How to Create a Business Name in Nigeria

Thinking of how to create a business name in Nigeria?

You must have heard of the saying; “A good name is better than silver and gold”.

But in this context I would say; “A good name will bring you a lot of silver and gold”.

So it is expedient to know that having a great name can boost your business and give you an edge over your peers.

I have outlined 10 steps to creating a business name in Nigeria and I am going to share them with you.

1. Use your name
2. Asses the name
3. It Should be catchy
4. Register your business name
5. Get a domain name
6. Think broad globally and big
7. Easy to spell
8. Research
9. Tools
10. Go outside your native

Having listed them out let’s talk about them briefly.

PS: They are not listed in any specific way, they are just there.

 

1. Use your own name

Your own name is also an option when you are thinking of how to create a business name in Nigeria.

If you look at the world today, you will find out that a lot of businesses go by the founder’s name.

Take the popular pizza chain, Papa John’s pizza, and others.

Using your name helps to add that personal touch to your business in the sense that your customers feel like they know you.

But the down part of using your name comes to play when you want to scale up big time. In this scenario, your name might seem to limit your business.

But you can still get to tweak the whole thing to your favor. The business cannot grow more than the person bearing the name, so if you intend to scale you must be ready to grow.

When you as an individual can create a significant profitable brand with your name, voilà your business can skyrocket.

Thus, an added advantage!

2. Asses the name

When you are trying to find that perfect name for your business, also note that it’s important if you can have people vet the names.

So you do your research and come up with five business names, meet families and friends let them see the name and pick the one they think is best. What I am saying, in essence, is that you should be open to other people’s opinions.

And always do this with an open-mindedness as the one you think is best might not always be.

3. It Should be catchy

Your business name should be so catchy and simple that anyone can pronounce it easily.

Such that when you hire staff and they are asked where they work, boom they would say it less than a second.

The fact that it should be catchy does not mean that your business name is meaningless.

No! It can be catchy, simple, and still have meaning.

A name that has no meaning would cause you a lot of resources to build. And I don’t think you should use your business to find out what it is going to cost you.

4. Register your business name

This is a very important step you should not take likely when you are thinking of how to create a business name in Nigeria.

Once you have chosen the perfect name for your business here in Nigeria, the next step is to go register your business name with the Corporate Affairs Commission.

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) is responsible for the registration of businesses here in Nigeria.

Don’t just jump in and start your business it can be a very dangerous step.

The right thing to do is to contact the Corporate Affairs Commission in your state of residence and register your business name.

They have a system that helps you check if the name you so intend to use has been taken by someone else. And their system is now better and faster than it used to be as you can do everything online via their website.

 

5. Get a domain name

 

 

Once you have your business name, go on and buy the .com domain name. Noticed I said the .com? This is because businesses with the .com domain are always perceived to be authentic and genuine.

It’s favorable and would, in turn, be profitable for you and your business, unlike the other dots.

When you are trying to do this I’ll recommend GoDaddy, they have tools to help you check if the domain name you seek is available.

They can also help you find the owner and get you a good deal if the name is taken already.

But if you don’t int to repurchase the domain name you can just start the whole process again till you get your desired results.

 

6. Think broad, globally and big

 

 

When coming to the market place don’t use names that can limit your business’s choice of dealings. Let’s use the world richest man as an example, Jeff Bezos if he had named his business bookstore and not Amazon he would not have the option of expanding into a global brand.

Thus, nobody would have heard of him and he would not even be the world richest man that he is today.

so, you should think innovation, think global impact, and think big.

 

7. Easy to spell

Easy to spell does not mean meaningless, like both shit and trash are four and five-letter words respectively.

Your business name should be such that people can easily remember without beating themselves up just to remember the spellings.

And please let it be something meaningful so that you can thrive.

8. Research

 

 

Don’t just come up with a name do thorough research and come up with the bomb!

I can only say that there is only a little right now that I can say about this but remember there is a lot to say.

But I will leave you with these 3 things

1. Research
2. Research a little bit more
3. Research more than you have previously done

And ask questions…! “Success leaves cues”.

 

9. Tools

You might be thinking of how to go about in checking if the name you come up with is already taken right?

I have listed 3 tools you can use free to do so.

1. Shopify Business Name Generator
2. NameMesh
3. VisualThesaurus
4. Naminum

 

10. Go outside your native

Be creative, go outside your general language.

Check words from Latin, Spanish, Greek, and those other unique languages.

Even make use of words from Greek mythology.

If you use such unique languages it creates a whole different perspective on your business and using such for physical businesses mostly spell luxury, class, and it distinct you from contemporaries.

So do your research, ensure that the words you come up with are catchy and easy to spell.

 

If you follow these steps correctly, you won’t have to struggle when you are thinking of how to create a business name in Nigeria.

Share this article with your friends, family, colleagues, and close associate you wish to do well when thinking of startups.

You can also check out; How to Get Money to Start Your Business in Nigeria