How do you come up with a name for your product?

Question

I find naming and finding a domain to be the most difficult part. What process do you follow to name your product?

Jacqueline von Tesmar · Accepted Answer

I'm working on a name for a fun project right now and just go through trial and error. Saying them out loud. 
I'm also thinking about all the names I like that already exist and ask myself why do I like these?

Jared Cornell · Answer

Hey Balaji, I can totally relate to your question and I’m 100% sure a lot of people have faced this struggle once or more. Like they say, naming your kid is easy these days compared to naming your own startup. You have to keep everything in mind, right from your target audience to the problem that you are solving.

Here are some suggestions you can consider-
1. Try taking inspiration from competitor websites
2. Make sure the name is short and catchy
3. Avoid using words that are too long or difficult to pronounce
4. Directly ask your target audience using a customer support tool 
     (https://www.proprofsdesk.com/customer-support/)

Coming up with the right business name is never easy. But look closely, the name might be right before your eyes. I hope this helps. :)

Nicole Kobilansky · Answer

Definitely check domain names and also the App Store! It helps a lot if you are the first/only result for a given name.

Tarek Dajani · Answer

From my end, I wrote down a list of names that I liked. Searched for their domains, given that I wanted a .com website. Searched for what is available, and eventually found www.frontfigure.com , was free so I bought that. Honestly, I just did all that really quickly, maybe less than one day.

Alan King · Answer

@barrysmith These are all great tips and the only other one I'd add is carefully consider your audience if you're thinking of dropping letters or otherwise modifying the spelling e.g. removing "e" or adding "r" etc. There is a more plentiful supply of domain suffix's now to get extra creative with too!

Andreea Bunica · Answer

I had a full on one week crisis trying to define the name for my startup! I really tried to understand what is the brand and the identity I want to put out there, and what I want it to mean to people once we grow. I went through a super conceptual process, writing down the higher arching goals, metaphorizing them and then trial and erroring on possible name combinations. 9000% if you think of something obsessively enough, it will eventually just come to you, haha.

Danyub Mustefa · Answer

We found Papyras by changing one later of the word papyrus. Since a .com still worth the effort, you may try finding the name you like and then add a "get" or "go" before or after. But proper research and actually spending some times on the instant domain search should give you a name that you like.

Marin Rowe · Answer

@barrysmith Great list! I'd add checking to make sure that the name you choose isn't licensed or trademarked by anyone else. Along with the web domains, there are a lot of words or phrases out there that are already being used by someone else!

Barry Smith · Answer

Here are a few thoughts:
1) The name describes what you're doing in a way that is memorable in as few letters as possible, (Dropbox, PayPal)
2) The name is something original but easy to remember and can only be spelled one way, (Uber, Ebay, Twitter)
3) Use a real word and then make it work with what you're doing (Amazon, Apple, Snowflake) 
4) Don't use a hyphen
5) Use a domain name generator (https://www.dotomator.com/web20.html) 
I've worked on a zillion projects and it has gotten harder and harder over the years because people buy up all of the names.

How do you come up with a name for your product?

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