How to come up with a business name.

There’s an interesting story behind every business name…

Business names generally fell within one of four categories:

• Functional: Names that are purely descriptive of what a company or product does.

• Invented: Constructed names based on rhythm and the experience of saying them.

• Experiential: Names that offer a direct connection to something real.

• Evocative: Names that evoke the positioning of a company or product.

Let’s dive deeper into these categories and hear from other business owners about their naming business stories..

Functional business names:

Functional business names describe what a company or product does. These descriptive, functional names work well for products because they clearly communicate their purpose to customers.

For the purpose of better understanding functional business names, let’s analyze functional juice names. Can you think of any examples?

Here are a few functional juice names:

• Simply Orange

• Apple Time

• Welch’s

• Hansen’s

• Martinelli’s

  Simply Orange is purely descriptive of a product, while names like “Welch’s” are descriptive of the families or people behind the company.

  
  Invented business names:

Invented business names poetically capture the rhythm and experience of saying them.

Try saying “Google” or “Oreo,” and you’ll have a couple of quality examples of invented business names.

These invented names have many pros, including the ease of acquiring a domain name, securing a trademark, and having lots of marketing potential. The tough part is getting customers to remember the name, which may require advertising as well as getting team buy-in.

Examples of invented business names of juice companies

Let’s revisit our juice company analysis to better understand Invented business names. Think long and hard about juice companies you know. Do any names come to mind that seems invented?

Here are a few invented juice names:

• Snapple

• Odwalla

• V8

• Sobe

• Pom

Snapple probably didn’t have much trouble snapping up their domain name at the time of their naming, while names like Sobe or Odwalla likely took a long journey from name invention to customer adoption.

Domain availability makes invented names attractive for many new companies.

Experiential business names:

Business names that hone in on experience rather than the task are known as experiential business names.

Think about how names like the Ford Explorer or GoTo.com capture a direct connection to something real.

Experiential names typically define the experience a customer will have with the company or product.

These names tend to be harder to trademark but can work well for product names that connect with customers.

Examples of experiential business names of juice companies

Continuing with our juice company analysis, think about situations where you’d really enjoy some juice. These situational experiences may make for some interesting experiential business names.

Here are a few experiential juice names:

• Sunkist

• MinuteMaid

• Sunsweet

• Freshers

• Good Day

The name Sunkist may revive experiences of basking in some fresh sun. Meanwhile, names like Freshers or Sunsweet may set taste expectations even before trying the product.

While experiential names may require a little explanation, consumers can make sense of these types of names because of the connection to something real and shared. Let’s hear a few “naming a business” stories from company founders who chose to go with an experiential name.

Evocative business names:

If you’re looking for a nonlinear and multidimensional business name, then an evocative name may be your answer.

Whereas experiential names focus on customer experience, evocative names are designed to evoke a company’s positioning. Think Virgin or Yahoo!

These names are tough to get right because they can sometimes be abstractions for internal stakeholders and external customers. But, when a company nails it, the name can help create a powerful brand image that carries market differentiation.

Examples of evocative business names of juice companies

Let’s take a final spin at the juice industry when it comes to evocative names. Since evocative names tend to be abstract and positionally driven, the juice industry lends itself nicely to this type of naming.

Here are a few evocative juice names:

• Naked

• Crystal Geyser

• Capri Sun

• Tree Top

• Ocean Spray

You probably didn’t have Naked as a potential business name. But in the juice industry, this name has worked because it evokes the product’s positioning: no artificial flavors added sugar or preservatives.

While evocative names are harder to come by, let’s hear the stories of a couple of companies with evocative names.

 The bottom line: Coming up with a business name is no easy task.

Creating a name is the moment when a business becomes real.