How to choose a business name

Unless you’re lucky enough to have a Eureka moment, choosing a name for your business can be a challenging process. When starting a business, the moniker you choose will become synonymous with your brand, and will shape your first impression on prospective customers, so it isn’t a decision you should make lightly.  

Aside from being memorable, there are also a lot of practical hoops you need to jump through when deciding on a business name – these include making sure that it’s legally compliant, trademark-free, and SEO-friendly. If this all sounds a bit overwhelming, don’t worry. There are a variety of methods you can use to get the ball rolling. 

We’ll walk you through the process of choosing a business name in simple steps – highlighting some practical and creative advice – to help you find a name as unique as your brand’s identity.

Step 1 – Understand your business

Before you begin brainstorming catchy brand names and mocking them up on your business website, you need to have a deep understanding of your business first. 

While this step may sound obvious, failing to truly understand your brand identity can result in you choosing a business name that doesn’t quite reflect the nature of your business or resonate with your target audience.

To lay down the foundations for a perfect name, we recommend picking up a pen and paper and clearly defining which products and services your business offers, your ideal customer, your core values, and your future goals and aspirations. 

By jotting down all of these key details, it’ll be easier to understand your business’s unique selling proposition (USP) and your core differentiations from competitors, giving you a solid structure to build from.

Doing this work early on in your business’s lifespan will also provide you with a strong roadmap for future decisions and ensure that all efforts you make are aligned with your brand’s overall vision. 

Step 2 – Brainstorm business name ideas

Starting from scratch is never easy, especially when you’re coming up with something as important as a business name. So, to get the ball rolling, you’ll need to start brainstorming. 

This is where you can really have fun and let your creative juices flow. Don’t overthink your ideas too much during this stage; just come up with as many options as possible, and you’ll be able to whittle down the list later.

Stuck for ideas? It could be worth performing a mind dump. Simply write down everything you can think of that relates to your business, from the obvious to the obscure. Using a business name generator and playing with word association can also be useful ways to generate more ideas.

Looking at successful brand names like Verizon, Adidas, and Google is also a good idea during this step, as it will help you take inspiration from successes and give you another springboard for coming up with your own name.

To avoid your mind going off track and losing focus, we also recommend setting a time limit for your brainstorming sessions, or breaking them down into smaller sessions with specific purposes. 

Step 3 – Check name availability

Before you start branding, getting merch, or creating your business website, you must check that your chosen name is not already being used by someone else and does not infringe any registered trademarks.

The easiest way to do this is by using the Companies House online search tool. Visit the official GOV.UK website and search for “Companies House name availability checker” to access the tool. Then, after you enter your desired name, the tool will compare your potential name against a database of existing registered company names. 

If your name is already taken or determined to be too similar to an existing one, you may need to go back to the drawing board and consider alternative names. 

We also recommend doing a thorough search on social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook to check if a company with your chosen name exists online. This is also a good opportunity to check if your chosen handle is available to use on different platforms. 

Step 4 – Think about your business structure

If you haven’t already, you’ll have to choose your business structure and consider how your decision could impact your chosen name. 

Generally, sole traders have lots more flexibility than limited companies when it comes to choosing a business name. For example, if you’re registering a limited company, the formal trademark checks will be more rigorous than if you are a registered sole trader. 

Like the way this sounds? Learn how to become a sole trader in our comprehensive guide. 

Limited companies will also have to officially register their business name with Companies House (more on this later), meaning they are subject to stricter rules about name availability. 

This formal registration process means that limited company names must end with “Limited” or “Ltd”, and they are prohibited from using certain words or expressions like “Bank”, “Royal”, and “Chartered” without prior permission.

Failing to adhere to these rules could result in your proposed name being rejected, and could even land you with a fine.

Step 5 – Consider SEO and online marketing

When coming up with a business name in 2025, you can’t ignore the significance of search engine optimisation (SEO). 

The most common way customers come across new businesses is through online search, so having a searchable name can likely be the difference between success and failure in this digital world. 

To help boost your position in the search engine results page (SERPS), it may be worth considering integrating keywords into your name. Doing so would likely improve your brand’s visibility, making it easier for customers to find you. 

Overdoing keywords could result in your business name sounding a little clunky and unprofessional though, so we recommend only adopting this strategy if it feels organic and true to your business. 

