February 13, 201016 yr Not sure what to name a new freelance design business, my name is Charlie Gordon. I was thinking Gordon Design but I'm not sure if it sounds stupid or not. Any other ideas?
February 13, 201016 yr Well you could prefix any word with your initials, cgdesign, cgstudios, cgblah, cgfloat - thousands of possibilities there! A thesaurus is always a good tool to find alterative words and names
February 13, 201016 yr If you're a single freelancer, why not use your name? Seems more professional that way than just making up a business name, only for people to realise that in-fact '<cool word>-solutions' is actually just a young guy called Charlie Gordon somewhat disguising his identity. Or use the suggestion above, that's just as good; it's personal - it's freelance
February 13, 201016 yr Author If you're a single freelancer, why not use your name? Seems more professional that way than just making up a business name, only for people to realise that in-fact '<cool word>-solutions' is actually just a young guy called Charlie Gordon somewhat disguising his identity. Or use the suggestion above, that's just as good; it's personal - it's freelance Yeah I would like to use my name, but I think charlie gordon would look/sound weird. Does it sound professional to you?
February 13, 201016 yr Does it sound professional to you? Does Andy Lockett sound professional to you? There is no such thing as a professional name (person's name), in my opinion (with obvious exceptions for particularly unusual names). I mean if you needed a website, who would you go to: 1. Josh Young 2. Freddie Webster 3. Sam Jenkins Unless you have some kind of name prejudice problem, you'd check out each website before choosing.
February 13, 201016 yr Author Does Andy Lockett sound professional to you? There is no such thing as a professional name (person's name), in my opinion (with obvious exceptions for particularly unusual names). I mean if you needed a website, who would you go to: 1. Josh Young 2. Freddie Webster 3. Sam Jenkins Unless you have some kind of name prejudice problem, you'd check out each website before choosing. Yeah Andy Locket sounds professional. Maybe charliegordon doesnt sound professional to me cuz its my own name, if you get me..
February 13, 201016 yr Yeah Andy Locket sounds professional. Maybe charliegordon doesnt sound professional to me cuz its my own name, if you get me.. It was a rhetorical question, but I think you got my drift Good luck with the freelance work.
February 13, 201016 yr This is exactly what i am looking for....a business name for my...er......business... I think using your full name is always going to limit your business if maybe one day you will want to branch out and employ people. It's probably a good idea not to employ and just out source work, but you never know do you? And the fact that we work in such a creative industry will always go down nice with clients if our business name had a bit of creativeness somewhere in there? Having "CG studios" or "CG creative" makes you sound a lot bigger and more of a business then a person! But it is hard though ain't it..... - Neil
February 14, 201016 yr You can always call it: F**k the lemons and bail I use my name for freelance projects, but I also team up with friends/co-workers under the umbrella of 6outof5. It really doesn't matter if it's your name or something abstract, as long as they like your work, they will hire you.
February 14, 201016 yr This is exactly what i am looking for....a business name for my...er......business... I think using your full name is always going to limit your business if maybe one day you will want to branch out and employ people. It's probably a good idea not to employ and just out source work, but you never know do you? And the fact that we work in such a creative industry will always go down nice with clients if our business name had a bit of creativeness somewhere in there? Having "CG studios" or "CG creative" makes you sound a lot bigger and more of a business then a person! But it is hard though ain't it..... - Neil This is precisely what I'm talking about. Fooling a customer into believing they're dealing with a large business is clearly an awful way to begin the relationship you should be working to form. Plus, we're talking about individual freelance.
February 14, 201016 yr This is precisely what I'm talking about. Fooling a customer into believing they're dealing with a large business is clearly an awful way to begin the relationship you should be working to form. Plus, we're talking about individual freelance. We're we....? I thought we was talking about setting up a business name? After all, freelancing is a business ain't it? And who's talking about fooling clients? And were the hell did you get that notion from!!!! I'm not talking about PRETENDING to be a large business....but you ARE a business so sound like one! It's also about thinking ahead and making sure you have scope! If a customer is to believe you are a large business then great....let them. But i bet you not many customer's(if any) - would give a toss if you are or not. Just as long as your work is as good as your reputation that got you the work in the first place.
February 14, 201016 yr We're we....? I thought we was talking about setting up a business name? Erm, yes? A name for a young freelance individual 'business'. And who's talking about fooling clients? And were the hell did you get that notion from!!!! Right here: Having "CG studios" or "CG creative" makes you sound a lot bigger and more of a business then a person! If a customer is to believe you are a large business then great....let them. But i bet you not many customer's(if any) - would give a toss if you are or not. Just as long as your work is as good as your reputation that got you the work in the first place. Fair point, but I believe honesty is the best policy. It was just my opinion, sorry to have offended you so greatly EDIT: Just noticed that your domain is your own name!
