Contractors and Freelancers: Choosing the right name for your Limited Company

Forming your own limited company is the start of something wonderful, you are stepping out and building your own business. Creating an identity for that business is important for its success.

Just as your own name is integral to your own identity, the name you chose for your limited company is integral to letting people know what it is and what service(s) it offers.

This week’s article looks at what you need to consider when choosing a name for your limited company.

Motorway or A road?

There are 2 routes you can take when registering your limited company with Companies House. You can decide to go the quicker route and purchase an ‘Off the Shelf, Ready Made’ limited company that is available for immediate use. Or, as most contractors and freelancers choose to do, you can set up your own limited company with a name chosen by yourself. This is option involves filling in more paperwork, but in the long run, it will be a company that represents who you are.

Not as simple as A,B,C

Picking your limited company name is not as easy as it sounds. There are certain rules that you need to follow. These are set out by Companies House and include:

• the name has to be unique, it can not be the same or similar as another registered company
• the name can not contain a ‘sensitive’ word
• the name can not suggest a connection to the Government or a Local Authority
• the name must not be offensive

More information is available in the document ‘Incorporation and names’ from Companies House.
We recommend reading through this document before you start the process of choosing your limited company name, so you are familiar with the legal requirements.

Crazy, Concise or Common Sense?

As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, a name is integral to creating a strong identity i.e. creating a strong brand. At the centre of any brand, is the brand name. It’s a calling card to the world!

There are different options you can take when choosing how to name your limited company, these include:

• keeping it simple and incorporate your own name into the limited company name e.g. Frank Jones Limited
• basing it on the services that the company offers e.g. F Jones IT Consultant Limited
• or, you could choose to use something that is unrelated to what you and what the service the company offers. A well-known example here is Apple. What has an apple got to do with technology?

Whichever, option you decide to take, it is important to also consider:

• is the name professional
• is the name easy to remember (if it’s too wordy, people will have problems recalling it)
• is the name easy to spell (complex spelling will lead it to been misspelt)
• will the name still be relevant in years to come (your service offering may change over time, will the company name to be able to reflect this)
• is the name marketable

Marketing should not be an after-thought for any business. Asking yourself “Will it be simple to market my company?” should be one of the questions you ask yourself during the naming process.

Before, registering your company name with Companies House, check out how web-friendly the name is. Look at sites such as 123.Reg or GoDaddy to see if it is available as a domain name. This is important if you choose to launch a website to support your Limited Company.

If you are thinking of launching your own Limited Company and require assistance with it, contact us today on 020 8952 2234 and we would be delighted to talk you through the process.