Is fictitious business name required in California?
Posted: January 14, 2020 in business, Graphic Design, Tech Tips & tricks
Tags: .com, business name, dba, fictitious name, Google, last name, logo
I’m sometimes asked “what should I name my company/business? There are a lot of creative ways to describe your business its name.Such as; Exultant Industries, Ileihcan Designs or HB Graphic Guru. Avoid hard-to-spell names. You don’t want potential customers getting confused about how to find your business online. You want to avoid having to continually correct the misspelled version of your name. Keep it simple.
For me, after trying a few business names that were I’ll loosely say somewhat creative (mentioned above), they lacked a clean and clear description of what I did or what it ment. So I finally decided on using a name that would be simple, easy & clear; Rego’s Graphic Design. It’s “who” I am, that won’t change & “what” I do, I love creating (designing)! After all, I do have an AA Degree in “Graphic Design”. Boom! Done! That’s the name! The acronym is RGD. There aren’t to many other companies/business using those 3 letters. Not to be confused with RGD-33, a Soviet World War II-era hand grenade. “LOL”!
Other thoughts when creating your business name(s) are the legalities. What are your local city/county/state rules/laws for business names operating in such areas. Do you need a DBA/Trade Name? Do you need to Trademark the name? I’ll get into the details of trademarks in another post.
I live in beautiful California. Say what you will about that but, “under California laws, there is no need for a business owner to register a DBA or a fictitious business name so long as the business’ name includes your last name. This is because, under California law, a business name is not a fictitious name if it includes your last name.”
Read more…
Here are 12 helpful suggestions on how to come up with a winning name for your business by Richard D. Harroch:
1. Avoid hard-to-spell names.
You don’t want potential customers getting confused about how to find your business online. (I never understood why “Flickr” was pushed as the name for the photo-sharing site.) You want to avoid having to continually correct the misspelled version of your name. Keep it simple.
2. Don’t pick a name that could be limiting as your business grows.
Picking too narrow of a name may cause you problems down the road. Imagine if Jeff Bezos had picked the name “OnlineBooks” instead of “Amazon.” So avoid names like “Wedding Dresses of San Francisco” or “LugNuts Unlimited.” You don’t want to limit your business to a particular product or a specific city.
© Sevendeman – Fotolia.com
3. Conduct a thorough Internet search.
Once you have determined a name you like, do a web search on the name. More often than not, you will find that someone else is already using that business name. While that won’t be a total showstopper, it should give you pause.
4. Get the .com domain name.
My strong preference is that you secure the “.com” domain name for your business rather than alternatives such as .net, .org, .biz, or other possible domain extensions. Customers tend to associate a .com name with a more established business. Undoubtedly, someone will already own your desired .com name, but many domain owners are willing to sell their name for the right price.
Think of acquiring the .com name you want as a business investment. You can check on the availability of a domain name on sites such as GoDaddy.com or NetworkSolutions.com, and if the domain name is taken, you can often track down the owner of the domain name and see if they are willing to sell it by using the “Whois” tool at GoDaddy or Network Solutions.
Also make sure to grab your desired business name on popular social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
5. Use a name that conveys some meaning.
Ideally, you want the business name to convey something meaningful and positive related to your business. Can people instantly get what your business is about? While meaningless names like “Google,” “Yahoo,” or “Zappos” have some appeal due to their catchiness, these kinds of names will cost you a lot more to brand.
Some examples of clear, simple, and intriguing domain names include Canny.com, Cling.com, Afire.com, and Administer.com. A domain name like “OnlineTickets.com” is genius as it conveys the meaning of the business and is helpful for search engine optimization purposes.
6. Conduct a trademark search.
Do a search at USPTO.gov to get an idea as to whether you can get a trademark or service mark for the name.
7. Conduct a Secretary of State search.
Since you will likely want to structure your business as a corporation or LLC, you should do a search of the Secretary of State’s records to make sure your name won’t be confusingly similar to a business name that’s already registered. If it is too similar to an existing name, the Secretary of State may not allow you to register it. Your corporate lawyer can help you conduct this kind of search. (See “10 Big Legal Mistakes Made by Startups.”)
8. Assess if the name is catchy.
Obviously, you don’t want a boring name for your business, but you also don’t want to choose something that’s too “out there.” You want your employees to be able to say where they work without hesitation, and you want your name to resonate with your target audience.
9. Get feedback on the name.
Come up with 5 or 10 names and then run them by friends, family members, and trusted colleagues. Get feedback from your target audience as well. And make sure that the name doesn’t have any negative connotations (such as when GM named its new car model the “Nova” without realizing that the name meant “doesn’t go” in Spanish).
10. Make sure the name sounds good when said aloud.
Sometimes names seem fine on paper, but sound awful when said aloud. And if it’s said aloud, make sure people aren’t confused as to how it’s spelled.
11. Use resources available for brainstorming names.
There are a number of sites that can help you brainstorm names, including:
There are even name branding experts such as Alexandra Watkins at Eat My Words.
12. Make sure you are personally happy with the name.
You as the business owner will have to live with the name for a long time, so make sure you are happy with it and believe it will resonate with your customers. Take the time to get it right from the start.
Copyright © by Richard D. Harroch. All Rights Reserved
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Sandie Diamond, MSW, ASW T: 949-614-3520
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