I’m often asked during my branding seminars about how to pick a brand name for a business. It’s a subject that’s almost as emotional and personal as picking your baby’s name so I can only give my personal opinion based on research that I’ve read as well as share the tips in this article below:

1. Real words When you consider Yahoo, Apple, indeed, Amazon and Twitter, they mean something but often have little immediate relation to your business.
Reasons to try this approach: It’s fun, easy and can be quite effective for generating buzz.
Reasons not to: Go too abstract and it can be confusing.
2. Misspelled words  Consider the following examples: Tumblr (Tumbler), del.icio.us (delicious), Digg (dig), flickr (flicker) and Google (Gogol).
Reasons to try this approach: Not only does amisspelled word stand out in a crowd  but it can help you overcome those pesky URL registration issues.
Reasons not to: Using misspelled word could be confusing and is often hard to remember.
3. Two syllable, compound words  Among others, there’s Birchbox, Skillshare, Crowdtilt and JackThreads.
Reasons to try this approach: With the number of URL’s available dwindling this strategy can help you overcome that challenge.
Reasons not to: The compound approach can be overdone.
4.Initials and acronyms Go old school ala IBM (International Business Machines), AOL (America Online) and TBS (Turner Broadcast System).
Reasons to try this approach: If a long, multiword phrase best describes your business, using an acronym can be a logical answer.
Reasons not to: B.O.R.I.N.G. Also, most businesses identified by an acronym use three letters. There are no three letter dot com URL’s left available on the Internet. Zero. So you might be paying big bucks to buy one.
5. Made-up words Skype, Hulu, Zynga… Nonsense can be fun, too.
Reasons to try this approach: A made up name can be catchy and extremely memorable when done properly.
Reasons not to:  If the name is too abstract, it’s likely to be forgotten, or worse, dismissed as silly.
via 5 Business Naming Trends Startups Should Consider.

My best advice on branding a business is timeless. Pick a single word in the English language that relates to something you do, give or cause. My favorite example of this is Staples. It’s easy, memorable and descriptive of what industry they’re in. I urge you to relook at your company’s brand name and make sure it has the same qualities so you can grow your business effortlessly!
Need more chicken soup for your biz? Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook or connect with me on LinkedIn –and let’s talk!

Related articles

• Naming Your Startup: Is a Meme for You? (blogs.lawyers.com)
• Why company names & URLs don’t matter (dondodge.typepad.com)
• Top do’s and don’ts for naming your new startup (e27.sg)
• 12 Steps to Building Your Stand-Out Freelance Brand (freelanceswitch.com)