Most people spend a weekend on their store name and then regret one of two things: that the name boxes them in, or that they discovered a clash a month after launching. Both are avoidable. A good name is not clever, it is easy to say, easy to spell and free for you to use.
Decide what the name has to do
Before you brainstorm, write down two things: who you sell to, and how broad you may become. A name like "Phone Case Planet" is clear today and awkward the day you add chargers. A name that hints at a feeling or a customer, rather than one product, lasts longer.
There are roughly three styles to choose from:
- Descriptive, such as "Cozy Desk Co". Easy to understand, harder to own, and often taken.
- Invented or abstract, such as a short coined word. Easy to protect and to find on Google, but it needs marketing to mean something.
- Evocative, a real word that suggests a mood. Often the best balance.
Brainstorm in volume
Write fifty names without judging them. Mix words about your customer, the feeling of the product, places, materials and verbs. Combine pairs. Then cross out anything you would be embarrassed to say on the phone. Most of the fifty will be bad, and that is normal: the good one tends to appear around number thirty.
Run each name through the same filters
Take your shortlist of five and test every name the same way:
- Say it out loud. Can someone write it down after hearing it once? If you have to spell it, it will lose you word-of-mouth sales.
- Check the spelling and the meaning. Search it with other languages in mind if you plan to sell abroad. A harmless word in English can be rude somewhere else.
- Search it on Google. If page one is full of other businesses, you will be hard to find.
- Check the domain. A .com is still the easiest for customers to guess, but a short, clean alternative is better than a long, awkward .com. Avoid hyphens and numbers.
- Check social handles. You want the same name on Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest, or something very close.
- Search trademark databases in the countries where you sell. This is the check people skip, and the one that can force a rebrand.
Keep it short
Aim for two syllables or three at most, and under about twelve characters. Short names fit on a packaging label, an app icon and a phone screen. They also look better in a URL.
Do not fall for these traps
- Names that depend on a trend. They age quickly.
- Names that are one letter away from a famous brand. They invite complaints.
- Puns that need explaining.
- Names you love but nobody else can pronounce.
Ask a few people, but not too many
Show your final two or three to five people from your target customer group. Do not ask "do you like it?", ask what kind of store it sounds like and what it sells. If they guess wrong, the name is not doing its job. Skip the opinions of friends who are trying to be kind.
What comes next
Once you have the name, secure the domain and handles on the same day, then move on to how it looks. Our guide to a logo without a designer is the next step, and the way you write about your products should follow from the name too, which we cover in brand voice for product descriptions.
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