That’s because your company’s brand identity (everything visual about your brand) can be the difference between success and failure.

It can be hard for a small business owner to justify the expense of a professionally designed logo. But this is shortsighted. A logo is one of the most important parts of your brand identity.

Though cheaper options such as ready-made design stores and designing your logo exist, they rarely produce the type of quality design expected in today’s business landscape.

The problem is that many of these other options can seriously harm your business.

When it comes to design, investing in quality as soon as possible is the best way to get the most growth out of your business. Otherwise, you may work harder than necessary to earn customer trust and stand out from the competition.

And, importantly, a high-quality logo design costs as little as $300!

Here are five ways that investing in design early can influence business growth.

1. First Impressions Matter

During a study at Carleton University in Ottawa, participants were shown websites for only 50 milliseconds and asked to rate them for visual appeal. The participants were then shown the websites for a longer time and asked to rate the websites again. The study found that the participants rated the websites’ visual appeal consistently, regardless of how long they were shown the sites.

What does this mean for small business owners?

Use principles of marketing psychology to your advantage. You have 50 milliseconds to make a good impression on your potential customer, and quality design will play a major role.

Once your prospective customers form their first impression, it will be very tough for you to change their minds.

2. Communicate visually with your customer

When properly designed, your logo can say a lot about your company. It may be the only opportunity to identify what your company does or to separate you from the competition in locations like app download stores and social media. As branding expert and author of Designing Brand Identity Alina Wheeler puts it:

To rise above the clutter, a symbol or a logo is the fastest communication known to man. It unlocks associations with your brand on sight, so it’s important to get it right the first time around.

3. Make your business memorable

A memorable logo doesn’t just help customers create a relationship between your company and its services, it can actually make them more engaged.

An online study conducted by branding firm Siegel+Gale found that memorable logos are 13 percent more likely to get consumers’ attention, 7 percent more likely to make them want to learn more about the brand, and 6 percent more likely to suggest a company is more unique than others in its category.

What makes a logo memorable? Simplicity.

Simple was the word that came up above and beyond, more than anything else,” said Brian Rafferty, global director of research insights for Siegel+Gale. “When people were asked what makes a logo memorable, it was simplicity.

A simple design is harder than it sounds, and many low-quality logos have complicated elements to mask their shortcomings.

Don’t make the mistake of confusing complex with quality.

4. Stand out from the competition

As mentioned earlier, ready-made and generic logos can harm your business.

Ready-made logos such as those bought from online logo stores or pre-made template sites can be purchased by other businesses and could lead to brand confusion when shown next to competitors that went the same ready-made route.

The generic elements often used in homemade designs have been seen so many times by customers they can begin to ignore them completely.

As the visual representation of everything your brand stands for, it’s important for your logo to be unique.

Professional designers take the time to learn about your business and create a logo that represents your company in a way that a generic option never could.

5. Invest now or spend more later

Spending little to no money on logo design might make financial sense in the early phases of starting a business, but it is a short-sighted decision.

If the competitive advantages of investing in quality design from the outset aren’t enough, the financial advantage is also clear.

Low-quality or generic design has a short shelf-life and will likely require a redesign in the future.

Whether it is because you are unhappy with what the design says about your growing business, or you found that your logo design is not as flexible as your marketing strategies, a logo redesign is an additional expense that can be avoided by making the decision to invest in quality design from the start.

Ready to invest in good design? Tens of thousands of the world’s best entrepreneurs, small businesses, agencies and non-profits trust crowdspring for high-quality, professional, custom design. Get started now and request a free, no obligation design consultation for a new custom logo, website, print design, package graphics, or any other design, with one of our design experts today.

The post Five Reasons Businesses Should Invest In Design Early appeared first on crowdspring Small Business Resource Center.

A strong brand identity is one of the most important tools that can help you to be more competitive.

Crucial brand elements like your business name, company logo, and business tagline should be protected so that no other company can enter the market and use your identity to sell their product or service. One of the earliest steps you can take to protect your business’s intellectual property is to register your trademark.

In the following guide, learn the basics of trademark law and 5 tips for leveraging trademarks in your business.

What is a Trademark?

Trademark law prevents businesses from operating under business names – or using logos – that are likely to be mistaken for the name of an existing competitor.