February 14, 201016 yr I always like to try and create a pun or an interesting memorable name... Like I've had BrandYouWithTags for a designer fashion shop (Play on words of BNWT) and then BluePrince Design is the name of my new design firm... (Blue Prince =/= Blue Prints). Helps people remember your company name.
February 15, 201016 yr I think using your full name is always going to limit your business if maybe one day you will want to branch out and employ people. I disagree. Take the following fashion/perfume companies for example, named after their founders: Tommy Hilfiger Giorgio Armani Donna Karan (New York) a.k.a. DKNY Hugo Boss They are just as successful as companies such as: Lacoste GAP Diesel Avon
February 15, 201016 yr Also, bear in mind some "big" multi-nationals won't deal with self-employed people, however if your 'company' was called "Charlie Gordon Ltd" for example, they will deal with you even though you are a one-man band.
February 15, 201016 yr Erm, yes? A name for a young freelance individual 'business'. Right here: Fair point, but I believe honesty is the best policy. It was just my opinion, sorry to have offended you so greatly EDIT: Just noticed that your domain is your own name! No you didn't offend me that greatly, it's just that it sounded like you where calling me (or my idea)unprofessional and i would gladly fool my customers? I know these posts can be taken out of context and sometimes and i do jump the gun, so i apologize for that. But i am only repeating the advice that was given to me and from what i have read recently in industry magazines and on sites. For me....it just makes sense to leave yourself room to expand if you ever needed to. Some clients might not want to deal with just an individual and expanding might be your only option if you really wanted to entice the big contracts? My site(portfolio) is just a place for potential employers to see...not clients. I am not freelancing at the moment as i am writing for websites and magazines instead. But my plan is to start a business middle of summer, but not as an individual. I am looking for a business partner as i don't fancy being an individual to be honest. I tried that two years ago and all people wanted was e-commerce. One thing that i don't know much about. So i struggled with little bits here and there. Anyway that's my opinion and i respect yours and wish you all the luck.
February 15, 201016 yr LOL NERD ALERT!!! Hang on.....has he got shoulder pads on or is someone pulling his balls down?....
February 15, 201016 yr I'd hold back guys, You know what americans are like if they saw this. Sue sue sue sue sue sue sue sue sueeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
February 15, 201016 yr No you didn't offend me that greatly, it's just that it sounded like you where calling me (or my idea)unprofessional and i would gladly fool my customers? That wasn't what I said but fair enough. Your idea involved the words "makes you sound a lot bigger and more of a business then a person". Just seemed a little odd. My site(portfolio) is just a place for potential employers to see...not clients. They might have some serious issues contacting you : Anyway that's my opinion and i respect yours and wish you all the luck. Ditto, and let this thread be spammed to death
February 15, 201016 yr That wasn't what I said but fair enough. Your idea involved the words "makes you sound a lot bigger and more of a business then a person". Just seemed a little odd. They might have some serious issues contacting you : Ditto, and let this thread be spammed to death Cheers for the heads up on my site. What browser is that on? chrome is it? It has been tested on the others. And yeah sorry for spamming your thread Charlie
February 15, 201016 yr My Two Pennies: - Company name does seem bigger than you are, but leaves room to expand into that - I like to think of it as a self-fulfilling prophecy. - Own Name: seems to be happy limiting yourself to being just yourself. You can be openly honest on a company website about how big or small you are. There is a degree that most companies will only want to work with someone who is : Big enough to deal with their request, but small enough to care. Bigger companies will want to work with companies that are VAT registered and aren't one man bands. Find your target audience and play to it.
February 15, 201016 yr I've had 2 companies in the past (not for web design) and one was my name, and the other was related to what I did. I don't think the name mattered, but the fact that they were both limited companies did. Firms feel safer dealing with limited companies. I don't think your company name gives any clue as to how many staff there are etc. unless you're going to call yourself "Gordon Design & Co", or "Gordon & Associates" etc.... As people have already pointed out - many large companies have just a name e.g. John Lewis. However, as an established brand people know it isn't just one chap selling chairs out the back of his van... My point is - just go with what you want. However, I would suggest thinking about your logo at the same time as that may help with your choice.
February 15, 201016 yr I wouldn't call yourself anything that starts CG, you'll have people confusing it with computer graphics or CGI. How about Gordon Blimey - another freelancer no offence intended but you're only 14 years old so you can't really function as a business in any official capacity for another 4 years. Technically you can be a director at 16, if memory serves me correctly, but that means very little when having to deal with things like contracts. In any case, I can't imagine any sane business would knowingly pay for a 14 year old to handle their website design. My advice would be to spend the next few years having fun as teenager and just get a lot of practice by designing for family, friends and fictitious sites. You really don’t want to be dealing with the complexities of business at such a young age, it will scar you for life!
