Business Name

A business name can take many forms.  Technically, it is a word or set of words that represents a business.  A business is a structure that provides products or services for a cost.   Your business name could just be your name.  But most people like to give their business a different name.  Though sometimes a business owner may incorporate their personal name as part of the business like “John’s Plumbing”.  From a legal sense, a business name is something governments use to refer to a business.

When starting a contractor or carpenter business, one of the first steps is to come up with a business name.  Much like parents picking a name for their unborn child, a business owner typically thinks about what they would like to name their business.  Sometimes they name is straightforward like “Bob’s Roofing” which uses the owner’s name.  Other times the name is generic like “Quality Electric”.  Or the business name could be a made-up name.  There is no exact process.

But, sometimes, a business owner needs help.  One Internet tool that can help is Namelix (https://namelix.com/).  The website will generate name based on keywords.

Once you have settled on a business name, the next step is to register the business name with the local government.  Each country and region may have a different process.  In the United States, this is typically done with a state government agency.  Please check with them for the exact process.

When trying to register your business name, the first roadblock in your business may happen.  Someone else may have already registered that business name or something very similar to your idea.  It happens all the time.  So, back to the brainstorming to find an available business name.  Typically, a business name must be unique for that government agency.  So only one business can have that name per state.

Some owners might change the name slightly to be unique.  But remember as part of branding, it is important to be unique.  You want your business name to standout and not be easily confused with a similar business.

You might find a unique business name in your local government, but then you go to get a domain name.  A domain name is the Internet address for your business website and email.  You try to purchase your desired domain name and find out it has been taken.  Unfortunately, domain names are global and one only is allowed in the entire world.  This makes the process much harder in finding a unique business name that has an available domain name.

A business name is the name you select for your contractor or carpenter business.  When thinking up a business name, it is important to realize that not all business names are available with your local government registration and as an Internet domain name.  Your brainstorming needs to be wide enough to come up with a few ideas.  Then check availability with your local government and domain names during this brainstorming process.  A business name is one of the most important part of your business branding because it determines one of the fundamental parts of your business.  You can be changed but all those changes take time and have costs.