For a more complete definition, here’s how the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office defines a trademark:

any word, name, symbol, or device, or any combination, used, or intended to be used, in commerce to identify and distinguish the goods of one manufacturer or seller from goods manufactured or sold by others, and to indicate the source of the goods. In short, a trademark is a brand name.

A service mark is similar to a trademark – but it’s used to distinguish the services of one provider from services provided by others (and to indicate the source of the services).

Imagine if dozens of businesses operated under the same name or logo. How could people tell them apart?

What’s the difference between copyright and trademark law?

Copyright and trademark law both protect intellectual property – but they protect different things.

Copyright protects works such as poetry, movies, writing, music, video games, videos, plays, paintings, sheet music, recorded music performances, novels, software code, sculptures, photographs, choreography, and architectural designs. Trademarks are names, logos, sounds, shapes, colors and even smells that distinguish the source of goods or services of one party from those of another party.

Example: A computer software program may be copyrighted. The name of the software can be trademarked.

If a trade name or logo is protected by copyright law, is it automatically protected by trademark law?

No. A trade name or logo design might be protected by copyright law, but is not protected by trademark law unless it is actually used in commerce.

This is because trademark rights arise only through commerce (such as when you offer items for sale and use the trade name or logo in your marketing materials or on the products).

So, it’s not enough to get a logo design and keep it secret. You must use that design by offering products or services for sale under that brand.

Must a trade name or logo be registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to be protected by trademark law?

No. You are not required to register a trade name (or logo). You can acquire common law rights simply by using the trade name or logo in commerce.

Do you have to be a U.S. citizen to register a trademark?

No. But you must disclose your citizenship in the application.

How Long Does a U.S. Trademark Last?

U.S. Trademark registrations filed today have a 10-year term. NOTE: There are periodic requirements to maintain an active registration and you must follow those requirements or risk losing your trademark registration.

Can you sell or assign a trademark to another person?

Yes. If your mark is registered, you can (but don’t have to) record the transfer with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Is a U.S. trademark or use solely in the U.S. sufficient to acquire trademark rights around the world?

No. Trademark rights are territorial.

If you’ve registered your trademark in the U.S., you can generally enforce it only against those who infringe it in the U.S. Many European countries have adopted the Community Trademark (CTM) – a registration under that common system allows the enforcement of rights in all of the signatory countries. The CTM doesn’t replace national trademark rights in the signatory countries, but it does coexist with those rights.

If you own a U.S. trademark or have applied for one, you can seek registration in any of the countries that have joined the Madrid Protocol by filing a single application – called an “international application” – with the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization.

What Should Small Businesses Do To Avoid Violating or to Leverage Trademark Law?

Here are five practical tips about trademark law and your trade name or logo:

1. Do a trademark search before you settle on a trade name (company name) and/or logo.

You can search (for free) the federal trademark database – Trademark Electronic Search System.

You can also leverage Google, Bing and other search engines to look for companies using the name you intend to use for your company or product. Don’t forget to do a domain name search to see if someone is using the name as their domain.

It’s always a good idea to hire a trademark search service – even if you think you’re a good researcher. Professional search costs several hundred dollars (and can cost thousands of dollars depending on their coverage), but covers many more databases than you’ll have access to, will often include an international search, and will typically be much more thorough.

Although more expensive than many others, this is the company I often used when working with clients on trademark matters.

Intellectual property lawsuits can be very expensive. Take care to make sure that you’re not exposing yourself to unnecessary risk.

2. Register your trademark.

You are not required to register a trade name (or your logo). You can acquire common law rights simply by using the trade name or logo in commerce.

However, registering the trade name or logo is useful. Among other things, it notifies others that you assert rights over the trade name or logo and that you’re serious about protecting your rights. The registration date also contains the date you first used the mark – which serves as evidence against other parties you might later allege violate your trademark rights.

Moreover, when you’ve registered your trademark, you can sue those who infringe your mark to recover damages and also attorneys’ fees and punitive damages.

You can hire a firm or attorney to help you register, or do it yourself. The forms for registering with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office can be found here.

If you need answers to specific trademark questions about U.S. registration, you can also contact the Trademark Assistance Center at 1-800-786-9199.

3. Maintain your trademark if you’ve registered it.

If you’ve registered your trademark, continue using it in commerce. You can use the “®” symbol once your registration is approved – this lets everyone know that your trade name or logo is registered. If you haven’t registered, you can use the “tm” trademark symbol to let people know that you assert trademark rights in the trade name or logo but that it’s not officially registered.

