You’ve decided to take the plunge to start your own business. Now you have the task (fun, difficult or both) of naming your business. Following are some tips to consider when choosing a business name.

• Define your brand’s attributes before you choose a name. When deciding on a name take these attributes into consideration to ensure the name reflects them.
• Have a clear understanding of your audience’s age, gender, income and lifestyle, so you can create a name they’ll understand. Don’t use hip-hop terms if your target market is senior citizens.
• Choose a name that is easy to pronounce. The coolest, slickest, most evocative name in the world means nothing when customers struggle to pronounce it or, even worse, pronounce it in many different ways.
• Try and pick a name that people will never, ever forget. That means a distinctive, even outrageous name, for example Virgin.
• Quality Home Furnishings is utterly unmemorable. Kangaroo Kites, however, is unforgettable. If you have any doubt, ask yourself: Who’s the leading global on-line retailer – amazon.com or books.com?
• Pick an evocative name. One that makes you think of something, see something, hear something. A name that evokes an emotional response or that resonates in some meaningful, memorable way.

Once you’ve chosen a name you need to ensure that it is available for use. ASIC is the regulatory body which oversees business name registrations.

You can check whether your business name is available by conducting a search of the National Names Index at www.asic.gov.au.