How to name a startup: what makes a good brand name
What makes a good startup name, types of names, a brainstorming method, checking domains and social handles, trademark searches and testing.
By Editorial Team
Your name is your startup's first impression; customers, investors and employees meet you through it. A great name does not guarantee success, but a bad one creates needless problems.
Qualities of a good name
- Short and memorable: remembered after hearing it once
- Easy to say and spell: someone who hears it can type it into search
- Distinctive: not confused with competitors
- Registrable: does not clash with existing marks; see our trademark guide
- Room to grow: not tied too tightly to one product or city
- International: if you plan to expand, no negative meanings in other languages; consider the issues Turkish characters can cause in domains and abroad.
Types of names
- Descriptive: says what you do; clear but weaker on distinctiveness and registrability.
- Suggestive: hints at a benefit or feeling; a balanced choice.
- Invented or abstract: fully original and easy to register, but needs more marketing to gain meaning.
- Compound: two words combined
- Founder's name: personal but harder to scale and transfer.
Brainstorming
- List the brand's values and the feelings it should evoke; see our brand identity guide.
- Collect related words, metaphors and their equivalents in other languages.
- Generate many candidates fast; do not judge yet.
- Narrow to 5–10.
Checks
- Domain: are your preferred extensions available?
- Social handles
- Trademark search: identical or similar registered marks?
- Trade registry: companies with similar names
- Meaning: any negative meaning in target-market languages?
Testing
Test the shortlist with target customers: what does it evoke, can they spell it, do they remember it a day later? You can also compare click rates with a simple A/B test on ads or a landing page.
Conclusion
A good name is simple, distinctive and protectable. Once decided, file the trademark and register the domain right away.
This guide is for general information only and is not legal, financial or investment advice. Check official sources and consult professionals for current terms.