4. You can file a trademark application before you use a mark in commerce.

This is especially helpful to startups – you don’t need to wait to use a trademark in commerce – you can file an Intent-to-Use application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

5. Understand the Permitted and Prohibited Uses When You Use Another Company’s trade name or logo.

Often, especially when companies enter into partnership agreements with each other, the partners must use someone else’s trade name or trademark.

For example, if I have a small electronics store and advertise Sony products for sale, I may use the Sony logo in the advertising I place in the local paper. Make sure you have the rights to use the trade name or trademark. Don’t assume that you have unlimited rights – you most likely do not (even if you’re authorized to resell a particular company’s products or services).

This problem commonly arises when stores advertise products or services for sale. Some companies have dealership arrangements and allow only authorized dealers or stores to sell their products or services.

Similarly, if you allow other parties to use your trade name or logo, make sure you carefully define how they should use the trade name or logo – and also specify any uses that are not permitted. Make sure you do this in writing so that there’s no ambiguity about permitted and prohibited uses.

If you get into a jam or are unsure about what to do – consult an attorney.

Please remember that legal information is not the same as legal advice. This post may not address all relevant business or legal issues that are unique to your situation and you should always seek legal advice from a licensed attorney.

The post What You Need to Know About Trademarks appeared first on crowdspring Small Business Resource Center.

Some fear they’ll end up paying exorbitant legal fees or that they’ll receive bad advice that will destroy their business (if you’ve watched the show Arrested Development and have seen Barry Zuckerkorn in action, you’ll know exactly what I mean).

Others agonize over how to find a reasonably priced, competent lawyer.

Much of the fear and worry is unfounded but I’ve seen too many business owners suffer at the hands of incompetent and expensive legal counsel.

Entrepreneurs hate lawyers. But your experience can be different.

Lawyers can help you navigate complex legal issues and avoid risk. They’re helpful in many situations, but especially when you start your business and need to figure out your business structure, licenses, and permits, get federal and state tax IDs, etc. Good lawyers can also help you write sections of your business plan.

Here are my seven tips on how your small business or startup can hire a good lawyer without losing your shirt (for 13 years prior to crowdspring, I practiced law. During that time, I counseled and represented clients (from small businesses to internet startups to Fortune 100 companies) in transactional matters and in complex trials all over the United States. I’ve set at the table as a lawyer, and now have the perspective of an entrepreneur and small business owner).

1. How to hire lawyers that add value.

I’ve met and have sat across the table from many lawyers who are deal-killers.

Overzealous and often inexperienced, they focus on the wrong issues and forget that their client needs the deal to move forward.

When you talk with lawyers you’re considering hiring, ask them about one or two complicated negotiations, and how they were able to overcome obstacles.

Tip: Don’t make price your main criteria for hiring a lawyer. Often, the least expensive lawyers are also less experienced – especially in the areas where you may need help. Paying a cheaper hourly rate might feel good initially, but at the end, you may end up paying far more than if you hired an experienced (more expensive) lawyer in the first place.

Also – be clear about your budget and expectations. Your lawyer should understand that your budget is limited and that they should not waste that budget on irrelevant details.

2. How to hire lawyers that are responsive to your needs.

Your lawyer won’t be very helpful if they’re not responsive when you need them. Because many deals and transactions are time-sensitive, be sure that your lawyer will be there for you when you need them.

Tip: Before you start working with a lawyer, communicate with them using different channels. For example, call them, email them, fax them, etc. Are they responsive across all communication channels? Are they uncomfortable working electronically via email? How quickly do they return your phone calls when you leave a voice mail? Can you reach them in the evening? What happens when they go on vacation and you need their help?

Also, talk to current and former clients specifically about communication and whether they felt they were kept fully informed about the progress on their matters and whether they ever had problems reaching the lawyer when they needed her help.

3. How to manage legal costs.

Most business owners are frustrated when they finally start receiving bills from their legal counsel. Often, the bills include unexpected costs – something you thought would cost $250 ends up costing you $2,500. That’s quite a difference to a small business or a young startup.

Tip: Ask for fixed fees, especially if you’re asking your lawyer to draft specific documents. For example, if you need a standard employment agreement, ask the lawyer for a fixed fee to draft and negotiate the agreement, so that you don’t have to worry about how much you’ll end up paying for that agreement.

