Name Your Business

Daisy at Ignertia mentioned to me via Twitter that I completely overlooked deciding on your business name. She is right - for some reason, I skipped over this important aspect. The name of your business is most likely the first thing a potential client will hear..."Check out Pearls Events for wedding planning." and "Hello, I'm Aletha of Pearls Events."

I spent months thinking of what to call my West Michigan wedding planning company, but I realize not everyone does this, or they do and can't come up with anything they are happy with. There are a few ways to go with naming a business - straightforward, creative, a combination of both, or a random personal story.

• For the straightforward name you pick something like Jasmine Star Photography, Janie Medley Flora Design, or Kate Parker Weddings. We totally get it - your name and what you do. This is a great idea if you plan on working for yourself forever, especially solo.
  
  
• For a creative name, you pick something that might need a bit of explaining like Banana Republic, Starbucks, or IKEA. If you didn't know what they were because of pop culture, you'd have to ask.
  
  
• For a combination of both you pick something like Vanilla Bake Shop, Lotus Photographic, or September's Bride. We understand what you're selling, but it's still creative enough where someone might ask you why you chose to name it that.
  
  
• And then of course, there is the personal option. Maybe a funny story between you and your husband, like Erin of Lucky Designs.
  

There are many successful businesses out there with the founder's name in it - Macy's McDonald's and Kellogg's to name a few, however, I had no interest in naming my company after myself for a few reasons.

• I own my business, but do not wish to run it forever.
• Aletha VanderMaas Event Planning is not creative, and my name gets mispronounced often.
• I do not work solo. When potential clients book our services, they know they might not be working with me.
• I am a creative person in a creative line of work. I wanted a name that reflected that.

I originally wanted to call Pearls Events just Pearls, but soon realized it'd be a little too random. People hearing my business name in passing would have no idea what I did for a living. Adding Events to the name lends another noun for people to work with. Also, if you Google pearls, there are way too many websites out there that pop up. Add events to the search and I pop up right at the top. Perfect!

Of course, after you have something you love, THEN you'd have your logo designed. Thanks, Daisy, for encouraging me to write this post.