February 9th, 2007
A naming competition
Anyone who has ever been in a band will know how difficult naming the band can be. It is no different for a new business.
I find naming incredibly difficult. It really isn’t one of my strong points.
Unfortunately though, next Thursday, I have to register myself as a new company name and I’m completely devoid of inspiration. So, I thought I’d hold a competition to find me a good name. Lazy? yes, I suppose. Thing is, I’m totally stacked with finishing off the book and a mountain of client work. Sitting here with a blank piece of paper (after thinking of names) for about an hour now has not been a productive use of my time.
For the past six months, I’ve been trading as Mark Boulton Design. Well, soon, there are going to be more of us and I’m a little nervous about my name being so associated with the business name. It could be a good thing, but it could also be a very bad thing.
What’s in it for us Mark?
An iPod Shuffle for the winner. Can’t say fairer than that.
Some boring rules and criteria
I’m a graphic designer and run a UI and graphic design business. If you’ve been reading my blog, you will know what kind of designer I am and what I’m all about. So, a name like ‘Purple Dog’ may not be appropriate. I’m after something simple and memorable that might, or might not, be related to the service I offer.
- Sensible names only please.
- A url. .co.uk or .com would be good.
- Not an existing company
Pop the names in the comments
Post your suggestions here (along with url suggestions if you fancy).
The competition will close on the 15th February (9am UK time) and a winner will be announced shortly after that.
In the meantime, I’ll be going back to my blank sheet of paper
boundingbox.com
[Playing off your name:]
Bolt Action Creative
[Minimal, address-related:]
Studio 11
[Playing off your city name:]
Valour Design
Simple Steps or Simple Steps Design (simplestepsdesign.com is available, btw) and yeah, I know SimpleBits and all…but it is kinda your brand.
flushstudio.com
(typography term i geuss)
Boulton Like Micheal Creative
Nick: Nice, although I’m not sure my Accountant would agree.
Playing of what someone else mentioned about bolt action — gun — and your love of typography, hows about point12.
Play on words really…
Also the .co.uk is available :)
Design thinking
Simplest Design
Simply Pixels
Mark Design
Play on your name..
No Boul(or Bull) Creative (but im not sure how to pronounce your name, is it “Bull”?)
first thing that came to my mind… I’ll have more.
Boult-On Design
reMark Design
emB Design (or Creative)
play on the “em” using your initials
The Boult
MB ;-)
boulted design
boulting design
seems like boundingbox.co.uk is availabe. I like the emB Design that Brian suggested too.
Sorry couldn’t resist :-) No more snappy names, but why not find a name that reflects your philosophy or sense of design?
designmarkup
both .com and .co.uk are still available…
Kram Notloub Design
Maybe something related to your book…
5 Steps Creative
5ss Design
5ss Creative
Simple Steps Creative
Simple Steps Design
5SS Studio
Mark,
You already own fivesimplesteps.co.uk
why not name your company that? Instead of the web 2.0 process of 1,2,3 you could up those web 2.0 nerds and be like schick razors, go for five. Skip web 3.0 & 4.0, start a new trend web 5.0 the mark boulton way. My vote is name your company five simple steps.
colourBus
BType [Design] — btype.co.uk
siteweaver
I recommend you keep Mark Boulton Design as your company name.
The name recognition/brand you have built is priceless. Why start all over building a new brand?
If you are nervous about our name being associated with the business, maybe you should reconsider your business plans.
If you cannot trust those you have hired to produce high quality work, let them go.
Micheal
MARK ON
MRKBLTN
SMPL
I hope you suceed, nice idea to put the contest online :)
I meant to say in my post:
“If you are nervous about *your*…”.
I read somewhere that businesses named after the founder fail significantly more often than businesses that are not. It could just be a coincidence but I’d wager that the types of folks that would name a business after themselves usually have an ego that makes doing business difficult. I’d recommend against a company named after yourself in any way (initials, pun, mash up, …) mostly because I think it is silly, but there is anecdotal data to back it up (I just can’t seem to be able to find it right now).