Also, be clear about the scope of work you need from your lawyer. If you need a simple employment agreement or option plan, explain exactly what you need and be clear about the business terms that must be included in that agreement.

Finally, don’t ask your lawyers to do things you can easily do yourself. If you need to fill out some forms – fill out the forms and send the completed forms to your lawyer to review and file. Or use a service like Quickly Legal, designed to help businesses with smart legal contracts.

4. How to hire the right lawyer.

If you’re a small business or startup, hire a local lawyer or firm that typically works with small businesses and startups.

Bigger, more experienced firms might seem attractive options, but if they’re not used to working with small clients, you’ll run into many issues (communication, high billing, responsiveness, etc.).

Talk to some current and former clients that are small businesses and startups and be sure those clients are happy and comfortable working with the lawyer you’re considering hiring.

Tip: You’ll generally find more added value when working with local lawyers, as opposed to lawyers located across the country. A local lawyer will have local connections that will help you with funding, can make introductions to other businesses that can help you and will invite you to local events where you can meet their other clients and network.

5. When to hire a lawyer.

Typically, the best time to start a relationship with a lawyer is before you start your company. This is especially important if you plan to be a venture or angel investor-backed company (because the type of entity you create will impact many other things).

Too many people make the mistake of forming a company and reaching agreement among co-founders without consulting a lawyer. In some cases, some co-founders leave (retaining their interest) and the rest are left to try to make the business work. A good lawyer will help you structure the business – and ownership interests – in ways that will protect everyone and give you flexibility going forward.

Tip: Make sure your lawyer knows what issues are important to you and what issues are less important (or not important). You can also help by negotiating the business terms yourself – without involving your lawyer – and then ask your lawyer to put together an agreement that reflects the deal you negotiated.

6. How to avoid having inexperienced, young lawyers doing all the work.

Many mid-size and larger law-firms have associates do the bulk of the work for clients. This can be a problem because younger associates might be inexperienced and it might take them substantially more time than it would take an experienced lawyer to solve a particular problem for you.

Tip: Clarify in advance whether the lawyer you’re hiring or someone else in their firm will be working on your matter. Worry less about the lawyer’s hourly fee and more about their experience. Experienced lawyers charge higher hourly fees (when I left my legal practice, I was billing $500 per hour!) but can solve your problems much more quickly and for less money – than less experienced lawyers.

 7. How to hire a lawyer you understand.

Many lawyers speak and write in legalese. This is a problem because it leads to more confusion, higher legal costs, and more difficulty in negotiating deals and agreements.

Tip: Before hiring your lawyer, ask them for a few sample letters and/or agreements they’ve written. Are these documents easy to understand and well-written? Are they filled with complex and hard to understand legalese?

For example, to help software developers negotiate contracts with clients, I wrote an e-book called Contracts for Software Developers Who Hate Contracts. If you download a free copy of the e-book, you’ll find that the sample contract in the e-book is written in easy to read, plain English.

The post Hire A Good Lawyer Without Losing Your Shirt appeared first on crowdspring Small Business Resource Center.

But how can you manage two jobs?

How can you decide when it’s time to either abandon or pursue your start-up dream full-time?

How can you properly measure the risk involved in becoming an entrepreneur?

Mike and I met in late 2006 with a former classmate of mine from high school who had started numerous successful online businesses.

He liked our elevator pitch and asked a simple question: do you have kids? Sure – I had three (Mike had 2). He proceeded to talk about the effort in starting a technology business and pointed out that it was not a coincidence that most founders of technology startups are young and single. He talked about crazy hours, the hard work, sleeping under desks, and many more things we had read about in stories about technology companies. He wanted to make sure that our eyes were wide open to what we were about to experience.

In 2006 and throughout 2007, I maintained a very active law practice – I was a partner in a Chicago law firm and was representing U.S. and international clients in all types of complex commercial and intellectual property disputes.

It was – in many ways – crazy to think that I could maintain an active law practice and pursue a dream I had from early childhood – ever since my family emigrated from Kiev, Ukraine – to start a technology company. I had opportunities in 1998 and 1999, right before the Internet bubble burst, but never found something that I was passionate about (probably a good thing). Crowdspring was different.