February 15, 201016 yr I agree with taylor entirely. Though I do have a minor correction to make. You can be a director of a incorporated body (of most if not any kind) at aged 16. So really you can't incorporate any form of business for another two years. But, at 16 I do believe you can deal with contracts as the business is a separate legal and commercial entity existing in it's own right which can deal with contracts. However, on your own without being an incorporated business, you have no legal power to sign or agree to any document.
February 15, 201016 yr My Two Pennies: - Company name does seem bigger than you are, but leaves room to expand into that - I like to think of it as a self-fulfilling prophecy. - Own Name: seems to be happy limiting yourself to being just yourself. Exactly my point.
February 15, 201016 yr Lots of companies or individuals have their 'business' name (so to say) as something that reflects their personality or services. Find something that you pride yourself on and use the suggestion of prefixes and suffixes. An obvious one that I wouldn't recommend is fast-solutions or fast-design. Obviously, this shows you are a fast worker which is an advertising gain too. Like I said, don't use the word fast but there are thousands of words that can describe somebody's work/personality. Just an idea!
February 15, 201016 yr I'm with Taylor and Britzin on this one. I'd just enjoy being young for now! From 14 until settling on a career I must have changed my mind countless times on 'What I wanted to be when I grew up'. Never ended up doing any of them either. I'd have certainly felt like I'd squandered those relatively care-free times 'just being a kid' if I'd spent them trying to be a businessman. Mind you, even now I'm still at my happiest playing four-year-old games with my four-year-old daughter. Can't beat a bit of Lego - much more fun than running a business!! I'm also glad I spent many years working for other people before starting my own business. I was trained, learnt a lot, gained a lot of experience, and got paid very (occasionally very very) well while I was doing it too. Now I can work much more effectively for my customers because I know how businesses work and what makes them tick - from independent shops to large corporations, because I've had the time and chance to work in them over the years. Don't want to sound patronising or put you off. Go for it and all the best with it, but not at the expense of years you'll never get back. I feel so very old now....
February 15, 201016 yr Just thought I would add my tuppence to the table... I'm going to agree with Taylor, Britzin and Ian..... go out and enjoy yourself and don't be in too much of a hurry to grow up.... you spend a lot longer as an adult as you do a kid. (not that I'm calling you a kid!... I'm sure your very mature to be even considering what you are doing) I think part of the problem is society itself... everyone wants everything right now. What are your plans for when you finish school..... college? Uni? Anyhoo back to the topic.... When you are picking your business name... also consider not just the logo, like mrsminkie said, but also the overall design.... there is no point in picking a name that you just cant design for.
February 15, 201016 yr At 18 I still thought I would be a rockstar and was in band touring Europe. Now i'm 22, and those 4 years have seen a massive change. At 14 Fella, keep doing bits and pieces, but as everyone else has said, enjoy yourself before wanting to dive into business.
February 15, 201016 yr I've chosen (or will choose, as I'm no where near to being a professional yet) to go with a business name instead of my own name. I'm from Holland but I live in the UK now and I don't think a Dutch surname will go down well with potential clients, they won't even be able to pronounce it properly.
February 17, 201016 yr Does Andy Lockett sound professional to you? There is no such thing as a professional name (person's name), in my opinion (with obvious exceptions for particularly unusual names). I mean if you needed a website, who would you go to: 1. Josh Young 2. Freddie Webster 3. Sam Jenkins Unless you have some kind of name prejudice problem, you'd check out each website before choosing. Amusingly enough... there is evidence to the contrary of your point. For example I assume all 3 names above were intended to be male? As soon as 3. Sam Jenkins becomes 3. Samantha Jenkins You'll find for a lot of people (not everyone, but a large percentage of people).. the name suddenly becomes unprofessional and unemployable. This isn't me jumping on some woe-is-me feminism* bandwagon. It's a fact of life that a lot of freelancers do have to deal with when they discover they actually DON'T have a professional sounding name. Happens more so for the ladies but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen for guys. Does "Charles Gordon" not sound MORE professional? (I'm not saying "Charlie Gordon" doesn't just trying to play devil's advocate). I think you'll find having a good strong male name as your surname will serve you well and that having a more friendly and approachable first name will also serve you well in other ways. I'd go with Charlie Gordon *something* *I'm still waiting for someone to explain why sexism, ageism and racism are all REALLY BAD things, but feminism is a good thing (in this day and age)? P.S. As has already been pointed out a really large proportion of successful companies are people's names. If it gets too difficult to manage they normally lop off the first one. Think J.P.Sainsbury's (or Tesco or Cadbury or Clarks). To bring it into our industry what about Saatchi? Big company - person's name. Edited February 17, 201016 yr by ErisDS
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