How to Come Up with a Brand Name: A Practical Step-by-Step Guide

How to Come Up with a Brand Name: Naming your brand isn’t just an easy task; it’s the first impression. A good brand name shapes your brand identity and builds recognition. It can help you connect with potential customers before they ever buy. Think of global brands like Steve Jobs' Apple or Bill Bowerman's Nike: their names alone spark trust and tell a story.

The problem? Coming up with the perfect brand name can feel overwhelming. One moment you’re full of ideas, the next you’re lost in random words. Things like domain availability issues or fear of negative connotations become a hurdle. Many brands get stuck here and settle for less than a memorable brand name.

This is the ultimate guide to the brand naming process. Learn how to define a brand’s essence, brainstorm unique brand names, and test them with your target audience. By the end, you’ll have a clear, step-by-step roadmap to create a strong name that fuels growth. A brand name that avoids common pitfalls and even sparks potential brand names.

The Brand Naming Process

Define Your Brand Values and Essence

Here’s the deal: a great brand stands and tells a story without using a sentence. Your brand's purpose is the soul of your business, the why behind what you do. Are you disrupting an industry? Making something more accessible? Making more sense? More sustainable?

• Think Nike: Named after the Greek goddess of victory. This matches their brand ethos of sports, movement, and excellence. A great example of values aligned to name
• Patagonia: Evokes exploration, nature, and rugged adventure.

Your mission, vision, and unique selling point (USP) are your guides here.

As branding expert Marty Neumeier explains, “The brand is not what you say it is. It’s what they say it is.”

Establish Your Brand Personality

Would your brand walk into a room wearing sneakers and cracking a joke?

Or maybe glide in with quiet elegance?

Your brand name should reflect your company personality. Whether that’s bold, fun, refined, edgy, or minimalist.

Not sure where you land? Use brand archetypes or mood boards to visualize your tone. Are you the Rebel like Harley-Davidson, or the Caregiver like Dove?

Real-world tip: Picture your company name on a T-shirt or billboard. Does it fit your vibe?

Know Your Target Audience

The right name isn’t just for you, it’s for the people you want to serve.

Ask yourself:

• What kind of words or tones identifies with them?
• Are they young and playful, or corporate and formal?
• Do they value simplicity, prestige, sustainability, or innovation?

Use tools like:

• Google Trends
• Reddit threads in your niche
• Focus groups or Instagram polls

Persona Check: A bootstrapped founder might gravitate toward scrappy business names. A CMO at a Fortune 500? Glossy, mature ones sounding like success.

As the Harvard Business Review notes, “Emotionally connected customers are more than twice as valuable to brands.”

Analyze Competitors and Market

You want to fit… but stand out. Scope the playing field:

• Make a spreadsheet of 10-15 business competitor names.
• What patterns show up? (Short vs. long, invented vs. descriptive?)
• Where’s the gap?

Use sites like:

• Namecheckr
• Crunchbase
• Namelix

Look for naming white space. If other brands are too techy, go warm. If they’re all serious, offer fun. Remember: Different is memorable. Same is invisible.

Brainstorming Brand Name Ideas

Brand Unique Naming Techniques

Try these:

• Mind Mapping – Start with your brand values or benefits in the center. Branch out words associated with each to generate potential names.
• The “Two Words” Matrix – Combine verbs + nouns. Think Mailchimp (Mail + Chimp), Facebook (Face + Book).
• Freewriting – Set a timer for 10 minutes and write everything you know about your business idea. Circle standout words.

Love soundplay?

• Rhymes: Lyft
• Alliteration: Coca-Cola
• Onomatopoeia: Zappos

Remember: Weird is welcome if it sticks.

Use Business Name Generators Wisely

Try:

• Namelix
• BrandBucket
• Wordoid

They help you see combinations you wouldn’t think of, but the downside? Many feel generic or algorithmic. Use them for spark, not as your branding gospel.

Focus on Simplicity and Memorability

Let’s be real: Your customers are multitasking and drowning in brands and new businesses.

