- [Narrator] Coming up with a business name
is one of the most important steps in forming a business.
Your name affects your branding
and your image as a company.
Let's get you started on the right path
to picking a solid business name in Hawaii.
Hawaii is an excellent place to form a new business.
It boasts low corporate taxes
and has the number one fastest startup growth in the nation.
Every state has slightly different requirements
for naming a business.
Follow along closely to learn the required steps
for naming a business in the state of Hawaii.
In this video we will go over how to name your business
based on your business structure;
branding and brainstorming business names;
and how to check your names availability.
Be sure to ask yourself the seven essential questions
we provide before you make this critical business decision.
(gentle music)
One, choose a business structure.
You'll need to determine your company's business structure
before deciding a name, as different business structures
have different naming requirements.
There are formal business structures
like LLCs and corporations,
and informal business structures
like sole proprietorships and general partnerships.
In this first section we'll talk about
the name requirements of each.
Informal business structures.
If you are operating under a sole proprietorship,
your company must operate under the surname of the owner.
In order to use a different name,
the owner must file a DBA or Doing Business As,
also known as an assumed name,
fictitious name, or trade name.
General partnerships are similar to sole proprietorships
with the difference being that partnerships
consists of two or more people.
A general partnerships name must consist of the surnames
of all the partners.
Like a sole proprietorship,
if you want to operate under a different name
you need to file for a DBA.
Here are some state-specific requirements
for Hawaii general partnerships.
Your name must be permitted by law
and not attempt to mislead or confuse the general public.
Your name cannot include words
that could confuse your general partnership
with the government agencies, such as FBI, Treasury,
State Department, et cetera.
The following terms cannot be used without approval
from the state commissioner of financial institutions:
financial institution, bank, banker, banking, banc,
savings bank, savings and loan, savings association,
financial services loan company, credit union,
trust company, intrapacific bank,
international banking corporation, and trust.
Use of the following term also require state approval
or certification: certified public accountant,
public accountant, CPA, PA, cooperative,
escrow, and escrow depository.
LLC, or Limited Liability Companies.
If your company is an LLC, your name must include the phrase
Limited Liability Company or one of its abbreviations
LLC or L.L.C. with a period in between each letter.
Restricted word such as attorney, law office, et cetera,
may require additional paperwork
and may also need a licensed professional
to be a part of the LLC.
Your name cannot include words that could confuse your LLC
with a government agency, such as FBI,
Treasury, or State Department.
Here is some of the state-specific requirements
for Hawaii LLC's.
The following terms cannot be used without approval
from the state commissioner of financial institutions:
financial institution, bank, banker, banking, banc,
savings bank, savings and loan, savings association,
financial services loan company, credit union,
trust company, intrapacific bank,
international banking corporation, and trust.
Use of the following term also requires
state approval or certification:
certified public accountant, public accountant, CPA, PA,
cooperative, escrow, and escrow depository.
Your name must be permitted by law
and not attempt to mislead or confuse the general public.
Corporations.
If your business is a corporation or C-Corp,
your name must include the words corporation,
company, incorporated, limited,
or an abbreviation of any of these.
Here are some specific state requirements
for Hawaii corporations.
Your name cannot include words
that could confuse your corporation
with the government agencies such as FBI, Treasury,
State Department, et cetera.
Your name cannot contain language stating or implying
that the corporation is organized for a purpose
other than the one permitted by law
and its articles of incorporation.
It also must be permitted by law and not attempt to mislead
or confuse the general public.
The following terms cannot be used without approval
from the state commissioner of financial institutions:
financial institution, bank, banker, banking, banc,
savings bank, savings and loan, savings association,
financial services loan company, credit union,
trust company, intrapacific bank,
international banking corporation, and trust.
Domestic insurance corporations
must include the word Insurance in their name
and in the case of a reciprocal insurer,
the name must include one of the following words:
reciprocal, interinsurer, interinsurance, exchange,
underwriters, or underwriting.
Use of the following terms
also requires state approval or certification:
certified public accountant, public accountant, CPA, PA,
cooperative, escrow, and escrow depository.
When choosing your business structure,
you may hear the term S-Corp,
which isn't actually a business structure
but a type of tax structure used by an LLC or corporation.
If your business is taxed as an S-Corp,
follow Hawaii's naming requirements
for the business structure you chose.
For all business structures
your name must be distinguishable
from other businesses in Hawaii.
A couple examples of names not being distinguishable
would be Auto Store Inc. versus Auto Store LLC.
The only difference in the name is the business structure.
Changing the words the, an, or a
in front of your business name
does not make it distinguishable.
For example, The Auto Store Inc.,
Auto Store Inc., and An Auto Store Inc.
are not distinguishable from each other.
Using an ampersand instead of and or vice versa,
such as Smith and Smith is not different enough
from Smith & Smith using an ampersand.
