For those who started their own business.....

Haych

Assuming you didn't include your own name/initials/etc as part of the business name, and that it's not named after something to do with your location, why did you call your business what you did?

#lookingforinspiration

FastEddie

My old business was working with Veterans so needed to be geeky. I'm not going to share the name but you need to know your clients (both sides), check you can get a domain, don't be stupid, cheeky, or flash. That is wrong. Show attention to detail and a sense of professionalism and class. 

Fretwired

What are you selling and who is your target market? I've named products and companies in the past - it's partly what I do for a living.

A product was a mask for Harley Davidson bikers - the manufacturer wanted a single unique word that was cool. I came up with Bandero - the product was like a bandana and was made from airprene. From Bandair to Bandero. The product is still being sold worldwide.

A bunch of wealthy people started a B2B finance company - they wanted people to think it had been around since the dawn of time and wanted it to sound like an old merchant bank. I came up with Rathstones - the company is still going.

Another group set up a business finance company aimed at startups and small SMEs wanting finance. They wanted a snappy modern-sounding name - I came up with Finmore. The company got bought out in the end.

Whatever you choose check the web domain is available. And check it through Companies House before designing logos and such like.

Snap

this is going back a few years...….

We came up with a name that we thought reflected what we were providing to clients. Not so much the actual service they bought, but what that service allowed them to do, or be better at.

For example, if you were selling walking boots that were great for long distance, you might call the company Voyager or Odyssey.

Just using your initials is a bit dull, like AB Printing or something. Wow, catchy.

Equally you don't want something corny or too slick.

Took us ages though, much sitting round tables in the pub.

RiftAmps

Two reasons:

- I wanted a monosyllabic name that was both easy to remember and pronounce and that couldn't, after I gained some recognition, be mistaken for another brand

- My favourite '59 Burst has a Rift-sawn maple top

Fretwired

RiftAmps said:

Two reasons:

- I wanted a monosyllabic name that was both easy to remember and pronounce and that couldn't, after I gained some recognition, be mistaken for another brand

- My favourite '59 Burst has a Rift-sawn maple top

Rift Amps is a cool name ..

Snags

We went through a nine month process of trying to come up with a name that reflected what we did, conveyed something of our general attitude, but wasn't just an IT firm cliché, a collection of initials, or made us sound like a bunch of accountants (or indeed, wasn't just plain vulgar, as many suggestions were).

In the end we went with the nickname everyone used for my business partner's kids, after Mrs Snags got a bit tipsy at their house one night and suggested it on the way home. It embodies absolutely none of the original intentions, other than perhaps conveying something of our attitude (as in, screw expectation, this works, let's go with it).

The single most useful thing we did in the whole thing was to have a process in place that we stuck to:

• ditch both old names (we were merging two businesses with crap names based on our personal names)
• each partner had an instant veto on any suggestion
• if both of us liked it, we ran it past the wives, who essentially also had an instant veto
• if it passed the above, we waited 24 hours/until we'd both slept (which might have been longer) and then revisited it
• if it survived each other, the wives, and sleeping time, that was the one

Danny1969

I don't think there's much of a science to it. Generally I just picked something obvious like 

Dec-Tech .... painting company I had and I thought it sounded modern 

Pro Build Projects .... building company I had I though sounded professional 

Clones UK ...... copies of iBM PC's were called clones hence the name of our computer company

2020 Studios .... 20Hz to 20Khz is roughly the limits of hearing in a young adult

Dr Watson Electronics  .... my surnames Watson and I got the nickname cos I used to carry a lot of prescription drugs around with me

Jason

Mine is Torn & Frayed Ltd, there were a few reasons

1) It was pretty much how I was feeling at the time

2) Its one of my favourite tracks off one of my favourite albums (Exile On Main Street)

3) Jagger sings "Just as long as the guitar plays..." which makes sense for The Guitar Show

4) It allows me to do other stuff through the business without me having to invoice from The Guitar Show Ltd, which could potentially make no sense

hywelg

I wanted a name the clearly indicated what we  do and I also wanted the location in the name as I never intended that we would work anything other than locally.

