Welcome to the Business Name Research Video.
There are a few things to keep in mind when selecting your business name.
Your desired business name must be "distinguishable".
Besides the State's online database (which we will show you later), you will need to
do further research in order to verify name availability.
There are certain restrictions and requirements to keep in mind regarding the use of certain
words and abbreviations in your business name.
A name is available for use if it is "distinguishable: from the names of existing organized entities.
Organized entity means any Corporation, Limited Liability Company, Partnership, or any other
organizational types of business.
Example, you would like to go with the name "Speedy Delivery Services, LLC", but during
your research you find a company by the name of "Speedy Delivery Services, Incorporated".
Although this is a corporation, its name is identical to yours, and therefore is not distinguishable.
Another example would be "Speed Delivery Service, LLC".
Although the spelling is not exactly correct, this name is too similar to your desired business
name.
and for both of these examples you would have to select an alternative.
In simpler terms, if there's an existing business that already has your desired name or one
that is similar, you will need to choose an alternative.
While doing your online research, there is however 1 exception.
That exception is fictitious names.
These are not organized entities.
The filing of a fictitious name does not create any exclusive or any other right in such name.
Later on in this video, doing the online database research, we will show you how to determine
whether or not a business name is a fictitious name or not.
After researching the State's online database, it is best to conduct a thorough offline search
in order to verify your findings.
Recommendations include telephone directories and trade magazines and/or catalogs.
Keep in mind though that once you file for your LLC, the State will double-check its
availability.
If your desired name is not available or is not distinguishable, the State will simply
mail back your Articles of Organization stating that you must select a new name.
For small businesses that need a quick turnaround, we recommend doing the extra research upfront.
If your business is not a corporation (which in this case it is not, it's a Limited Liability
Company), you cannot use the words "incorporated" or "corporation", or an abbreviation of either
(such as "Inc." or "Corp.").
Your LLC must contain the words "Limited Liability Company" or the abbreviation "L.L.C." or "LLC".
Example: "Speedy Delivery Services, Limited Liability Company", or "Speed Delivery Services,
LLC" with periods, and without.
The name of your business cannot imply that you are a governmental unit.
Example: a city, a village, or a borough by using such names.
And vulgar names are not allowed.
Take some time to think about your business name.
You can make it easy to remember, easy to spell and something remarkable.
At this point you should have your desired business name.
We recommend thinking of an alternative name now in case you find yours is unavailable.
Example: you'd like to go with "Speedy Delivery Services, LLC", but as an alternative, you
could choose "Speed Services, LLC " or "At Your Door Quick, LLC".
Now that you have your desired business name and an alternative in mind, let's move forward
to the online research.
The link that will be provided will take you to the State's online database where you will
search your desired business name against all the registered businesses and corporations
in the State.
Let's head on over to the State's website.
Here we are at the Pennsylvania Department of State Corporations database.
I'm going to show you 3 examples today that will help you while doing your online research.
We're going to start with our first desired business name.
Let's say you have a consulting company, and you'd like to go with the name "Aegis Consultants".
A few things to keep in mind: the button that says "Starting With" which is selected is
fine; you do not need to enter the letters "LLC" or the words "Limited Liability Company"
while doing your searches, and capitalization is not important.
I'm going to enter Aegis Consultants and hit "Search".
I'm going to enter the captcha on the next page and hit "Continue Search".
You'll notice here that the results brought up 1 business.
Underneath "Business Type", you can see that it is a business corporation and you'll see
that the name "Aegis Consultants, Inc." is a registered business with the State of Pennsylvania,
therefore your desired business name is not distinguishable.
You'll need to go with an alternative.
Let's say you have a dessert company and you like to go with the name "Desserts First".
Enter those terms into the Search Box, hit "Search", again enter the captcha on the next
page, and you'll notice here that we have 4 results given to us by the State: "Desserts
First", "Desserts First", and "2 Desserts First Cafe".
You'll notice under the "Business Type" however, that these are fictitious names.
As mentioned earlier, fictitious names do not have any right in securing that business
name, and therefore if you'd like to move forward and use this name, that will be okay.
Let's go with our 3rd example, which will be "At Your Door Quick, LLC".
I'm going to go back to the Search Box, enter it, hit "Search", again enter the captcha.
You'll notice on the next page it says "No results were found for the search criteria
'At Your Door Quick'".
What this means is that according to the database, there are no existing businesses, fictitious
names, Limited Liability Companies, or Corporations with the business name "At Your Door Quick".
Therefore, you can then use this name for your business.
You can now move forward on to the next step which is your Articles of Organization.