I decided not to leave my law practice in 2006 to pursue crowdspring full time. We had not yet committed to forming a company (we did that in May 2007) and we hadn’t even decided that it could be a successful business. So – I was faced with an early choice – how much effort to put forth in doing the research and in trying to figure out whether we could make something of crowdspring.

In his video, Gary talks about having to work hard. Real hard.

And it’s true.

Ultimately, while bootstrapping is a popular practice, it’s not always so easy – both for professional and personal reasons. Mike and I set two milestones. The first was to give ourselves time to research, plan, debate, and determine whether we could build a successful business. We gave ourselves until the end of 2006 to do that. After we decided in late 2006 that we would aggressively pursue our dream, we set a second milestone – my transition from my law practice to crowdspring.

Meeting the first milestone – for me – was much easier than meeting the second. I was fortunate to have learned good time management skills early in my career and it was not difficult to replace many of my interests (movies, books, sports) to instead focus on crowdspring during the latter half of 2006. By the end of 2006, we decided, after much research, analysis, debate, and planning, that we would pursue our dream.

In early 2007, I had to decide what to do about my law practice. We had not yet raised a penny in funding, hadn’t even incorporated our company, and were six months away from writing a single line of code. I had a very successful law practice, was working with my friends and mentors, and was fortunate to make a good living doing what I loved.

After much discussion (with Mike and with my wife), I decided that I would maintain my law practice and work on crowdspring until such time that doing both would negatively impact either my law practice or crowdspring.

At the time, it wasn’t clear when that would happen, but it was really important for me to set a milestone tied to an event – a negative impact on either of my jobs. If I hadn’t set that milestone, I could have drifted for a long time and both could have easily suffered.

It was not easy to set that milestone.

It would have been much easier to just leave my law practice.

My friends know that I’m not afraid to take risks.

But it wasn’t fear of taking a risk that moved me to maintain an active law practice – it was the reality of startups. Most startups fail in their first year. Of those that survive  past the age of one, most fail. Leaving at that time would have been foolish – while there are stories of young adults founding successful internet companies and selling them for hundreds of millions of dollars – those stories are scarce. There are far more stories about those who didn’t make it.

At the time, we had no idea how successful crowdspring could be. We knew we were on to something important and exciting. We knew that we desperately wanted to pursue our dream. And we committed to work hard to do so.

For me, the most important decision at that time was the time investment necessary to work two jobs. I recalled our conversation in 2006 with my former classmate and his caution about technology startups and the time required to run them successfully. I wasn’t afraid of hard work, but I was terrified that I could not balance two jobs and my family. In early 2007, my oldest daughter was 8, my son was 5 and my youngest daughter was 1. My wife and I discussed the pressure this would put on our family, the need for her to take on more responsibility with the kids, and the extra work I would have to do to continue to create some balance of work/family.

You have to know yourself to understand the risks you are willing to take and your breaking point.

Each person is unique and each person’s breaking point is different.

Young founders have a high tolerance for risk. They don’t have families and typically haven’t started other careers.

Older founders with kids have much more to lose.

My advice – based on my experience – is to fairly and seriously measure what you’ll need to do in order to manage two jobs and – if it’s relevant and important – manage some semblance of family life.

This is not a simple measure.

If you’re not honest with yourself, you’re likely to fail. And nobody but you can make this assessment. I realized that I would need to stop, cold turkey, everything that wasn’t related to my law practice, crowdspring, or my family.

Everything. All at once.

In one respect, it was easy to do. I knew I was pursuing a dream in co-founding crowdspring and also knew that I could do so, while maintaining a law practice, only if I could leverage my time properly. But it was also very difficult because it meant, among other things, no more movies (I used to watch 6-7 movies every week), no vacations for a period of time, no more books, no more golf or tennis, no more television, no more fishing trips, no more reading multiple newspapers every day, and very limited interactions with friends. I stopped all of these things (Mike did too) so that we could work very long days, seven days per week. For a year.

There were many moments in 2007 when things got really tough. Working two jobs takes its toll. It’s hard and even if you are very efficient, it’s still two jobs. There were many weeks when I didn’t see my kids for 6, 7 days at a time. There were many weeks when my conversations with my wife were limited to phone calls.

At one point I received a voice mail from my oldest daughter. She wondered when I was returning home from Germany. This message confused me because I was not in Germany. I was right there, in Chicago, 20 miles from our house. But it reminded me that I hadn’t seen my kids in seven days.

