How To Choose A Company Name
For entrepreneurs, the importance of picking the right name for a company may rank second only to naming a child. (And it’s lot more expensive to change.)
Name consultants are paid millions each year to help decide what to call a company.
San Francisco naming boutique Eat My Words has come up with a test called the Smile & Scratch Test.
To test out a company’s name, first ask if it possesses these qualities:
Simple – one easy-to-understand concept
Meaningful – customer instantly “get it”
Imagery – visually evocative, creates a mental picture
Legs – carries the brand, lends itself to wordplay
Emotional – empowers, entertains, engages, enlightensThen scratch the name if it’s got these deal-breakers:
Spelling-challenged - you have to tell people how to spell it
Copycat – similar to competitor’s names
Random – disconnected from the brand
Annoying – hidden meaning, forced
Tame – flat, uninspired, boring, nonemotional
Curse of knowledge – only insiders get it
Hard-to-pronounce – not obvious, relies on punctuation
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