Start with your project to choose a name

Before comparing names, describe what you will offer, to whom and in which setting. This gives you a common basis for judging ideas, even when you are starting on your own.

When should you start looking?

Start once you can explain your offer, customers and ambitions. For a business, the search develops alongside the project; for a product, a working name can accompany the first prototypes. You can explore ideas without making the final choice immediately.

Which reference points should you describe?

Specify your offer and the people it is for. A local repair service and software sold in several countries call for different uses of the name. Distinguish the people who discover the activity, those who recommend it and those who decide to buy.

Describe the launch markets and developments you are already preparing. For languages, focus on those your customers and the people who recommend you actually use. In Luxembourg, a business serving the Greater Region may need perspectives beyond the language in which you are preparing the project.

Describe the impression you want to give, too: for example, repairs explained simply or highly personalised support. These reference points make your expectations clearer than words such as “accessible” or “premium”. The name contributes to that impression alongside the service, copy and design; it does not have to explain everything on its own.

How should you record this?

We recommend collecting these points in a naming brief: a short document describing the project and guiding the choice. It gives you a reference whether you are choosing alone or working with an agency, an adviser or other people.

Here is the beginning of a brief for a bicycle repair business. It shows a useful level of detail; candidates and search results will follow.

The same word can serve several purposes. Before looking for the ideal name, identify what you want to name: the company, activity, premises, products or services.

For our bicycle repair business, the table distinguishes these roles before choosing the names that will fulfil them.

These elements can use the same name, but they do not have to. A company can also offer several activities under different names. In your brief, note which uses you want to bring together and which you want to keep separate.

If you operate as a sole trader, do not automatically copy the particulars used by a company. The part on rights explains which checks to consider for your situation. An available domain does not, on its own, answer the trade mark questions.

Explore sufficiently different directions to understand what suits your project. The three approaches below provide a starting point; none wins in every situation.

These examples offer ideas to explore, then put through the tests and searches in the series.

A family name or place name offers other directions. Consider whether the connection fits the project over time: could the business be transferred? Should the activity remain associated with this town?

Clarity alone does not establish whether a name can be protected as a trade mark. Research into rights addresses that separate question; keep it distinct from preferences about style.

Then keep a short list, perhaps three to five candidates. This is a method suggested by Wize. For each, note what it expresses, its limits and why you are keeping or discarding it.

A preference becomes useful when it leads to a question you can examine. Instead of stopping at “I do not like this name”, say what bothers you: the sound, its associations or a possible difficulty for your customers.

Return to the brief to choose concrete criteria. For example: being written correctly after a conversation, working for French-speaking and German-speaking customers, or remaining relevant to two planned services. Your personal preference counts too, since you will use the name; explain it so that it can be discussed.

Compare the name and its possible addresses

Associate each candidate with possible domain names and extensions suited to the intended markets. Compare the email use as well: an address you would constantly have to spell out deserves a test.

For a .lu, the DNS Luxembourg availability search shows whether the domain is registered. The absence of a visible website does not establish this. Record the exact domain, result and date of your search. An already registered domain remains an option to investigate, never an asset you already have: a sale depends on its holder agreeing.

Distinguish acceptable compromises from obstacles needing an answer. One domain variation may work; another may blur the identity you want. If no realistic address meets the project’s needs, keep the option of finding another name. A positive overall impression must not hide an essential condition that remains unresolved.

Prepare the next decision

For each candidate, keep your observations and open questions. Set a review date. If other people are involved, clarify who gives an opinion, who carries out research and who decides.

Practical tests and the part on rights (currently in French) will help inform the choice. At this stage, the aim is to have comparable options, rather than declare a name ready to launch.