Josh Read: cool name idea, dumb reasoning. Web 2.0 is a concept, not a thing so “web 5.0” doesn’t make any sense.
– Michael
I’ve been trying to think of a name that sums up Mark’s design philosophy. It’s tricky though. One of the names I came up with — ‘Harmony’, Mark said sounded more like a lingerie shop.
Then, I started thinking about the Golden Section and the Divine Proportion in nature as I think it sums up how Mark approaches design. The company name needs to be something that says ‘clean, simple and elegant’ but I still haven’t found the right combination of words… some of my suggestions are…
Design philosophy
White orchid design
Em dash
Perfect leaf
Leaf design
Design harmony
Harmony design
Perfect proportion
Snowflake
Design union
Design symmetry
Harmony
222.5 degrees
Fibonacci spiral
1.6 or one point six
Counterpoint
Design resonance
Interval
Divine proportion
Some are very lame…I’m not after an ipod by the way — I got one for my birthday.
Mindvest
CreateNext
Studio Train
Good luck,
Dimitry
boultems.com
Here are some simple, slightly abstract names that I tried to relate to UI and Design. (But maybe you shouldn’t listen to me, I came up with a name, bought a domain, started designing it, and then changed it.)
Click Design
Approach Design
Organized Design
bostudio (for “boulton”, co.uk avail)
cogibo (after “design thinking”, avail)
sectio (after latin for golden ratio, co.uk avail)
Serif Design
http://www.serifdesign.co.uk seems to be unused
Nice, Chuck.
Dig the last two.
High Marks Design
Boulter Communications
i love the name Nasty Monkey but not match to your
requirement. Maybe something like
Boulton Interactive
Mark Boulton
Clean, multipurpose, symoblic. Reminds me of Leo Burnett. It’d serve to embody who and what you are, not just what you do (like Mark Boulton Design would).
Boulton UI
Boutlon UI Design
UI Designs
UI Web Designs
All very literal I know but hey “Snakes on planes”
Boulton Group,
Boulton Associates,
boulton bloc,
Boulton Guild
Productive Use
John Hicks has hicksdesign(dotcodotuk), Peter Gill has petergill(dotcom), Jeffrey Zeldman has zeldman(dotcom)so personally I think you should retain your brand and keep it markboulton(dotcodotuk)
However, on stationery etc you still could call the company something like
Mark Boulton design
Mark Boulton and associates
Mark Boulton creative
Mark Boulton design thinking
or how about:
design-thinking(dotcodotuk)
markboultondesign(dotcodotuk) would be my other choice though. I see you quite rightly have bought it more than likely with the knowledge that having a good name helps search endgine rankings anyway
I think that’s an iPod Shuffle to me then :)
MRK-BLTN Design
I agree with the comments that say keep it simple and keep it with your name.
You already have your reputation. And if you have so much trouble finding a name, it’s not intuitive and it will not feel right. (maybe. maybe I’m wrong.)
I think you should stay with Mark Boulton Design.
Mark The Maker, Inc.
markthemaker.com
I think you should just drop your first name and use…
Boulton Designs.
That way the name change isn’t massive and it won’t confuse your existing clients. It removes the one man branding but still remains you.
some tips for when i went through this fun process..
Brainstorm some words/concepts around that sum up what you do and where you want to be (ideally with your other business partners if they are keen on the name change)
Find words around these concepts, even if they are seemingly unrelated. Simple, more abstract words tend to be more effective than descriptive words (i.e. Think Left, Clear Thinking). Say the words aloud, if they flow well that’s a big help.
I.e “Happy Cog” (Zeldman’s company): Cog = interactive, Happy just sounds nice together
Finally writea list of possibilities and check these against available domain names / and at Companies House.
If you get stuck on domains remember a Ltd company is entitled to register the .ltd.uk domain name as long as its the same as their registered company name.
