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The 7 'Golden Rules' to developing a great business name for your brand

  • Written by Stella Gianotto

You have a killer product. You have a stellar team. Your marketing is on point.

There’s just one problem.

You don’t have a name for your brand!

If you are anything like me, in Highschool you could write the best essay your teacher had ever seen, but it was always made an unappealing first impression. Why? It was named “Untitled.”

Content is key when it comes to success.


Yet, quality content deserves a quality name. A quality name is one that stands out; a name that jumps to mind whenever the logo is seen. Think Starbucks or McDonalds. Your mouth starts watering just considering those brands.

Why? Their name tells you everything you need to know.

So, for all of you with title block, here are 7 ideas to help begin on creating a stellar business name. The 7 Golden Rules of Developing a Great Name for Your Brand:

Tip #1: Look for inspiration

Great comedians all have one thing in common: somewhere in the middle of their best stuff they say, “you can’t make this stuff up!” And they’re right. Observation of the everyday world is key for discovering your brand name. It can be an object, a name, a shape, or even an experience that launches your creative juices towards the best name you ever did see. When it comes to developing a business name look for external inspiration.

Seriously take note of anything that you like—an object, a colour, an emotion, a shape, anything. Every piece will help you narrow down a name.

Tip #2: Consider Using Definitions

Some of the greatest brand name development started with simple etymology. You can’t make this stuff up.

LEGO, for example, got their name from two Danish words which when combined mean, “play well.”

Tip #3: List Your Observations

As you are going through your observations, write down the first words that come to mind. Do not filter this process, just let your stream of consciousness do the talking. Do this for a minute, maybe two. Then, take the words you’ve gone through and qualify them. Eliminate the ones which are absolute rubbish, and then create a ‘maybe’ pile.

Take all the words in the ‘maybe’ pile and individually put them into Google Images. The images will evoke different emotions and inspiration which will either allow the word to become your brand name or lead you to your next one.

Make notes of your image findings as you go along because this research will help you in your logo development.

Tip #4: Be Dyslexic

Throw your primary school grammar lessons out the window and make a spelling mistake on purpose. See what happens with your words if you spell them phonetically instead of grammatically.

Sometimes being too ‘kool for skool’ is exactly the creative boost that will send your naming game over the edge. Joining words together, misspelling them, working with old slang… all of these ideas have worked wonders for companies like Budweiser.

Tip #5: Keep it Simple

It’s easy to get bogged down in the hundreds of thousands of possibilities these creative processes can generate in brand name development. The key is to remember that you want a business name that is catchy and easily recognizable that is consistent with the mission of your brand.

Therefore, when developing a business name, choosing a word or phrase which speaks about what you do is an easy way to make yourself memorable. For example, if you are a photography company looking to sell candid portraits of people’s lives calling yourselves, “Snapshots” is a simple, understated way of explaining what you do in a single word.

Tip #6: Make Pronunciation Easy

When you draw your business name from an exotic source—like a foreign language or religion—be sure to adapt your name to the language of your target audience. Everyone likes a touch of the exotic, but your brand needs to be recognisable and easy to spread via word of mouth.

Do not choose a word so creatively ludicrous that it cannot be easily spelled or discussed in day to day interactions.

Tip #7: Gain Feedback

Lastly, once you’ve narrowed down your list to two or three choices, ask people within your target audience for their thoughts and feelings regarding the brand name. Ask them what kinds of imagery and feelings it evokes for them. Explain your brand and then ask them if they believe your new name fits—why or why not.

Ultimately, choosing a brand name is one of the most important decisions you will ever make as an entrepreneur. This process is easily over complicated.

Relax, have fun, and brainstorm some fun words using the 7 Golden Rules we’ve provided here. If you find you still need further guidance, speaking to a Branding Expert who will help you streamline this process.


The author

Stella Gianotto is a multi-award-winning Creative Director and fast becoming the go-to Branding Expert. She is passionate about working with businesses to create brands for a purpose, profit or a legacy. She is demystifying what branding is, educates us on what branding does and makes branding accessible (and understandable) for business across diverse industry segments.

