Top 10 Business Name Memory Tips

Following on from research which suggests that most small companies spend too little or too much time choosing their company name, Microsoft Small Business has published some tips on how best to choose find a decent name for your new enterprise.

1. Make it Meaningful - A concrete or visual noun (however relevant to the nature of the business) can make a more memorable company name than using something like the owner's name or initials or business terms like Limited, Associates and 'and Son'

2. Don't Create - Avoid 'created' words like Tesco and Asda. They suit larger companies that might be looking to build an individual identity more than achieve instant memorability

3. Colourful Connections - If you want the name to reflect the nature of your business, it is highly memorable to connect a concrete noun to a simple business description: for example, Crown Windscreens

4. Keep it Short - Too many words or letters can be too much to remember. What would be better: Crown Windscreens, or Crown Windscreens and Exhausts? The advantages of indicating your entire area of speciality can be outweighed by the advantages of having a simple name to remember

5. Poetry - Does the name trip off the tongue easily? Go for combinations that are easier to say and hear which is why alliteration can sometimes work well: Apple Anoraks

6. Location - A sense of place is usually extremely memorable if chosen carefully. Its particularly good if most of your business is from local customers. As long as your potential customers have heard of Watford, Watford Windscreens is a good start

7. Steal? - Companies sometimes decide to capitalise off another's name. The similarity of Hamleys and Gamleys is a well-known example

8. Don't Share Too Much - Avoid unnecessary common words that will be shared by lots of other businesses

9. Don't Dwell on it! You should consider the name carefully but beware! If you chew it over for a long time, it will start to seem more inherently memorable than when you first came up with it

10. Don't Mess Around - Backwards letters, snazzy graphics and radio jingles are not as memorable as you might think. The simple written or spoken word is established as a memorable form of communication, so it pays to keep things simple.

You can read these tips, in full at http://www.bcentral.co.uk/whatsinaname