Don’t rush the process. Once you start a business you’ll be stuck with the name for a while. So make sure you’re happy with it.
good luck
1) The Kerning Room Floor
Okay, you love typography. The name is all about ‘The Cutting Room Floor’, where in the movie industry film is edited, you do the same with type. Perhaps also Ligature Room Floor.… so on, so on, think of any typographical term, and pick the one that’s the strongest, sounds the coolest, and that means the most to you.
2) Your name! “Mark Boulton” (I’m sure you’re familiar with it :)
So many great design companies keep the name of the guy/girl heading them. Why not do the same? Has infinite class, you look like a real designer rather than a bunch of web monkeys, which some names can portray.
3) Semantic Creative
Also, perhaps Semantic Design, depending upon your preference. People who don’t know what Semantic means will think ‘cool!’ and people who do will think ‘cool!’. You can’t lose. Also perhaps Accessible Creative, Typo Creative, whichever direction you feel is most important for your company.
Okay, thats my $0.35. Good luck with naming your company!
designmarkup
design:focus
designremark
mark-able
Boulton Wonderers
<not serious>
<the thought made me laugh though>
Studio MB
nuts and boults
typnosis/typenosis
one more:
text-transform.com/.co.uk
Set up a Ltd business with a couple of mates a few months ago, and we spent AGES coming up with a name.
One that I liked was Spark’d, which was obviously inspired by Cord’k, but I liked it as it was to do with spark of inspiration/creativity, it was short, easy to remember…
Spark Creative
Spark Design
Spark Media
etc etc…
But I don’t envy you: it’s one of the toughest decisions to make!! All the very best with it!
Boulton inc.
Mark Boulton & Associates
MB Vision
All are available as .com
Designs Eleven
Grids Eleven
Grids 11 Design
Eleven Grids Design
The “eleven?” From your street address.
Good luck!
Boah, its really cool, 2.0 design!
I’m experiencing the same atm. I need to find a catchy name for my business ánd my band..
heh poor me.
I agree with Mark Otto. What works for Ralph Lauren, should work for you too.
Don’t use a name that’s got ‘design’ in it, it makes you sound amateurish IMO. Like those 14 year olds like to call their ‘design company with corny names. Things like Dragon Design and such.
Otherwise go with something that relates to your (and mine, you started my type-fetishism) love for type. 2em or something, just because it sounds nice.
/ignore spelling
Aurora Boultealis
boulondesign.co.uk
Moulton?
Moulton Design(s)
Moulton Creations
Moulton Type!
Boy, I could go on—but I think you get the idea!
Perhaps a play on the obvious:
Mark 5?
Mach 5?
I’d come up with more creative ones, but I couldn’t quite be bothered reading what’s been done in the 60+ comments above!
I agree with the people who suggest you stick with your own name — it’s been working for you thus far, why change it?
It’s difficult for readers here to come up with a good name (though many of the suggestions above are pretty good), since we only know what you post about, rather than what your business is about. Still, the idea that popped into my head when I read your post was “Gridworks”, so I’ll throw that into the ring even though I think you should use your name instead.
“Sexual Chocolate”
Paul: That is *so* the winning entry! ;)
Bolt On Design
(I’m seeing images of nuts and bolts, somehow integrated into design, art…
Bolting on the Design aspect of a company business.
And a kind of play on your name.
Brett
Chris Hunt: You just want that iPod, dont you? ;)
Hell yeah, ;-)
Whatever you choose, ensure it’s easy to say and understand, especially on the ‘phone. That goes for the domain name too.
The spelling should be unambiguous too.
Although I like emB (Design), you’d soon tire of saying E, M …for mother… B, all one word etc.
How about “Ascending Creative” ?
