Creating a winning business name takes some thought but is one of the most important things you’ll do during the process of starting a business. Starting out with a weak business name is like trying to golf with only one club in your bag. You may sink some shots but it will be a whole lot harder.

The following are the five rules for choosing a business name:

1) A winning business name has to be memorable – but easy to spell.
Find a name that could attract your prospected customers by making it simple and easy to spell.
2) A winning business name needs a visual element.
What popped into your head when you read “Crychalwellyn”? Anything? Most people don’t visualize anything when they read this business name that I invented. But generally we are hard-wired to “see” images when we read or hear language, and incorporating a visual element into your business name can be a powerful aid to customers’ memory (and a powerful advertising tool).
3) A winning business name has to have positive connotation.
Many words have both denotation (literal meaning) and connotation (emotional meaning). A word’s connotation can be positive, neutral or negative, depending on the emotional associations that people generally make
4) A winning business name needs to include information about what your business does.
Choosing your business name must also best describes the nature of your business that would help your customers identify your business.
5) A winning business name has to be fairly short.
Once again this is vital because you want customers and clients to be able to remember your business’s name (and be able to tell other people what it is)! But it’s also important for promotional purposes.
And a last tip: think about colours when you’re choosing a business name. Colours will be an important component of your business logo and other business promotion materials and your business web site, and colours have strong emotional associations, too. Red, for instance, is an aggressive colour; its fiery elements are associated with speed, excitement and passion while green is a calming colour associated with growth, renewal and nature. You’ll want to create at least two winning business names, and three is even better, because once you’ve chosen a business name, the next step is to register it and your first choice may already be taken.