What's In A Name?
I'm wondering if there are rules for creating business names.
QUESTION: What should be the maximum amount of letters in a
business name?
Fern Swecker
Via e-mail
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ANSWER: The professional marketing firms that create names for
automobiles and other products tend to choose names that range from
four to eight letters, like Acura, Infiniti and Lexus. But, for a
start-up business with a limited marketing budget, length isn't
necessarily the most important factor in choosing a name.
As we explain in Getting Business to Come to You (Putnam
Publishing Group), the name you choose can be one of the most
important marketing decisions you make. A vague, misleading name,
no matter how short, can lose business for you. A name that's
easy to spell and pronounce, describes what you do and
distinguishes you from others can bring you business.
Jerywil, for example, is a short name, but it's not a good
one from a marketing perspective. It's difficult to spell, hard
to remember and provides no indication of the type of business it
represents. Investigative Services for Attorneys is longer but more
effective as a marketing tool because the name represents what the
company does.
Within the parameters of these principles, however, we recommend
that you make your business name short enough to fit on one line of
letterhead, a business card, a telephone-directory listing or a Web
site.
Small-business experts Paul and Sarah Edwards recently released
their second edition of Getting Business To Come To You (Putnam
Publishing Group). If you have a question regarding a start-up
business issue, contact them at www.paulandsarah.com or send it in
care of Entrepreneur.
Small-business experts Paul and Sarah Edwards recently
released their second edition of Getting Business To Come To You
(Putnam Publishing Group). If you have a question regarding a
start-up business issue, contact them at http://www.paulandsarah.com or
send it in care of Entrepreneur.