Your name should be:

• Easy to spell
• Easy to say (try the “phone test”)
• Easy to remember (try the “5-second recall test”)

Avoid:

• Numbers (unless they're meaningful)
• Hyphens or symbols
• Trendy spellings (e.g. Xxtrmly Cool)

 Do:

• Choose real words or ones rooted in familiar sounds
• Tap into imagery, metaphor, or narrative.

Evaluating and Testing Good Brand Names

Use a 5-Part Evaluation Checklist

1. Does it align with our brand's business model and personality?
2. Will it resonate with our audience’s expectations?
3. Is it unique within our industry?
4. Can it scale with future products or markets as the business grows?
5. Does it have any negative meanings in other languages?

As Entrepreneur.com states, “A name might sound harmless in English but have unintended meanings abroad.” Always do a cross-cultural check.

Check Domain Availability, Trademark, and Social Handles

What good is the perfect name if it’s already taken?

Run checks on:

• Domain name (use Namecheap or GoDaddy)
• Social media handles (use Namecheckr or KnowEm)
• USPTO or your country’s trademark office to watch for legal issues

If it’s taken, consider small modifications, but never compromise your clarity or core meaning.

Test With Real Users

• A/B name tests via Instagram ads or simple Typeform surveys
• Polls in industry groups, Reddit forums, or LinkedIn
• Customers that mirror your personas

Ask:

• What first comes to mind?
• How does it make them feel?
• What product would they expect behind that name?

As UX expert Steve Krug puts it, "Don’t make me think." Good names are instantly intuitive.

Securing & Launching Your Brand Name

Register It Like You Mean Business

• File for a trademark (start with your country’s IP office)
• Grab the .com domain if possible (or .co/.io if you’re a startup) and point it to your website
• Secure all major social handles

Pro tip: Even if you’re not using TikTok or Threads now, reserve them.

Align Name With Identity

• Logo design
• Color palette
• Tagline and tone

Create a brand style guide so your name always lives within a consistent visual and verbal world.

Make Noise Online with Your Launch Strategy

Use your new brand name as a story hook in every piece of launch content:

• “Why we chose [Name]”
• “What our new name means to us + what’s next”
• Launch with a brand film, social campaign, and a thought leadership piece.

Make the story behind the name part of your emotional marketing strategy.

Maintaining a Strong Brand Name Over Time

Brands evolve and so should how you manage your name.

Run quarterly brand audits to ask:

• Are people still connecting with the name?
• Has industry language shifted?
• Is the name broad enough for our next product line?

Avoid:

• Quiet rebrands without explanation
• Inconsistent use across platforms
• Dated language that excludes a younger audience

Advanced Naming Tips & Future-Proofing Advice

Planning to grow? Here's how to future-proof your name:

• Avoid hyper-niche names (e.g., “TofuTracker” won’t scale beyond vegan food).
• Do a thorough search for pronunciation internationally (ever heard the Pajero car name fiasco in Spanish-speaking countries?).
• Use neutral, expandable language if you’ll add services later.

This isn’t just name insurance. It’s a great business longevity fuel.

Wrapping Up How To Come Up With A Brand Name

Here’s a simple cheat sheet to help you move from confused to confident when building your brand. Start by defining your brand’s purpose, values, and personality. Next, take time to understand and research your audience, while also analyzing other brands in your space. Use creative tools to brainstorm ideas, then test those ideas for relevance, clarity, and potential cultural pitfalls. Once you’ve narrowed down options, check the availability of your domain, trademark, and social handles. From there, register and align your name visually to ensure consistency. Finally, launch with both emotion and strategy, and remember to monitor and evolve your name as your business grows.

A great brand name isn’t an accident. It’s the result of a creative process fueled by strategy, empathy, and just a pinch of bravery. Go for something that resonates with your story, lights up your audience’s curiosity, and has some room to grow as your business evolves.

No more blank page. You’ve got the process, the prompts, and the tools. So go ahead, give your brand a name it deserves. Let’s build something unforgettable.