That was a really rough moment for me. It tested my resolve in pursuing a startup and it tested my resolve to continue. I cried. But I was mentally prepared for that moment – as painful as it was.

I didn’t waver, but I realized that I hadn’t accurately predicted the sacrifice I would have to make.

The reality is that no matter how hard I tried to balance two jobs and family, I could not do so over extended periods of time. This was not unusual.

Many entrepreneurs have similar stories to tell about their personal sacrifice. I mention it mainly to emphasize what my former classmate told us before we started down this path – startups are tough. They require hard work and they take a toll on the family.

And if you’re working another job at the same time, that impact is magnified many times over.

By December 2007, I could no longer maintain an active law practice and work on crowdspring. We were still months away from completing development and launching to beta, but I was approaching major trials for clients in several bet-the-company cases and unless I acted promptly, those clients’ interests would have been prejudiced. We were also running into major problems in our development efforts and I had to focus on those efforts. I was working 20 hour days. Seven Days a week. Since late 2006.

I was not willing to further sacrifice lost time with my family.

That was the tipping point and the milestone Mike and I talked about in early 2007. I promptly resigned from my partnership and on December 6, 2007, started to focus solely on crowdspring.

So, what takeaways can I offer from my experience in maintaining a full-time job while pursuing a start-up? Here are five:

1. Love your dream.

Don’t kid yourself. It will be very difficult to work two jobs. You’ve got to love what you are trying to do with your startup.

You have to have a passion to work 20 hour days for a long period of time.

2. Assess how much time you have.

The cliche “time is money” is not a joke. Most people grossly under-estimate how much time they have to devote to something.

Working two jobs swallowed up every available minute of my time.

3. Be honest with yourself about what you’re prepared to sacrifice.

You know yourself better than anyone knows you. Understand what you will need to give up and understand the sacrifices you’ll have to make.

And consider that you might be under-estimating all of these things.

4. Know your breaking point.

At some point – and perhaps multiple times – you’ll find yourself near your breaking point. For me, it was the voicemail from my daughter asking me when I was returning home from Germany (I hadn’t seen my kids in one week). For others, it’s finances or other interests.

When you approach your breaking point, sit down and assess your resolve.

Make sure that you are still committed to doing what you’re doing.

5. Learn as much as you can about what you are about to do.

If this is your first start-up (as it was for me), understand what motivates you and what you don’t know. Learn everything you can about your product, market, competitors, customers, users, etc.

You will run into many problems along the way, and will be able to deal with them only if you continue to have a search for knowledge and only if you understand the scope of what you are doing.

The post When To Leave Your Full-Time Job appeared first on crowdspring Small Business Resource Center.

Some new business owners feel paralyzed by this challenge and can’t even begin to write their business plan until they settle on a name.

Here are 10 proven tips that will help you find a great business name your new company:

1. Think about what you want your business name to convey.

Your business name is an important part of your company’s brand identity.

The name will appear in your company logo and on your business cards, letterhead, website, promotional materials, products, and pretty much everywhere in print to identify your company or your company’s products and/or services.

Service-oriented businesses should consider whether it will be easy for their prospective customers to recognize what services the business provides, based on the name of the company (example: Friendly Dog Walkers or Bright Accounting).

2. Brainstorm to identify name possibilities.

Once you understand what you want your company name to convey, you should set aside some time to brainstorm to come up with names for your new business.

Think about words that describe your industry or the products/services you offer. Think about words that describe your competitors and words that describe the differences between your products and services and those of your competitors.

Also, consider words that describe the benefits of using your products or services. Finally, think about words (and phrases) that evoke the feelings you want your customers to feel when they see your company name.

Here’s a handy ideas guide for many different industries like salon name ideas (and many others, including restaurant name ideas, consulting business name ideas, photography business name ideas, and much more).

While brainstorming, look up Greek and Latin translations of your words – you might find new ideas from doing that exercise. Look at foreign words too.

Expect this process to take lots of time (it took us about 40+ hours to brainstorm and then another 10 to finalize names – we went through MANY possible names). Don’t forget to leverage resources, including a dictionary, thesaurus, and any other resources that you think may help.

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3. Keep the name short, simple, and easy to write and remember. Also – consider acronyms of the name.