Your business name can't have words that sound identical
to another business with a different spelling.
Boys Inc. with an S and Boyz Inc. with a Z
are not distinguishable.
Two, branding and brainstorming.
When picking your business name,
you'll also want to consider
whether your legal business name will be your brand name
or if you will have a separate brand name.
Your legal name is what is listed
on your formation documents.
This includes words required
based on your business structure
such as LLC, Corp or company.
Your brand name is the name you used to market your company
and the name that clients and customers see and use.
When deciding what to name your business,
decide on your branding strategy using these three options:
do you want your business's legal name
to also be your brand name, such as Tiffany and Co.?
Do you want your legal business name
to be different from your brand name,
Hewlett-Packard is HP.
Do you want to have a legal business name
and several different brand names?
Gap Inc. is their legal business name,
but they're brand names are Gap, Old Navy,
and Banana Republic.
While you're thinking about how to brand your business,
start brainstorming some business names.
You should start by brainstorming
at least four to five potential names.
The goal is to come up with a few catchy and creative names,
then check to see if they are available.
A good brainstorming session should last 15 to 45 minutes
and it's important that you're comfortable,
think snacks, water, a comfy place to sit
and your favorite pen.
Use a timer and don't stop till it goes off.
If you need more time, take a 15-minute break,
walk around a bit, grab some more water and start again.
After doing some brainstorming and coming up
with a list of a few business names to choose from,
ask yourself these questions to help pick a name
or refine some of the names you have.
Is my name simple and shorter rather than longer?
A simple name will be easier to remember,
easier to talk about and easier to write.
You can avoid some hassle by having a simple and short name.
Shorter business names are easier to remember
and generally simpler than long business names.
If your business name is too long, there's a possibility
that your clients call you by a nickname
that you have no control over
and doesn't do your business any favors.
How does the name sound when I say it out loud?
Don't just read the name, actually say it out loud.
Say your name slow, fast and with a different emphasis
to make sure it doesn't end up sounding like something else.
Is it easy to pronounce, spell
and does the acronym look okay?
Along the same lines as having a simple name,
a business name will be more memorable
if it's easy to pronounce and spell.
Another important thing to keep in mind
is that the acronym of your business
ends up spelling something.
You don't want to choose a name for your business
only to find out the first letter of each word
spells out FLOP.
Did I include geographical location in my name?
By including a location in your name,
you may limit your business and growth potential.
Customers in other states may not consider contacting you
if they think you are only trying to do business
in a specific location.
How does the name compare to other businesses
in the industry?
Look at your potential competitors' names.
Does there seem to be a format that other businesses
in the industry follow when naming their businesses?
Does your name stand out in a bad way?
You want a name that's unique and grabs attention
but not one that will make you seem unprofessional
compared to other companies.
Did I avoid trends?
Naming your business based on trends
might give you a small boost in initial customers,
but you'll end up dating your business
when the trend fades away.
What may be a funny joke or reference of the time,
will fade away and no one will understand.
Is my name memorable or is it too narrow or literal?
Although you want a simple name
and one that describes your business's mission,
you don't want one so unoriginal
that it won't stand out in the crowd.
You want to convey your niche or your uniqueness
and your name is a great place to do that.
Three, complete name searches.
Once you've narrowed down to just a few names,
you want to check to make sure the names are available.
The first and most important search
is Hawaii's business database.
If the name is not available,
you'll have to adjust your name or use a different one.
We provide instructions to search your business name
in Hawaii on HowToStartAnLLC.com linked below.
Searching is free.
To learn more, visit Hawaii naming guides
linked in description below.
After confirming your name is available in Hawaii,
we recommend doing a domain search
to see if your name is available as a URL.
Even if you don't plan on making a website today,
we recommend buying your domain
in order to prevent others from acquiring it.
Next, do a quick search
on the U.S. trademark electronic search system
and see whether someone is already trademarked your name.
Once you know the name is available,
you can choose to apply for a trademark for your business,
but the cost is between 225 and $600,
which may be more than you want to pay for a startup.
Naming your business can be one of the most important
and one of the most fun steps in starting your business.
When deciding on your business name,
you want to first determine your business structure
to make sure you are following all name requirements
of your business type.
You also want to check the naming requirements
that are specific to Hawaii.
Think about your branding,
how your name will affect your brand
and if you want to have a separate brand name
from your business's legal name.
After brainstorming some ideas you want to check and see
if they are available in your state
and do a quick web search to see
if they are available as a web domain.
Once you've searched on a state level and online,
look to see if any
of your brainstormed ideas are trademarked.
Now you know all the steps to name your business.
For a more detailed guide,
visit our website at HowToStartAnLLC.com.
Give the video a like if you found it useful
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And if you have questions or encounter any roadblocks,
leave a comment below.
Good luck in starting your small business!
(gentle music)