in; it's about standing out while giving customers a reason to trust you.
Your naming toolkit: The five archetypes
Your business name dictates your brand's future.
There are five main paths to take.
The ideal one depends entirely on your industry, audience, and growth goals.
1. The utilitarian approach: Descriptive names.
These names clearly state what you offer.
Pro: They are functional, clear, and leave no room for misinterpretation.
Con: It can be difficult to trademark names that use common, real words. Storytelling and personality are often absent.
Ideal for: Businesses entering a new market where immediate clarity is required.
2. The emotional approach: Suggestive names.
This strategy is about evoking a specific feeling.
Suggestive names use connotation — the hidden emotion a word carries — to convey the brand experience.
Ideal for: Companies that stand for more than their product, like an independent bookstore building a community of writers.
Benefit: These creative business names are generally easier to trademark because of their inherent originality.
3. The invented approach: Arbitrary names.
They mean nothing at first.
These are memorable and fun names that have no direct reference to a company's operations. They are often modified from Latin, Greek or other foreign root words.
The goal: With enough repetition and branding effort, customers will learn to associate the name directly with your product.
Example: A name like Kodak was designed to be easily pronounced in any language, though it has no real-world meaning.
4. The cultured approach: Foreign language names.
Borrow words from other languages.
This allows you to piggyback on deep, established connotations.
Example: Uber is derived from the German word meaning “above all the rest.” The name perfectly aligns with a company founded as a superior alternative to flagging a cab.
Purpose: It adds immediate depth and intention to your brand identity.
5. The streamlined approach: Acronyms (a last resort).
Acronyms shorten excessively long titles.
Example: BMW is short for Bayerische Motoren Werke (Bavarian Motor Works).
The challenge: They inherently lack meaning, emotion and imagery. For new companies, they are hard for audiences to remember and even harder to trademark.
We don't recommend this approach for a new ecommerce business. Acronyms are typically used out of necessity, such as following a merger, to preserve a sliver of heritage.
How to name your business
Intuition is a good starting point.
Discipline is how you get to the finish line.
You can't rely on gut feeling alone. You need a structured process to find the name that sticks.
A disciplined approach to business naming.
Finding the perfect name requires research, iteration and honest feedback. Engage with potential customers, friends and trusted advisors early and often.
Phase 1: Deep brainstorming.
1. The word dump strategy.
Clear your mind and set a timer for 10–30 minutes. The goal is sheer volume — no over-analysing.
Jot down everything relevant to your brand and industry:
Descriptive words for your product.
Emotions you want your customer to feel.
Root words from other languages (Latin, Greek, etc.).
Words that describe your brand's atmosphere.
The more you get out, the better the raw material you have to work with.
2. Expand your list with a thesaurus.
Review your word dump and look for synonyms and antonyms.
Go beyond adjectives: Some of the strongest names are nouns (Apple, Target).
Study the naming ecosystem: How did the household names in your industry choose their titles? What conventions do your competitors favour?
Phase 2: Use the naming tech.
Use technology to speed up the iteration process and cheque for critical availability.
Free business name generators suggest potential titles based on your keywords. The best ones cheque for domain availability instantly. This prevents the nightmare of falling in love with a name you can't register as a .com.
BusinessNameGenerator: Provides thousands of business name ideas that you can narrow down by industry, tone, and desired length.
Namelix: Focuses on creating short, brandable names that are easy to remember.
Brandsnag: Suggests a list of potential new business names based on just a few keywords and cheques for domain availability.
Run your keywords multiple times. The more diverse your input, the better the output.
Phase 3: The final shortlist and stress test.
After generating a comprehensive list, it's time to get honest. Shortlist your top candidates and put them through these final cheques.
1. Is it available?
Ditch any name that sounds too similar to an existing business.
Best case: Potential customers get you mixed up with the competitor.
Worst case: You face a costly trademark violation lawsuit.
2. Does it make sense for the business?
The name must reflect your brand identity and resonate with your core audience.
Industry Convention | Action |
B2B / Finance | Often favour formal, founder-based names. |
Youth / Lifestyle | Need a laidback cadence that is anything but "straitlaced." |
3. Does it convey meaning?
A name with an interesting or touching backstory — whether derived from mythology, like Nike (the Greek Winged Goddess of Victory), or a fun contraction, like LEGO (Danish for 'play well') — is inherently powerful.
The meaning provides the heart of your brand identity.
4. Is it easy to spell and remember?
An overly long or made-up word with no connection to your product will be forgotten — and hurt your bottom line.
Word-of-mouth: Happy customers cannot refer you if they can't remember your name.
Online search: Hard-to-spell names are less indexable and lead to failed searches.
5. Is it visually appealing?
Your name will live on your logo, marketing collateral and social channels. The final cheuqe is aesthetic.
Sound: Does it sound pleasing when spoken aloud?
Look: Do the shapes of the letters lend themselves well to a great logo design?
How to register your business name
To truly own your brand identifier, you must first establish your business as a distinct legal entity. This process secures your name and enables you to operate legally.
Most businesses must file for a federal tax ID (or Employer Identification Number - EIN).