As a rule of thumb, shorter names are easier for people to remember and type into search bars, too. So, avoiding business names that are too lengthy and complex is another way to positively impact your business’s SEO.

Step 6 – Get feedback (and trust your gut)

Think you’ve landed on the perfect business name? Well done! But before you go full steam ahead and register your company name, we recommend consulting with trusted family, friends, or potential customers to iron out any possible issues before it’s too late.

You likely have a personal attachment to your chosen names. But even if you think you’re 100% sure, testing options with others helps you to unlock fresh perspectives with a second, third, or fourth pair of eyes.

We advise telling third parties to be mindful of difficult pronunciations, weird spellings, and negative associations, as it’s often easier for them to spot potential issues that you’ve missed yourself. 

Don’t let their opinions override your gut feelings though. Sometimes the “right” name just feels right. So don’t be afraid to reassure them when you’ve got a good feeling about a name.

Registering your company name

If you’re a sole trader, registering a business name isn’t actually compulsory. But if you’re launching a private limited company, then you are legally required to register a company name. Doing so will establish your business entity with the government and prevent your chosen name from being used by others. 

To register your company, you’ll have to set up an account with Companies House, the official company register in the UK. You’ll be required to provide details like the company’s registered office address, director and shareholder information, and the company’s Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code. 

If you register online, you’ll be charged a fee of £50, while postal registrations cost slightly more at £71, and you’ll have to send over the payment by cheque.

Once you’ve registered your name, you’ll receive a certificate of incorporation from Companies House, officially confirming your company’s registered name.

10 tips for choosing the perfect business name

Landing on the perfect business name is no mean feat. Whether you’ve got a rough idea or are starting from scratch, here are some useful tips to guide you along the process.

1. Make it easy to spell and pronounce: you don’t want to make life hard for your customers. Avoiding complex or foreign names makes it easier for customers to remember and recommend to a friend. It also increases the chances of people finding your website in the first place, which is especially important in your business’s early days. 

2. Make sure it reflects your brand: your business’s name will be one of the most crucial aspects of your brand’s identity. So, you’ll need to make sure your chosen name accurately represents your brand, its key values, and the products and services it sells.

3. Keep it simple and memorable: it’s easy to want to fit too much in your business’s name. But the truth is, short, simple names are much easier to stick in people’s heads, even if they sound slightly outlandish at first. Think of leading companies like Apple, Puma and Starbucks.

4. Check for cultural meanings globally: a business name might sound perfectly reasonable in your language and culture, but have a completely different meaning in another. To avoid making a faux pas or potentially offending potential customers, practice due diligence and research what connotations your name could have globally.   

5. Make it unique and stand out from competitors: you want your business to stand out from others in the industry, especially if you operate in a particularly competitive field. To avoid your name getting lost in the crowd, we recommend carrying out some market research to understand how your competitors identify themselves. 

6. Ensure it looks good written down: your business name will appear on everything from your website to social media accounts. So, it’s important to make sure it flows well, looks good when written out, and works well in different fonts and formats. 

7. Be mindful of trends (don’t choose something that will date quickly): it might be tempting to latch on to a current trend or movement, but names tied to fleeting fads will become outdated fast. Aim for a name with staying power to help increase your brand’s longevity in the market.

8. Avoid names that could limit your brand’s growth: avoid choosing a name that’s too specific, and would limit opportunities to expand in the future. For example, names tied to geographic locations, or specific products or services, may not age well as the nature of your business evolves. 

9: Consider your target market: your ideal customer should be able to connect with your business name. So, when choosing a business name, you should consider your target audience, including their preferences, demographics, and the language they use. 

10. Ask for feedback: don’t come up with your business name in a silo. Once you have a shortlist of potential names, share your ideas with trusted friends, family, and business associates, and ask them for their input. This will help you gain a fresh perspective and could highlight some issues you’ve overlooked yourself. 

Conclusion

Choosing the right name for your business isn’t just a creative exercise. A strong business name helps solidify your brand, sets the tone for customer expectations, and differentiates you from the competition. 

You don’t need to navigate the process alone, though. By following the steps outlined in this article, relying on help from GOV.UK, and outsourcing tasks to a formation agent (a company that can handle the process of registering on Companies House on your behalf) if needed, choosing a business name that stands the test of time can be made much easier.