Alright, just jumping right back into things…

I was having a conversation with a friend the other day. My friend is working on developing a physical, brick and mortar retail business. We only had the briefest of conversations about the subject of business names but it got me thinking and it’s something I wanted to touch on now.

First, most importantly, understand that my points and thoughts in this article have a heavy slant toward my friend and his particular business case. So, I’ll admit that I’m not trying to equally represent “both sides” of the issue here. I’m actually articulating some predominant thoughts on naming a business based on him and his situation – so my “pros and cons” lean greatly toward a particular train of thought. There are certainly going to be points on either side of the fence with the subject of naming a business – but today it’s about one side of that fence.

Okay, here goes…

I’ve seen it before – the initial compulsion to name a business, in some way, after the names of the key characters can be strong for some people. It happens a lot. I can see a certain appeal to naming a business “J&J Services” if John and his wife Janet are bonding through the name and, technically, it has meaning. (For the record, I’ve totally made-up the “J&J” name… I have no actually knowledge of any company using that name – it’s purely an example here).

However, in general (but not entirely 100%) I’m against this practice. “Technically” I don’t think it matters if the name “means” anything. I’m not saying that a descriptive business name doesn’t have value and of course there are examples to the contrary (ie. “B&H Photo” is a very respected catalog and store with a simple name. “McDonald’s” is a last name shared by Mac & Dick (two brothers) and they’ve been bringing us fries and BigMac’s since 1954 – so it’s a “meaningful” name in that sense). But, branding up a name can be a struggle and I think, more times than not, naming a business “J&J Services” is a weak name. I think there are stronger approaches to naming a business whether it be online or offline.

“Services” is almost as over-used in the physical, offline business world as “J&J Designs” is on the Internet – I have a personal pet-peeve that makes me wish certain words would die a dictionary-death. No offense to anyone named “J&J” or using “Designs” or “Services” in their name – I’m just leaping from a point and I’m certainly guilty of these things myself.

I think that creating a brand identity is hard enough as it is without a just-add-water name. I’m not saying you need to come up with a wild or wacky name (Heaven forfend you’d use a goofy name like “Blipfish” or anything!), but a strong business name with character that has meaning outside of the owner’s circle can go a long way toward overcoming branding obstacles later on. No, I’m not describing phone-book bombing by naming your company “AAA Blipfish & Associates” just to get higher up in the White Pages. I mean that everything from how you answer the office phone, the name on business cards, signage, phone book, and newspaper ads, etc. etc. can benefit from standing out and plain vanilla names of letter-&-letter formulas have become, in my opinion, tired and worn.

Is this an absolute? No, of course not. It’s entirely possible to be attached to a name that might not glitter but you eventually turn it into something special. After all, you have to love your business name because you’ll be living with it, hopefully, for years to come. If you hate seeing the sign facing the street or answering the phone… the name won’t be something you can get behind. If, however, you have a strong, confident reaction to your business name you’ll throw yourself into it in many subconscious ways. So, it’s more important you love the name of your online website or offline storefront.

However, if you have the luxury of spending some time on crafting a name that “works” for you and might be interesting, descriptive, or just plain memorable (even if it’s not descriptive) you could find yourself ahead of the game when it comes to creating a brand identity – something every business should greatly aspire to.