When you’re just starting a business, the right name for your business is much more important than most people think.

A strong business name can help your business get a competitive advantage. A weak, forgettable business name can lead to failure.

Based in the Rocky Mountains this financial planner draws attention to his local surroundings with a name that feels strong and powerful. A timberline is what is seen from a distance much like the financial planners role is to point out the direction and set goals to reach it. The connection to nature gives an opportunity for the brand to adopt a client base that wants to invest in sustainable investments.

This group draws a connection between wealth and a biblical reference to the miraculous manna in the dessert. A great brand for someone who is religious and is working with clients familiar with the reference.

This Austin, Texas firm specializes in a holistic approach to finances that involves coaching, accountability and planning. The name allows them to convey a broad base of services instead of a name like 'asset management' They show their expertise by talking about their craft as an art instead of as a commodity.

Stay away from these unimaginative and overused investment company names.

You want customers to think specifically about your investment business when the name is mentioned and you want them to understand what makes you unique. These names do neither of those things:

• Capital Group
• Horizon
• Peak Advisors
• Moneygoals
• The Wealth Builders
• Hightower Investment Group
• Capstone
• BlueSky Ventures
• Magna Wealth
• Growth Edge
• Tangible Investments
• Bright Future
• Rock Stable
• Creative Wealth
• Northern Star
• Worth The Risk
• Assets Managed
• Well Invested
• Capital Gains Group
• Penny Up
• Investing Done Right
• Rock Solid Investments
• Blue Whale Investments
• Iron Vault Investments
• Blue-Chip Investments

When you say the name can you think of the colors or visuals that would make up your company logo or website design. 'Timberline' immediately provide a color palette or visual with which to build the rest of the company’s visual brand.

Once a name has been trademarked in the U.S., that name is protected in all 50 states. If you use a name (or even a significant part of a name) that is already under trademark, you should anticipate a cease and desist letter in your future – along with the need to find a new business name. The best way to avoid this problem is to come up with a completely custom name for your investment business. When the 'Artisan Spice Company' (boring and generic) received a cease and desist letter for trademark infringement they came to crowdspring for a custom name. After dozens of unique names were submitted they chose 'Asabasa' because it was fun to say, memorable and stood out from all the other spice companies.

A name has to be considered with your target audience in mind.

Are you targeting young adults or retirees? Are you targeting the serious or playful side of this audience? A name like 'The Art of Finance' is great for someone who knows they need a little financial education but might not be as effective for a wealthy individual who is seeking more respect.

A great way to think about your audience and how it relates to a name is to pick from brand opposites.

• Friend vs. Authority


• Classic vs. Modern


• Playful vs. Serious


• Local vs. Mass Appeal


• Youthful vs. Mature


• Feminine vs. Masculine


• Luxurious vs. Economical

Literal names are the easiest names to come up with and represent most small business names.

They are boring and uninspiring names like, 'Wealth Builders', or 'Capital Group'. Adding depth and imagination to your name will help your business stand out and communicate why you are unique.

Words are made of phoneme (pronounced fonem) which are the noticeable differences in sound in each part of a word.

Research has shown that we associate certain traits to different sounds.

Words starting with 'st' sound powerful (strong, Starbucks, state).

Words ending in 'a' sound feminine.

'P', 'T' and 'K' are associated with sharp shapes.

'M', 'N' and 'L' are associated with round shapes.

The sound 'ee' as in flea and 'i' as in fly are categorized as smaller sized and less powerful.

The sound 'ou' as in bout and 'oo' as in boot are categorized as larger and more powerful.

Ask someone to describe your name and see if it matches your brand.

Here are the 10 things you should consider when deciding on a new business name.

Think about what you want your business name to convey.

Your company name is an important part of your company’s identity. The name will appear on your business cards, letterhead, website, promotional materials, products, and pretty much everywhere in print to identify your company or your company’s products and/or services.



Businesses located in rural areas and serving rural communities may want to project a smaller, hometown feel with their name. However, businesses planning to focus on bigger markets or bigger customers might want to project a larger, more corporate image with their name.



Brainstorm to identify name possibilities.

Set aside some time to brainstorm. Think about words that describe your industry or the products and services you offer. Think about words that describe your competitors and words that describe the differences between your products and services and those of your competitors. Also, consider words that describe the benefits of using your products or services. Finally, think about words (and phrases) that evoke the feelings you want your customers to feel when they see your company name.



