We’ll talk more about branding yourself in Chapter 5; however, it’s very important that you carefully consider the business name you plan to use, when first kicking off your freelance career. There are two typical approaches: use your personal name, or create an entirely new trading name.
Let’s look at these options in more detail.
Using Your Own Name
Using your own name is a fantastic way to build a personal brand. Taking this option depends on what your vision of the future looks like—if you plan to hire staff at a later date, you may want to avoid using your own full name, but there are still op tions available even if you do; for example, Burke Design & Development; Miles Burke & Co. On the other hand, if you have every intention of remaining a one- person show, giving yourself a name like “XYZ Corporation” can be considered misleading, as it won’t take long for your clients to realize that you’re a solo worker.
Anything’s Possible!
Many people start off never expecting to take on staff. Don’t rule this out, unless you feel strongly against it. I once couldn’t picture myself hiring employees ... and at the time of writing I have 16!
This theory assumes your name is unique enough to be memorable, and that it’s easy for your clients to pronounce. If your name is Bob Smith, you may find that it’s too common for business registration and other registrations, such as domain names or intellectual property.
To recap, the advantages of using your personal name include:
■ it builds a reputation around you
■ it’s normally easier to recall, since clients already know your name
■ it can avoid misleading clients if you plan to stay solo
■ it looks far more personal and (depending on the uniqueness of your name) can make you easier to find on the Web
Disadvantages of using your own name include:
■ it limits you in terms of hiring staff and possibly even selling the business, if you reach that point someday
■ it can make it harder to rank on search engines if your name is very common
■ it may be hard to pronounce if your name is very uncommon
Using a Fictitious Name
Irrespective of the business structure, having a business name unrelated to your personal name has a number of considerations that need taking into account.
A business name which when read phonetically is still pronounced correctly is perfect. Pfizer could be a challenge; Sigma is fairly unambiguous. Don’t get too clever with creating crazy business names—most people would regret having to answer the phone with the greeting “Smelly Shoe Design” before long.
Having your main service as part of the name makes sense as well, although be warned against making it too specific. For example, perhaps you’re a designer whose short-term plans are to design web sites only. You’ll need to consider whether you plan to expand into other forms of design in the future. Having a name like “XYZ Web Design” when you’re pitching for a logo design project may not help you beat your competition, so beware of suggesting that you’re only capable of providing one service.
A good name should be easy to recall, evocative, pronouncable, and unique. You’ll want to register the domain name, so run a WHOIS on your shortlist to rule out those already registered. Don’t just consider your own country extension—register as many extensions (including the top-level domains, .com and .net) as possible.
Unexpected Domain Names
Take a step back and look at your domain name carefully! There’s been more than one business that has come up with a great trade name and bought the (in)appro priate domain name to match:
■ Experts Exchange: expertsexchange.com
■ Therapist Finder: therapistfinder.com
■ Powergen Italia: powergenitalia.com
The advantages of creating a new name for your business are:
■ It keeps your personal and business lives further separated.
■ It allows infinite choice of business name.
■ It allows you to tailor the name according to domain name availability.
■ It’s easier to sell your business or client base in the future. Disadvantages of using a custom name include:
■ You’ll need to exert some energy to get a new name to stick.
■ You could have issues finding one that you feel comfortable with and fits you well.
■ It’s not an easy process to change the name later on.
If you do decide to use a created name, start by creating a shortlist of options, and then create a spreadsheet. Populate the first column by doing a WHOIS search and finding which domain names are still available (both geographic and top-level).
Table . Business domain name matrix
Name .com .net .us
XYZ Design Factory available available available
XYZ taken taken available
XYZ Web Works available available available
Then, fire up your favorite search engine and search for those business names. What are the results? You wouldn’t be the first start-up to make it this far, only to find another product or business using the same name. It’s better to do this research now, rather than when the business cards have been printed ... Try predictable misspellings of the words, too—often a business name may be only one letter differ ent from another, so make sure you check first!
Thirdly, consult your local trademark database and see if there are any trademarks of which you need to be aware. Even very similar words may be worth avoiding.
You should also speak to some friends and colleagues. Ask them what they think of each name in your refined shortlist, and narrow this list down even further. It’s better to do this face to face to observe an immediate reaction, rather than by email or phone, where they may have a longer time to consider it—you want their gut response.
Finally, go with your instinct. After all, it’s your creation, and you have to like it. If, after hours and hours of soul-searching, you just aren’t happy with your choice, try again or consider using your own name.
Example . Bam Creative
When considering my own business name, I had a multitude of options. I liked the idea of incorporating my name in the business identity; however, I did want to leave my options open in case I ever hired staff.
Although my name (Miles Burke) is fairly unusual, the domain name milesburke.com was taken at the time, and I didn’t want to tie it in so closely to me in any case.
My initials are MB or MAB in full, and I didn’t believe these really stood out. However, when you reverse them, you end up with BAM, which I felt suggested impact. I knew that Bam was a very popular word, though, so I assumed there was no chance of getting those domains using it by itself.
Although most of my work at the time was web site design and development, I was occasionally brought in on corporate identity design or consulting projects. I’d already decided that I planned to stick to creative work, so I ended up choosing the business name Bam Creative.
Let’s look at these options in more detail.
