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:

1. 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.
2. Your LLC’s name must contain “LLC”, “L.L.C.” or the words “Limited Liability Company”.
3. 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.
4. 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