Step 1 Online Business Reef Setup: Whats in a Name?

So thank you for coming this far with me but now you have come to the part that may take the longest time to accomplish. At least you may think that this process is taking forever. But it is really the choosing part that takes so long because of the constant indecision, second guessing, and changing of your mind that will inevitably take place.

So what is this lengthy process?

That process is choosing a name for your Online Business Reef venture.

Maybe you will be lucky and have a great name picked out already. If so, then kudos to you. If not then this guide may help you give you some quick pointers on choosing the best name. So whats in a name? Lets find out.

A good name should be easy to remember, simple to pronounce, and easy to spell. Don’t pick a name that is hard to spell or doesn’t make sense or you will have to spend a lot of time explaining it to others.
Get on the web. Doing a quick search of “how to choose a business name” will give you several great articles on how to jump start the naming process.
When choosing a name, especially for online purposes, make sure you have a domain name checker up so you can check possible domain name opportunities. There is no use of picking a name you can’t get a domain for it.
Make sure the name is not too long, is a pun, trendy, or smells funny.
Your name should give a positive emotional response and invoke a visual image, and it would be good if it mentioned a little about what you do.
Use a keyword phrase that helps describe your business or can be a catchy domain name that may be bring easy organic traffic.
Make sure your name has room to grow. Don’t choose a name that will limit your business right out of the gate. You never know if you will expand your business with new opportunities in the future.

Choose a handful of good name choices for a final decision and we will run through the final tests.

THE FINAL TESTS TO CHOOSE YOUR NAME

First thing you should do is a general web search on the name you have chosen. This will let you know if anything weird comes up that may make the choice of your name unlikely.

Second make sure that your name is available legally. There are several considerations and things you need to check to make sure that the name you chose is legally available. This will help narrow your list down even more.

Check with your local State Division of Corporations. Do a name search to see if the legal name is taken. You should try and have the domain name and legal name as close as possible.

Then go to the US Office of Patent and Trademarks to do a trademark search on your name. Make sure you have a legal right to the name.

Third check and see if a domain name is available for the name you chose. You want to make sure you get an exact match or at the very least an impactful keyword match. You can check for domains here.

There is one more consideration before you make a final choice. Social media is a big part of today online marketing and business strategies. A good idea is to make sure you can get social media names that exactly match or come close to your business name.

Look especially at Facebook and Twitter.
If you have a business that will benefit from LinkedIn look at them next.
Look at Google + which will and should be coupled with YouTube and Pinterest if your site can benefit from a pictorial social media experience.
Finally look at Instagram and Tumblr.

The fourth and final step in this process is to test your name. In the best scenario you should test your name in the real world with a url and throw some Google AdWords funds at it. But most of us don’t have the time, desire, or startup cash to do this.

Another alternative is to run the name by others in your industry. I would stay away from family and friends as they probably won’t give you the feedback you truly need to make an informative decision on your name.

Congratulations through this long arduous process you finally have a name. I remember when we chose the name of one of our first sites it took us over 6 months, several filled white boards, and hundreds of changed minds.

Finally we chose the name Rukse, secured a dot.com for it and thought we were on the way. But there are still a few things that may stand in your way that you should be aware of.

THE FINAL NAME CHOICE AND THE AFTERMATH

Just a few things to know after you have chosen your name. Know these pitfalls and you can avoid some headaches that believe me, you don’t want to have.

1. Once you make a decision on your name you are going to second guess yourself. Don’t, I remember we went back and forth on our name Rukse wanting to change it, add to it, or scrap it all together.

But in the end we wasted valuable time worrying instead of moving forward. In the end we had a short name, with a good domain, and was easy to remember. We just couldn’t see that at the time.

2. If for some reason you do pick a bad name, or missed something in the process above, and you need to make a change. Do so immediately. Sometimes you will miss things, a bad report pops up on the name, a misspelling, or other serious concern.

3. Don’t delay, when you get your name hit the ground running and start to build your Online Business Reef.