While there are no hard and fast rules for naming your business, here are some tips, tricks, and creative ideas* to help you develop a business name.
Pros: Unless you change your name, it rarely becomes obsolete; in the first example, it may make your business "sound big"; in the second example, it may give your business that personal touch.
Cons: In the first example, the type of business isn't clear; in the second example, the business name may be "too cute" or may peg you and your business as a "one-person home-based hobby-job" which might make some potential clients wary of doing business with you.
Pros: It can provide a positive name association for those familiar with the location in the name or indicate a specific neighborhood for customers looking for something in the vicinity.
Cons: What if you move? The name may have no significance to customers new to the area or to long distance customers.
Pros: Identifies your type of business or specialty.
Cons: Terms like Art, Graphics, Designs, and even Desktop Publishing can have different meanings; Pixels on Paper sounds nice, but customers who aren't graphics-savvy might be left scratching their heads; Art for You could be a graphic design firm or a retail business selling framed prints or a commercial artist who paints the sides of buildings.
*The names used as examples are not intended to represent actual businesses. Any similarity to actual persons or businesses is purely coincidental.
Your Assignment
Even if you don't have a name nailed down yet, find out what steps are necessary to registering a business name for where you live. Find out where to go, what forms you'll need to fill out, what process you need to go through to do a name search, costs for registering your business name, and how long the registration is good for. Get ready now for when you do have a name for your freelance design business. The procedures vary depending on your business structure as well as where you are doing business.
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