Lady Bay Art Glass

underdog

My tattoo shop was named something I called many things in the past (hockey team, my username on many forums etc) it was something my father said in my company when I was much younger.

It stuck with me because I didn't see much of my father between about 8 years old and 22, but he said always root for the underdog (as I tried not to be upset Liverpool had lost to Wimbledon in the fa cup final)

sixstringsupplies

Six String Supplies
The alliteration works well and self explanatory that the business deals in guitar parts.

Torn and Frayed Ltd is a very cool name!

viz

I love the name Un Ltd. 

dazzajl

By far the biggest problem I’ve had in naming companies has been getting the matching web addresses. 

My commercial photography company is Lightfall

I have a more portrait based business called LightArt

And on the very rare occasion I bother with wanting to show any personal work, I use the banner Under The Lonely Tree

Lodious

I used the initials of my three kids plus a word related to the field of business. 

spark240

I chose Studiowear as I wanted to combine music / guitars / gear onto clothing...

maltingsaudio

I live in the old Maltings but wanted to be down with the kidz so dropped the old

Iamnobody

hywelg said:

I wanted a name the clearly indicated what we  do and I also wanted the location in the name as I never intended that we would work anything other than locally.

Lady Bay Art Glass

I just read that as Lady Boy Art Class!

RaymondLin

dazzajl said:

By far the biggest problem I’ve had in naming companies has been getting the matching web addresses. 

My commercial photography company is Lightfall

I have a more portrait based business called LightArt

And on the very rare occasion I bother with wanting to show any personal work, I use the banner Under The Lonely Tree

Even using my own name someone beat me to it until this year.  Some guy in the US had www.raymondlin.com for years, registered for his undergraduate degree in Berkley in bio chemistry.  He had registered it years ago and it was only until recently when it became available after renewal lapsed.  I think he just got the domain to publish his course work to get jobs.

Because of this, instead of like 99p to register a domain, the site is “worth” something and actually cost a small sum to buy!  I did it anyway and now finally mine.

Until then I settled for .co.uk and .net but now have .com too.

Haych

RaymondLin said:

dazzajl said:

By far the biggest problem I’ve had in naming companies has been getting the matching web addresses. 

My commercial photography company is Lightfall

I have a more portrait based business called LightArt

And on the very rare occasion I bother with wanting to show any personal work, I use the banner Under The Lonely Tree

Even using my own name someone beat me to it until this year.  Some guy in the US had www.raymondlin.com for years, registered for his undergraduate degree in Berkley in bio chemistry.  He had registered it years ago and it was only until recently when it became available after renewal lapsed.  I think he just got the domain to publish his course work to get jobs.

Because of this, instead of like 99p to register a domain, the site is “worth” something and actually cost a small sum to buy!  I did it anyway and now finally mine.

Until then I settled for .co.uk and .net but now have .com too.

Not sure what you had to pay but I'd say it was well worth it, that's a cracking website!

RaymondLin

Haych said:

RaymondLin said:

dazzajl said:

By far the biggest problem I’ve had in naming companies has been getting the matching web addresses. 

My commercial photography company is Lightfall

I have a more portrait based business called LightArt

And on the very rare occasion I bother with wanting to show any personal work, I use the banner Under The Lonely Tree

Even using my own name someone beat me to it until this year.  Some guy in the US had www.raymondlin.com for years, registered for his undergraduate degree in Berkley in bio chemistry.  He had registered it years ago and it was only until recently when it became available after renewal lapsed.  I think he just got the domain to publish his course work to get jobs.

Because of this, instead of like 99p to register a domain, the site is “worth” something and actually cost a small sum to buy!  I did it anyway and now finally mine.

Until then I settled for .co.uk and .net but now have .com too.

Not sure what you had to pay but I'd say it was well worth it, that's a cracking website!

Thanks, I have had the website itself a while but the domain name has eluded me.  It was just shy of £500 in the end, actually when it first released it was 4 figures but I left it then and checked again last month and it dropped.