Gertrude Stein wrote in her poem Sacred Emily “Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose”, a comment on how a name does not define an existence. However, the name of your business to clients and prospective clients is very important indeed.
If you are starting your own business or considering a business rebrand, naming your business can be one of the most important decisions you make. A new name will have to last you for years and so it needs to be able to stand the test of time.
We’ve put together our top tips of how to name your business to ensure you don’t end up stuck with a name you no longer like, or a name your clients are unable to identify with.
Tip 1 – Does Your Business Name Express What Your Business Does?
When you are first naming your business, or brand it is all too easy to get pulled into the bear trap of choosing a name that sounds cool whether it has relevance to your business activities or not.
Choosing a name that indicates what you do makes it easier for prospective clients to pick you out from a crowd. This is particularly important when it comes to the increasing trend towards online sales.
If you are taking your first delve into the world of printer ecommerce it’s important to consider if your business name can be picked out easily rather than melting into the background. The name on a page will mean very little to a potential customer if they can’t see the company’s purpose in its name or the short amount of contextual information a search result will provide.
Tip 2 – Does Your Business Name Limit Your Reach?
Marketing for printers is a complex task. Usually when choosing a name for a business including your locality or geographical area is a no-no. When it comes to the print industry though things get a little more complex.
If you are rebranding and have already established a high street presence with a local and loyal clientele, removing a place name from your business title or that of your ecommerce print shop may be a retrograde move. It is best to consider your current clients and your projected growth from national or international prospective clients before removing a locality in your title.
If you haven’t yet started up and you intend to have an ecommerce print shop with prospective clients nationally or internationally, it is definitely best to avoid using localities in your new business name.
Tip 3 – Is Your Business Name Boring?
Be honest with yourself – is your new name boring? If you find it boring it’s likely that others will and when it comes to printer ecommerce boring is definitely not how you would wish to perceived.
As mentioned in Tip 1, your name should represent what you do. It’s likely if your business specialises in gift and promotional printing there will be more scope for an ‘off the wall’ name that will grab people’s attention.
Using a colour in a business or brand name, can be a very good way to keep people’s interest without being too wild or detracting from what your business actually does. When it comes to marketing for printers, the use of a colour in a name may also help you with style guides and colour schemes as well.
Tip 4 – Is Your Business Name Easy To Spell?
One simple question, when you ring me up and I ask who you are, will I be able to write your business name without having to ask you to spell it?
If the answer is no, then it’s most definitely not a good choice.
When people are searching for your ecommerce print shop online will they be able to spell it so that it can be found by a search engine or so that they can type in the web address?
If a client is unable to spell your name, they will find it more difficult to find your website, and therefore to place an order, or to find your contact details.
Pick a name that a prospective customer will be able to spell easily to provide them with the best chance of finding your business, and to provide yourself the best chance of securing an order.
Tip 5 – What Does Your Business Name Mean and Who Else Uses It?
Be careful with choosing abstract names for your company or brand and check the meaning and how it sounds out loud carefully.
A good example of a poorly named business – Sam N Ella’s Pizzeria – I wouldn’t want to eat there, would you?
It’s also important to check who else uses your name. For example, if you specialise in providing takeaway or restaurant menus, you might want to make sure your new name isn’t shared with a septic tank cleaning company.
Likewise, changing your name to one that sounds similar to a competitor’s name may seem a good idea at the time but if you can’t cement your brand in the market it may end up doing you more harm than good.
Tip 6 – Have You Road Tested Your Name?
Once you have shortlisted your names, it’s a good idea to get feedback from staff, loyal clients, and even family and friends.
Asking for feedback too early in the process may mean that you end up designing your name by committee, but asking for feedback once you have a shortlist should help you isolate the best choice for your company.
Tip 7 – Do You Like The Name?
You’ve cut down your shortlist to one or two names that feel right, the last question you should ask yourself is: “Do I like this name?”
You will have to live with any naming choice you make for years, if you don’t like it now you are unlikely to grow to like it in the future.
Flex4 OPS
Flex4 have an experienced eCommerce team with skills and experience in business development, marketing, ecommerce, project management, software development, website management, and digital marketing.
The Online Print Solution – the OPS – has been developed by Flex4 and is based on over 10 years’ experience in designing, developing and supporting web to print solutions and services for print businesses in both the UK and overseas.
Our objective is to help your business to both grow print revenues and reduce administration costs for a better margin and a more efficient process.