Business name

[drew]

Hi all,

I am looking for advice on the process of getting a business name for my real estate business. I would like to implement this name into my business plans to include on business cards, marketing materials, etc... I see many great business names on posts on this site and would greatly appreciate any feedback.

Thank you!
Sincerely,

Andrew

 

[GarthChapman]

Andrew, here is a process that we used to name our company - Cornerstone Ventures Inc. We love the name and get many good comments on it, so I credit the process.

- What is the identity / personality of the company
o Words
o Characters (people)
o Music
o Colours

- Analyze your target market(s)
o Their hopes
o Their fears
o Their world
o Who are they

- What about the company will attract these customers?

- Review magazines / business cards / newspapers to find things you like the look of
o Colours
o Texture
o Image

- Create a sheet to give to friends and acquaintances, asking for their opinions about possible names for your business:
o “Pretend you are a small business owner who has a business that…(describe your business)”
o Put your name ideas on the sheet
o Allow space for their comments and name ideas


Hope that helps a bit,

 

[ChrisDavies]

The simplest and cheapest way of getting it `registered` is by registering as a trade name. It`s not the same as a trade mark, but it at least will let you open a bank account under that name. You`ll be `Andrew, doing business as...."

 

[drew]

Thank you Garth and Chris for the responses.
As to your reply Garth, those are great suggestions and some of them I already have worked on and will look to implement the others. Thank you.
Chris, your response was informative as well and was more along the lines of what I was looking for.
Some other questions: 1-Exactly how do I go about registering? and 2-what are the pros and cons besides cost to operating this way you suggest as opposed to going all the way and getting a trade mark? What are the typical costs for each way?
One other comment I have is that I see the name I was thinking of may already be taken. I would like to have a name I can use far into the future without having to change it. What is the process to follow so I won`t run into a situation like this?

Thank you in advance,
Sincerely,
Andrew

 

[Jack]

If you want to form a corporation, IE, "Drew Properties Inc.", all you have to do is go to your local registry. Tell them that you want to form a corporation, you`ll fill out some paperwork, they`ll do a NUANS search to see if the company name that you want is available, and, if it is, you`ll have a legal entity created within the span of a few hours.

It`ll cost you about $200 - $300 to do this.