After you have chosen your business entity and decided you want to form an LLC, the next step is to choose a name for your company. Choosing a name is a very important step because the first thing people hear about your company will be its name. A good and catchy company name makes a good first impression. So what makes a company name great? We suggest you ask questions while you brainstorm for your company name and here are some tips:
- Is your company name easy to say or spell?
- Is your company name relevant to what the company does?
- Is your company name international?
- Is your company name memorable?
- How long is your company name? Remember successful companies usually have short names with two syllables.
- Does your company name have a story behind it?
- Is your LLC’s name unique? Don’t be afraid to make up a word and try something new.
- Ask around. What do other people think about your company name?
After you have a couple of name ideas in your mind, you should check if your LLC name complies with your states’ rules. Delaware State has rules you must follow:
- Avoid restricted words. There are words your LLC’s name can never contain such as “bank” or racist words, slang words. Check https://icis.corp.delaware.gov/ecorp/Disclaimer.aspx for more information.
- Your LLC’s name must contain “LLC”, “L.L.C.” or the words “Limited Liability Company”.
- Your LLC’s name can’t be the same as the name of another LLC already registered in Delaware. You can check https://icis.corp.delaware.gov/Ecorp/NameReserv/NameReservation.aspx to see if your LLC name is available.
- For a fee of $75, you can reserve your LLC name for 120 days. Go to https://icis.corp.delaware.gov/Ecorp/NameReserv/NameReservation.aspx for name reservation.
For further information, you can check Delaware provisions that cover naming guidelines at https://delcode.delaware.gov/title6/c018/sc01/index.shtml