Using Your Own Name
Using your own name is a fantastic way to build a personal brand. Taking this option depends on what your vision of the future looks like—if you plan to hire staff at a later date, you may want to avoid using your own full name, but there are still op tions available even if you do; for example, Burke Design & Development; Miles Burke & Co. On the other hand, if you have every intention of remaining a one- person show, giving yourself a name like “XYZ Corporation” can be considered misleading, as it won’t take long for your clients to realize that you’re a solo worker.
Anything’s Possible!
Many people start off never expecting to take on staff. Don’t rule this out, unless you feel strongly against it. I once couldn’t picture myself hiring employees ... and at the time of writing I have 16!
This theory assumes your name is unique enough to be memorable, and that it’s easy for your clients to pronounce. If your name is Bob Smith, you may find that it’s too common for business registration and other registrations, such as domain names or intellectual property.
To recap, the advantages of using your personal name include:
■ it builds a reputation around you
■ it’s normally easier to recall, since clients already know your name
■ it can avoid misleading clients if you plan to stay solo
■ it looks far more personal and (depending on the uniqueness of your name) can make you easier to find on the Web
Disadvantages of using your own name include:
■ it limits you in terms of hiring staff and possibly even selling the business, if you reach that point someday
■ it can make it harder to rank on search engines if your name is very common
■ it may be hard to pronounce if your name is very uncommon
Using a Fictitious Name
Irrespective of the business structure, having a business name unrelated to your personal name has a number of considerations that need taking into account.
A business name which when read phonetically is still pronounced correctly is perfect. Pfizer could be a challenge; Sigma is fairly unambiguous. Don’t get too clever with creating crazy business names—most people would regret having to answer the phone with the greeting “Smelly Shoe Design” before long.
Having your main service as part of the name makes sense as well, although be warned against making it too specific. For example, perhaps you’re a designer whose short-term plans are to design web sites only. You’ll need to consider whether you plan to expand into other forms of design in the future. Having a name like “XYZ Web Design” when you’re pitching for a logo design project may not help you beat your competition, so beware of suggesting that you’re only capable of providing one service.
A good name should be easy to recall, evocative, pronouncable, and unique. You’ll want to register the domain name, so run a WHOIS on your shortlist to rule out those already registered. Don’t just consider your own country extension—register as many extensions (including the top-level domains, .com and .net) as possible.
Unexpected Domain Names
Take a step back and look at your domain name carefully! There’s been more than one business that has come up with a great trade name and bought the (in)appro priate domain name to match:
■ Experts Exchange: expertsexchange.com
■ Therapist Finder: therapistfinder.com
■ Powergen Italia: powergenitalia.com
The advantages of creating a new name for your business are:
■ It keeps your personal and business lives further separated.
■ It allows infinite choice of business name.
■ It allows you to tailor the name according to domain name availability.
■ It’s easier to sell your business or client base in the future. Disadvantages of using a custom name include:
■ You’ll need to exert some energy to get a new name to stick.
■ You could have issues finding one that you feel comfortable with and fits you well.
■ It’s not an easy process to change the name later on.
If you do decide to use a created name, start by creating a shortlist of options, and then create a spreadsheet. Populate the first column by doing a WHOIS search and finding which domain names are still available (both geographic and top-level).
Table . Business domain name matrix
Name .com .net .us
XYZ Design Factory available available available
XYZ taken taken available
XYZ Web Works available available available
Then, fire up your favorite search engine and search for those business names. What are the results? You wouldn’t be the first start-up to make it this far, only to find another product or business using the same name. It’s better to do this research now, rather than when the business cards have been printed ... Try predictable misspellings of the words, too—often a business name may be only one letter differ ent from another, so make sure you check first!
Thirdly, consult your local trademark database and see if there are any trademarks of which you need to be aware. Even very similar words may be worth avoiding.
You should also speak to some friends and colleagues. Ask them what they think of each name in your refined shortlist, and narrow this list down even further. It’s better to do this face to face to observe an immediate reaction, rather than by email or phone, where they may have a longer time to consider it—you want their gut response.
Finally, go with your instinct. After all, it’s your creation, and you have to like it. If, after hours and hours of soul-searching, you just aren’t happy with your choice, try again or consider using your own name.
Example . Bam Creative
When considering my own business name, I had a multitude of options. I liked the idea of incorporating my name in the business identity; however, I did want to leave my options open in case I ever hired staff.
Although my name (Miles Burke) is fairly unusual, the domain name milesburke.com was taken at the time, and I didn’t want to tie it in so closely to me in any case.
My initials are MB or MAB in full, and I didn’t believe these really stood out. However, when you reverse them, you end up with BAM, which I felt suggested impact. I knew that Bam was a very popular word, though, so I assumed there was no chance of getting those domains using it by itself.
Although most of my work at the time was web site design and development, I was occasionally brought in on corporate identity design or consulting projects. I’d already decided that I planned to stick to creative work, so I ended up choosing the business name Bam Creative.
This allows my business to work on anything from web sites to logos and anything else that can be broadly considered creative, and still be true to the name. The word Bam is generic enough for most people never to make the connection that it’s someone’s initials, and certainly not the reverse of someone’s initials!
Funnily enough, I did manage to register the domain bam.com.au, but I had no chance of getting any top-level domains (.com, .net or .org). Luckily, I got the full bamcreative business name versions of these.
Funnily enough, I did manage to register the domain bam.com.au, but I had no chance of getting any top-level domains (.com, .net or .org). Luckily, I got the full bamcreative business name versions of these.
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