Researching a Business Name

Chapter 4: Starting a Business - Page 4.4

Researching Whether a Name is Available

You can't absolutely guarantee that nobody has the name you want, but you can at least try. You don't want a business name that can cause problems later because it confuses you with some other business. That's obvious, but how do you research a name to make sure there won't be a conflict? There is no single sure way, but here are some suggestions:

Search Online. Start with your favorite search engine and see whether anything turns up on the company name you're considering. You can also go to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website, or www.knowx.com, or similar sites.
Search the Internet domain names. There are several websites that offer access to the Internet databases using the search term ‘whois'. The most traditional site for this is the one at Network Solutions.
See an attorney. Since you probably want to talk to an attorney about the correct business entities and other start-up matters, you may also ask your attorney about checking on business names. Generally, you want to do your own check first to catch any obvious conflicts.

Ultimately, you really protect your business name by using it. Corporations are registered by states, and fictitious business names are registered in counties. Registering a name doesn't really protect it though, because the same name could legally exist in many other states, many other counties.

You could be Acme Corporation in Illinois and legally own that corporation in that state, but there could be another Acme Corporation in every other state, and every one of them is legal until you win a lawsuit proving that they are trading on the commercial interests you own. When you really get protection is when you find somebody else using the name and you can prove that you had it first, so they are trading on your name. There are lots of McDonald's restaurants around, and McDonald's can't stop them from using that name if they had it early enough, and especially if they aren't pretending to be a fast-foods hamburger joint. The intent and the attempt to confuse is very important.

Choosing a Business Name

The choice of a business name is very important, worth taking time to develop. Don't end up with a name that you can't live with. Look for something that describes your business, is easy to explain, fits on the signs, and works.

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