Read on to learn how to get it right.
You’ve got an exciting idea for starting a wellness business. You know all the things you’re going to offer people, exactly how your website is going to look, all the services you can provide and you can’t wait to start telling people about your new company.
But… what are you going to call your wellness business?
Picking a name for your wellness business is a big deal. It’s something you’ll have to repeat over and over, something you’ll see every day and that needs to encompass your whole brand and ethos. It will become how people will know you, so you want to get it right.
Here are a few tips when it comes to naming your wellness business:
Before you dismiss this one straight away, hear me out.
If you’ve already ruled out using your own name, I do understand. I felt exactly the same as you when I started my blog.
When I began I wanted a brand to hide behind. I didn’t want it to be about me, I wanted the brand name to leave me personally in the shadows.
I was also working full-time in a different industry when I began my blog. I didn’t want my name popping up to clients on a healthy eating website if they Google searched me. Plus it was the trendy thing to do on Instagram in the era I started up: this was 2016, think Deliciously Ella, Clean Eating Alice etc.
But…
As much as I love The Flourishing Pantry and still believe it encompasses what I share on my blog, it doesn’t cover everything I’ve gone on to do.
The more I wrestled to try and get my coaching services to fit under The Flourishing Pantry brand in the last year, the more it jarred.
People will come to me for coaching because they know what I’ve done with The Flourishing Pantry. But having professional coaching services sat under that name and website and creating content and blogging specifically for clients there, just didn’t work.
If I went back and did it all over again, I would definitely use my own name. It’s the one thing that never goes out of fashion, you never tire of (hopefully!), that never changes and will always represent you fully, in everything you do.
If you’ve ruled out using your name for your wellness business, I would highly recommend getting out a journal and jotting down the reasons you think you shouldn’t use it.
If the reasons you don’t want to use your name for your wellness business are coming from fear, doubt and worry about being seen, they’re not a good enough reason. Get honest with yourself about why you’re avoiding using your own name so you can rule it out for positive reasons, not negative and fear based ones.
As I’ve mentioned already, trends in health and wellness are fast moving and the brand name you pick now might not hold up in a few years time.
People like Clean Eating Alice and Plant Based Pixie have both changed their brand names since they started. In Alice Lieving’s case because of a backlash against the term ‘clean eating’, in Pixie’s because of a change in her own personal attitude towards food and not wanting to be defined by a particular way of eating.
You might think of a name that you’d love to use that taps into a current popular trending word, phrase or movement. It will be really topical and on-point for a short time, but you can’t guarantee it will still resonate or even be approved of next season.
Your business is for the long-term, so try not to pick a name that is trend driven. Pick something that will stand the test of time.
If I am anything to go by when it comes to building a wellness business, I can almost guarantee that whatever you want to be offering your clients right here today, will be different in 6 months, 1 year, 3 years or 5 years time.
Opportunities are going to come up for you and your business, the internet is going to present new ideas and ways of working and your life is going to take twists and turns you simply can’t predict right now.
Try not to name your wellness business in a way that ties you too closely to your exact offering. You’ll need a name that can encompass the multitudes that you can (and will) do in the future.
When people find you and your business they want to know exactly what you’re offering immediately.
Especially in the online world, people have short attention spans. They’re going to make snap judgements about you based on the name you choose for your business. If your name contains words that have strong associations, be prepared to lose some people immediately, even if you could actually be a great help for them.
Also think about how people search the internet and find you. You might have thought of a clever or even witty name for your wellness business. But if it’s not immediately understandable or recognisable it will cause confusion.
If someone found your brand on Google – would they get what you’re about straight away? If not, you might be overcomplicating the name.