Think about the names of companies you admire. They typically have a few things in common: their names are short, simple, easy to write, and easy to remember. (Examples: Apple, Google, Tesla, Slack).

Obscure business names are often difficult to write and even more difficult to remember.

Plus, obscure names typically make it harder to create a company logo design for your business.

This is a problem because, for most startups and small businesses, word-of-mouth advertising is the most successful form of marketing. If your customers can’t remember your name or can’t spell it for others, it will make it difficult for them to help promote your business.

While it might be tempting, avoid using a “K” in place of a “Q” or a “Ph” in place of an “F” when coming up with your company name. Such letter substitutions make spelling the name very difficult.

Also, don’t forget to consider the acronym of your company name (an acronym is composed of the first letter of each word in a phrase). You might not use an acronym, but your customers might refer to your business by an acronym. A name such as Apple Support Services can result in an unfavorable acronym – ASS.

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Read our complete step-by-step guide on how to start a business. In this guide, you’ll learn exactly how to launch your new business or startup.

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4. Avoid names that are too narrow or too literal.

Think about how your company may evolve over time and make sure that the company name can evolve with the business.

For example, if you name your company iPhone Accessories and later expand to sell accessories for other products, your original name will be too narrow and restrictive.

The same advice applies even if your company sells a niche product.

For example, if you sell antique lamps, you should consider whether you might sell more than lamps in the future. Naming your business Joan’s Antique Lamps may be too limiting when you later start selling antique clocks and furniture.

5. Avoid decisions by a committee but do “test” your company name with others.

It’s tempting to involve our friends, family, employees, and customers in finding a name for our company. Sometimes, this can work out really well. But there are risks. People might be upset if you don’t pick a name they think is great.

You’ll also find yourself trying to find consensus – which can lead to a very plain name. If you must involve others, pick a small group of people who understand you and your business (and pick a mix of right-brain types and left-brain types so that you can have some variety.

Once you’ve selected a few possible choices, you should share them with a few trusted friends, family, and customers to get some feedback about the name.

6. Avoid plain words.

Plain words make it very difficult to differentiate your company from your competitors.

For example, there were hundreds of thousands of logo design businesses around the world when we started thinking about “crowdspring”. We knew that we would be expanding to many different industries (graphic design, website design, product design, and many more) and so we didn’t want to name our business Great Logo Design or manyDesigners – it would have been descriptive, but not memorable and certainly not sufficiently unique.

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7. Be careful with geographic names.

Some people use their city, state, or region as part of their company name. If you plan only to work in your city, then this might serve you well. But a geographic name could hinder you later. One great example is Minnesota Manufacturing and Mining. Initially, the name worked because the business was focused on Minnesota. But once the company grew beyond their industry and the state of Minnesota, they needed to find a new name – 3M.

8. Avoid obscure words.

Company names that help tell stories can be powerful and memorable (think about Google, for example). But obscure words or references might be difficult to spell or pronounce. Be especially sensitive if you’re trying to reach a mass audience (such as on the Internet).

Obscure or invented names can work – Xerox is a great example – but this often requires a huge marketing budget and tremendous effort.

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9. Avoid trends.

You’ll want your company’s name to evolve as trends evolve, so be careful to identify the trends and to avoid following them. For example, in the late 1990s, it was trendy to use a .com after your company name if your company was an Internet business. After the Internet “bubble” burst, the “.com” became synonymous with having no business model, and those companies who survived very quickly dropped “.com” from their names.

10. Consider whether you can register a domain and obtain a trademark.

It’s important to make sure that your competitors are not using the same name in your industry.

It’s not uncommon to find similar (or even identical names) in different industries, but this can result in confusion for your customers and vendors. If your competitors are using the same name – you’ll expose yourself to possible litigation and you’ll likely be unable to obtain trademark protection for your company name. Since intellectual property is valuable, this is not something you should take for granted.

So, look for a company name that is also available for registration as a domain (ideally, as a .com domain). You should understand that .com domains are very popular and you’ll struggle to find available domains that match your company name.

You’ll also want to make sure that you select a company name that you’ll be able to register for trademark/servicemark protection.

Trademark rights arise only through commerce (such as when you offer items for sale and use the trade name or logo in your marketing materials or on the products). You are not required to register a company name – you can acquire common law rights simply by using the name in commerce.

The post 10 Tips for Naming Your Startup or Small Business appeared first on crowdspring Small Business Resource Center.