Key registration steps:
State/local filing: If your business is an LLC, C-Corp, partnership, or nonprofit, you'll need to officially register with your state's Secretary of State's office, a business bureau or a relevant business agency.
Trademark: Once your business is formed, file with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to formally trademark your company, brand or product name for federal protection.
Naming your business structure: The legal framework.
Great ideas need great execution.
Naming your company is also a legal process.
You must handle the practical and compliance requirements before you launch.
Creativity is essential, but local business regulations come first. Your state and local business bureau will have restrictions on what you can — and cannot — name your official entity.
Key rule: A business can only have one "legal" name (the one you file with the state). You can, however, file for one or more DBA ("Doing Business As") names.
Example: Your LLC's legal name is "Harwick and Sons LLC," but you file a DBA to operate and market as "Number One Plumbers."
Legal naming requirements
Structure | Naming Rules |
Limited Liability Company (LLC) | Name must include "Limited Liability Company" or "LLC" / "L.L.C." You are restricted from using words that imply a government entity (Federal, Treasury) or regulated industries (Bank, Insurance) unless legally authorised. |
C-Corporation (C-Corp) | Name must include words like "Corporation," "Incorporated," "Company," "Limited," or abbreviations like "Corp.," "Inc.," "Co.," or "Ltd." |
Sole Proprietorship / Partnership | Fewer rules apply. If you use a fictitious name (not the business owner's surname), you must file a DBA with your Secretary of State. |
Availability cheques: Secure your assets.
Never fall in love with a name until you confirm its availability across three critical fronts.
1. Domain availability (The '.com' dilemma).
Your business name should ideally match your domain name. This is non-negotiable for online authority and searchability.
Priority: Always target the .com domain. Studies show customers trust it most and instinctively assume your website uses it. If they can't find you at the .com, they may give up the search entirely.
Alternative: If the .com is taken, using .co, .net, or .org is an option, but be aware of the search-related friction.
2. Federal trademark records.
Cheque the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO.gov) before you invest in branding.
Trademark search: Type in your prospective name to ensure it isn't already trademarked or semantically similar to an existing, protected business name.
Protection: Securing a trademark is the best way to prevent a competitor from using your brand identity in the future.
3. Secretary of State search.
Cheque your local Secretary of State's records.
Goal: Determine if your business name is legally "distinguishable" from the names of existing entities in your state.
Action: Many states allow you to run a business entity name search online, and you can often request a preliminary name availability determination.
Avoid the naming pitfalls.
A great name should never be a liability.
It is easy to paint yourself into a corner.
Avoid these potential pitfalls before going public.
Geographic names can be limiting.
Naming your company after your city or state might feel right today, but it hinders growth tomorrow.
Scenario: If you call your store "The Austin Coffee Roasters" but expand to Dallas, you are no longer the local expert.
Recommendation: Use your name to represent your ethos and quality, not your mailing address.
Acronyms are complex to build.
Unless you have a century of brand equity (like IBM), launching with an acronym is an uphill battle. It offers no emotional or descriptive value to a new customer.
Being overly clever.
Using obscure puns or overly complex spelling (Koffee Kulture instead of Coffee Culture) is often a fatal flaw. You confuse search engines and alienate customers who are simply trying to remember and find you online.
The final word
Your business name is the single most durable piece of marketing you will ever create. Treat it like the high-stakes decision it is. Take the time, follow the process, and choose a name that is built to last.
FAQs about how to name a business
Short, punchy, branded names are trending. Many modern brands limit their name to just 4–6 characters. There is a rise in choosing generic words — often unrelated to the type of business — that are easy to remember and brandable. This allows entrepreneurs to achieve maximum memory recall and flexibility.
Including keywords (like "discount furniture store") may provide a temporary SEO benefit, but it's generally not a sustainable long-term strategy for a good brand name. A highly keyword-stuffed name often sounds generic and limits future growth. Today's SEO practitioners focus on brand authority and quality content. Focus on a unique, memorable, and legally available name that you can easily optimise with strong site architecture and content.
If you're a small business owner operating a sole proprietorship or a partnership, your business name often defaults to your own name unless you file a DBA (Doing Business As). For LLCs and C-Corps, it is not required. Naming the business after yourself offers a personal touch, especially for service-based entrepreneurship, but it can make selling the business later more difficult.
Yes, but with strict rules. To sell your trademark, you must have an active business using it. A trademark registered only as a placeholder for future use cannot be sold. To purchase an existing trademark from someone else (known as "trademark assignment"), the process is legally complex and expensive. You must typically buy all company assets, product lines, or the whole business linked to the trademark.
Yes. Your trademark application becomes public record upon filing. You must submit your name, domicile address and email address for correspondence. Both your domicile address and email address are publicly viewable. To maintain privacy, you can specify a domicile address that is different from your mailing address; we recommend creating an email address specifically for the trademark filing.
How to Name a Business
Get The Print Version
Tired of scrolling? Download a PDF version for easier offline reading and sharing with coworkers.
A link to download the PDF will arrive in your inbox shortly.