I’m offering either “Boulton Design”
or
“Mark Boulton Studio”
Because:
* your philosophy (as I read it) is about straightforward, direct design that doesn’t do clever-clever for the sake of it, hence a direct name; and
* the names pick up on your existing name recognition; and
* both are ambiguous enough about the number of people in the company (1? 2? 200?) they can serve you no matter what you decide to do re growth.
artbo
Cue from the Wife; Harmony Studios
The Design Type
Studio Type
The Exposed Type
Explicit Type
[db] Boulton Design
Boulton & Boulton
:)
Umm BOLT ON design, doesn;t that sound the same as Boulton Design?
;-)
I came up with that first..
Now where’s my iPod?
Erm, just for clarification guys, ‘Mark Boulton Design’, or the shortened form ‘Boulton Design’ (and derivatives thereof), was the original name for the company (point your browser to markboultondesign.co.uk for proof of that.
Keep ‘em coming though. There have been some good suggestions so far, but there isn’t a winner yet.
How about:
markymarkandthefunkybunch
remarkabledesign
markupdesign
or on a serious note base it on a typographic term
http://www.adobe.com/uk/type/topics/glossary.html
baseline design
emdash design
ellipsis design
white space design
wibble
Clear Path Design
Crucial Pixel Design
ArcheType Design — http://www.archetype.com is available
MarkType Design — http://www.marktype.com is available
Web Devilry (Design Thinking)
Lucidio Design
First Thought
ARK as in m-ARK – (ark of the covenant – Its primary function was to give detailed instructions about what was good and what was forbidden)given your love of divine proportion. I’m not suggesting you have a God complex.
Second Thunk
Anagram – Rank Bum Tool, surprisingly the URL is still available!
I vote for Five Simple Steps. It’s straightforward, helpful, clean and also something you’re known for already.
You may be interested in an article on how to name your company that’s just appeared on Vitamin.
http://www.thinkvitamin.com/features/biz/how-to-name-your-company
bark
dandy
belly
finger
Boulton Communications
boultoncommunications.com
Says exactly what it does on the tin, but also has a little play on words (bolt-on) if you’re into that kind of thing.
Mark,
Forget the subtle design related names and web 2 influenced rubbish and keep it clear and concise. And whoever said “businesses named after the founder fail significantly more often than businesses that are not” should be poked in the eye with a very rusty nail.
Just a few of the greatest eponymous businesses in recent history:
- Ogilvy Mather
- Young Rubicam
- BBH
- M&S
- Ericsson
- Ford
- Porsche
- adidas
- John Deere
- The list could go on forever…
I totally understand your dilemma as I’m there right now myself, but as clients and anyone worth their salt will tell you – it’s much less about the name you have and much more about the benefits and quality of work you provide.
Keep it strong and established over the latest trend, every time.
Mark’s Crop Designs
Mark’s Registration Designs.
Some sort of play on Printer’s marks (I’d probably avoid bleed marks, though).
And I didn’t do the research I could have, but I know that markscrop com and co uk are open.
Unfortunately, it’s a bit print-centric. However, there could be some fun logo play (esp. with registration marks).
JA
Switch Communications
switchcomdotcom
switchcom.co.uk
Sorry, just discovered that switch is not original to the UK
Just hit me, why not remove the 5 and have:
simplesteps
simple-steps
simplestepscreative
simplestepsdesign
or
problem-solving
problem-solved
problem-solvers
or
i-may-have-a-manc-accent-but-deep-down-im-a-lovely-chap.com
Wavelength Creative
Prism Graphics
Optic Nerve Designs
Visual Jazz
Kernel
Kernel(ing) – from which kerning is derived
Kernel – the central or most important part of anything
Kernel – is the central component of most computer operating systems
Kernel – the centre of a nut (a half open walnut looking like a brain) hmmm
Spiceberg Lettuce
lime
ember
bute
barry island
Mark,
A useful article if you haven’t spotted it already ;)
http://www.thinkvitamin.com/features/biz/how-to-name-your-company
Of your work that I’ve seen, everything is well thought out and simple. So:
Think Simple
Simple Thought
Lucid Thought
I think the last one is a winner, but I have a vested interest in the outcome.