Are you an entrepreneur? Discover some tips to create, grow and even sell your startup. To do this, you need to start by finding a relevant and striking name. In the world of entrepreneurship, there are several aspects to consider before you even start. However, before you even put together your business plan and start prospecting, you need to find a way to catch the eye of your future customers. So how do you find the most appropriate name for your startup? The one your target will remember…
Brainstorm ideas around your project
As soon as you had the idea of your business, you had a global vision of it. In addition, you probably asked your family and friends before you started. Take a look back and rethink everything about your concept, your business or your values. This will help you define a world in which your brand should be anchored. This way, you can think about the visual and/or sound universe to which your brand refers. This could be useful both for finding your name, but also when you need to think of a logo or a slogan. Broaden your perspectives as much as possible!
Focus on your concept
It is difficult to sell high-end products with a name that evokes low cost… and vice versa. It is therefore very important to take this into account in order to find a relevant name. However, you will clearly not be able to give all the info just via your brand name. The question to ask is: what do you want to put forward? The activity itself, a competitive advantage? So take a part of your company description and classify the information you want to transmit to your future prospects. Generally, there will be three essential pieces of information that you want to highlight: play on the terms related to them.
Entrepreneur, focus on a single theme
If you don’t want your brand name to sound like a potpourri, you’ll have to choose! Concentrate on a single theme, the one that is most relevant to your business. Then write down all the ideas that come to mind and rank them from the most figurative to the most abstract (be crazy). A brand that does not instantly evoke a core business will have to make extra efforts to become known to the general public.
To achieve this, start by finding brands that evoke your products in a very precise way (example: Pressing Plus, for an innovative dry cleaning business). In addition, you can combine several keywords to create a whole new word. You might even gain some originality. Otherwise, think of historical or even geographical references (Zeus, Picasso or Alesia, among many others). However, beware of references that have fallen into the public domain and, for geographical concepts, that they do not belong to a protected designation of origin.
The magic of foreign languages
Using a term in a language other than your own can be a good idea. However, it must be closely associated with your concept or be well known enough to be understood by the general public. While some anglicisms have become commonplace, other references may be more difficult to grasp. Also beware of words that can have very different meanings from one language to another…
Play with words
Hairdressers have made it their trademark (between Sup’Hair and other Ainsi Soit Tif), but it is not always to everyone’s taste, or even understandable. However, it can add a touch of originality to your brand and make it easier for your target to remember. Otherwise, there is the option of the acronym (SNCF, Cnil, etc.). If you’re an entrepreneur in the IT or finance field, you might also want to think about numbers!
Have you found “THE” name?
For your startup name to be relevant, it must be easy to remember. Secondly, the shorter the better (especially in the Internet age where you have to capture the attention of your target in a few seconds). So be succinct, but relevant. Moreover, the name of your company must represent your activity, your values, or one of your products for example. A relevant startup name can also be used in different countries. But remember: beware of double meaning words in other languages! Also keep a margin to stay relevant in case your business changes. A name that is too specific could work against you if you diversify your activities.
In short, your role as an entrepreneur is to find the right balance between eccentricity and simplicity. Be original without becoming weird, but just distinctive enough to be easily found on search engines, for example…
