Today we will talk about a very important step when building and operating your professional organizing business: selecting the name of your company.
Last week we talked about the many you’ll wear for your professional organizing business. Check that post here!
Choosing a good name for your business is a significant step. It will tell you and your prospective clients a lot about the company, its style, references, your approach to work and more.
I recommend you look for timeless names, and something people can understand as soon as they read or hear it.
Searching for the name of your business can be an elaborate process and if you are eager to “just get rolling,” I suggest you start working using your name -in my case, it would look like “Helena Alkhas Professional Organizing Services”.
As your business and your understanding of what you do, your niche and your target market evolve, then refine and change the name of your company.
Searching for the “perfect” business name can be tricky and most likely won’t happen overnight, so let’s look at some steps you can take to facilitate your search.
How Do I Choose a Name for My Organization Company?
1. Start Understanding What Makes Your Organizing Business Unique
Who are your customers and their profile, the services you will offer and what makes you unique?
Who are the professional organizers working in your area, offering similar services?
List this information before you move to the next step.
2. Seek Powerful Help
Sometimes we are lucky enough to start a business with a good name idea already in our heads. But if you’re like most new professional organizers, this is likely not the case, and it will help you much if you can rely on the help of other people.
Ideally, you would count on people with business experience, marketing, advertising, or even experience in the organizing industry.
You don’t have to hire them necessarily, but if you can’t count on friends and family who meet these requirements, don’t hesitate to hire a business coach to work with you on this.
If you are going to work alone on this, a great tool I use for many purposes is AnswerthePublic.com Just enter a word and see all the variations and combinations you can achieve. It’s fascinating!
3. Brainstorming Session
Whether you are lucky to get all the qualified help or need to do this alone, take the opportunity to do a brainstorming session. This is a technique widely used in companies around the world to develop new ideas and projects and can be really powerful in your search for your perfect business name.
Let the creativity flow, talk about all the ideas that come up. Remember that it is vital not to rate ideas as good or bad. Let everyone give their suggestions freely until you narrow it down to the big one.
I like to use mindmaps or sticky notes, and I sort the ideas into groups like verbs, nouns, adjectives so later I can mix and match into something fun.
This is how my tagline “Life Can Be Simpler” was born.
4. Is The Name Available?
This is a step you don’t want to skip!
You don’t want to register your business, invest in branding and all that goes with it just to find out the name you chose is already in use or is trademarked. #beentheredonethat
Once you come up with a name or a shortlist of name ideas, it’s time to check if that name is available to use. Doing a Google search, check if other companies are using it or some similar name. Repeat this search on the following spaces:
- All social networks
- Your Secretary of State website
- The US Patent and Trademark Office website.
- And finally, make sure the domain is available and is affordable for when you set up your website. For this use sites like Registry, Br, GoDaddy.com, among others.
5. How To Register Your Business Name
You can do this early in the business or else move forward. But it is worth registering your business name. Imagine suddenly discovering that there is someone else copying your business name! Won’t that be awful?
When Choosing a Name For Your Business Pay Attention To:
- Be coherent: choose a name that really has to do with the business and do not let your customer confused;
- Be creative: in a world full of competition, whoever stands out positively gets ahead;
- Seek simplicity: being creative does not mean being extravagant. Sometimes less is more. In the case of the name, it’s easier to remember a simple name instead of an elaborate one.
- Beware of ambiguities: can the name chosen have any double meaning? Does it have a double meaning, a negative one? Does it mean something negative in another language like Spanish, for example? Pay attention to that.
By following these steps and these tips, you will be ready to choose the name of your professional organizing business.
Get to work on this vital step for your business and if you have any questions, talk to me in the comments below.
Grab your favorite drink, a quiet spot and dig in.
I’ll see you next week!