While brainstorming, look up Greek and Latin translations of your words – you might find new ideas from doing that exercise. Look at foreign words too (we spent some time with a Swahili dictionary looking for strong names).



Keep the name short, simple, and easy to write and remember.

Think about the names of companies you admire. They typically have a few things in common: their names are short, simple, easy to write and easy to remember. (Examples include Apple, Google, Virgin, Southwest).



Obscure business names are often difficult to write and even more difficult to remember. This is a problem because for most startups and small businesses, word-of-mouth advertising is the most successful form of marketing. If your customers can’t remember your name or can’t spell it for others, it will make it difficult for them to help promote your business.




While it might be tempting, avoid using a K in place of a Q or a Ph in place of an F when coming up with your company name. Such letter substitutions make spelling the name very difficult.




Also, don’t forget to consider the acronym of your company name (an acronym is composed of the first letter of each word in a phrase). You might not use an acronym, but your customers might refer to your business by an acronym. A name such as Apple Support Services can result in an unfavorable acronym – ASS.



Avoid names that are too narrow or literal.

Think about how your company may evolve over time and make sure that the company name can evolve with the business. For example, if you name your company iPhone Accessories and later expand to sell accessories for other products, your original name will be too narrow and restrictive.



The same advice applies even if your company sells a niche product. For example, if you sell antique lamps, you should consider whether you might sell more than lamps in the future. Naming your business Joan’s Antique Lamps may be too limiting when you start selling antique clocks and furniture.



Avoid decisions by committee but do test the name with others.

It’s tempting to involve our friends, family, employees and customers in finding a name for our company. Sometimes, this can work out really well. But there are risks. People might be upset if you don’t pick a name they think is great. You’ll also find yourself trying to find consensus – which can lead to a very plain name. If you must involve others, pick a small group of people who understand you and your business. (pick a mix of right-brain types and left-brain types so that you can have some variety). Once you’ve selected a few possible choices, you should share them with trusted friends, family and customers to get feedback about the name.



Avoid plain words.

Plain words make it very difficult to differentiate your company from your competitors. For example, there were hundreds of thousands of logo design businesses around the world when we started thinking about crowdspring. We knew that we would be expanding to many different industries (graphic design, web design, industrial design, and many more) and so we didn’t want to name our business Great Logo Design or manyDesigners. That name would have been descriptive, but not memorable and certainly not unique.



There are exceptions. General Electric is one of the most successful companies in the world and its name is composed of two plain words. But, General Electric was one of the first companies in its product/service category and was able to get away with a plain name.



Be careful with geographic names.

Some people use their city, state or region as part of their company name. If you plan only to work in your city, then this might serve you well. But a geographic name could hinder you later. One great example is Minnesota Manufacturing and Mining. Initially, the name worked because the business was focused on Minnesota. But once the company grew beyond their industry and the state of Minnesota, they needed to find a new name and renamed the company 3M.



Avoid obscure words.

Company names that help tell stories can be powerful and memorable (think about Google, for example). But obscure words or references might be difficult to spell or pronounce. Be especially sensitive if you’re trying to reach a mass audience (such as on the Internet). Obscure or invented names can work – Xerox is a great example – but this often requires a huge marketing budget and tremendous effort.



Avoid trends.

You’ll want your company’s name to evolve as trends evolve, so be careful to identify the trends and to avoid following them. For example, in the late 1990s, it was trendy to use a .com after your company name if your company was an Internet business. After the Internet bubble burst, the .com became synonymous with having no business model and those companies who survived very quickly dropped .com from their names.



Consider whether you can register a domain and obtain a trademark.

It’s important to make sure that your competitors are not using the same name in your industry. It’s not uncommon to find similar (or even identical names) in different industries, but this can result in confusion for your customers and vendors. If your competitors are using the same name – you’ll expose yourself to possible litigation and you’ll likely be unable to obtain trademark protection for your company name.



So, look for a company name that is also available for registration as a domain (ideally, as a .com domain). You should understand that .com domains are very popular and you’ll struggle to find available domains that match your company name. Many people worry about this and that’s why every proposed business name on crowdspring has a matching domain name.