Stella’s industry awards and presence has led to her contribution to several books, Marketing Brands Made Easy, Social Media Marketing: Write Up Your Tweet and Well Spun: Big PR and Social Media Ideas for Small Business.

As a business owner herself, Stella understands the juggle that every business owner has with time and finances that enables her to help businesses understand how, and why, they should be branding their business.

For more information go to www.brandforbrands.com/stella-gianotto/

7 Ways to Make Your Small Business More Efficient by Outsourcing

  • Written by Diana Smith


There are a lot of influential voices out there who claim we are living in the Golden Age of startups and entrepreneurship, and you know what – they are right. These days anyone with good enough of an idea and the ability to create buzz can try their luck in the business arena. However, startups are not forged only by good ideas, the talent for marketing, or even sheer proficiency.

Startups need to have a developed infrastructure as well, and this is the problem even the most talented entrepreneurs aren’t always able to address. Let’s take a look then at some of the departments your small business should outsource so you can focus on what you do best.

Content marketing

Although some marketing branches should be kept in-house if for no other reason than to accelerate marketing output and have greater control over the branding, the things like content marketing are based on tireless busywork that is largely detached from overall branding strategies except on a purely technical level. Companies that are specialized for this type of marketing will be able to perform this work faster, more professionally and at a much lower price than you'd have to pay if you maintained this branch within the company.

Customer service

Moving something so integral for the future of your business so far from its heart may seem like a bad idea. Currently, customer service is largely transitioning into the digital realm where you need to maintain a coherent presence on a number of different channels, analyze the vast pools of data and develop AI chatbots that are becoming a well-established way of CRM communication. It seems reasonable then that a lot of businesses from the USA, Australia, New Zealand, and other developed countries are outsourcing this important department.

Bookkeeping and accounting

Bookkeeping and accounting is yet another activity that should be left to professionals with years of experience in the field. The consequences of bad bookkeeping are numerous and range from missed business opportunities to more severe examples like lost sales and legal and credit problems. If we take another short trip back Down Under, we will see that outsourcing this duty to professional chartered accountants from NZ is slowly becoming a preferred way of handling paperwork in that country, and this transition is definitely for the better.

Payroll

Although not as demanding as bookkeeping, payroll is still deeply rooted in numerous legal requirements and tax laws – meaning that even the slightest mistake due to inexperience or reduced concentration can bring various penalties upon your business. For instance, if we once again take the USA as an example, we will see that the local IRS levied more than $2 billion in fines from small businesses as a result of omissions, improper fillings, and other similar mistakes. So, in order to avoid these kinds of costly mistakes, leave payroll to experienced professionals.

Administrative tasks

Outsourcing the administrative tasks is not so much a matter of necessity as it is convenience. First, cloud-based and mobile services like, for instance, email parser are making the virtual assistants’ lives much easier allowing them effortless cooperation with other business branches without the need for physical contact (e.g. information from emails can be automatically exported to CRM systems). Second, the assistants' ability to perform duties from the comfort of their homes allows you to cut the startup costs by renting a more economical office space.

Human resources

Modern HR services are far more complicated than the menial paperwork we know from the bygone decades that came before us. Today, HR experts are burdened with the development of the organization of management strategies, monitoring and improving employee satisfaction, creating functional work environments, empowering employees through carefully selected obligations and much, much more. Employing experienced HR experts and developing this branch in-house can put too much pressure on startups’ budgets.

Outsource your weaknesses

Finally, even though some activity is closely related to your field of operation, if you are still not experienced enough or hadn't had time to develop the proper infrastructure, outsource it as well. For instance, if you are starting a web development business, but you're still struggling with design and illustrations, you can outsource these tasks to freelancers although they are considered a core of your company. Further down the road, you can consider offering the same freelancers full-time employment.

We hope these few entries will help you make your startup more sustainable by outsourcing the baggage. These days, being proficient is not enough to hammer the competition. Your startup also needs to be efficient.

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