With more than 135,000 graphic design businesses in the United States alone, it can come as little surprise that settling on a unique name when starting a graphic design business is challenging.
Picking the right name gives potential customers an idea about the services your business provides, creates a good first impression, and helps you stand out from the competition.
Have all the creative names for a graphic design business already been taken? How do you come up with something fresh? And what about the legalities of using a name?
If you’re not sure how to answer those questions, you’re in the right place. Keep reading to learn my top tips for choosing the perfect business name and how to make sure your favorite choices are available across the board.
Learn more about the graphic design industry
Tips for Choosing the Perfect Graphic Design Company Name
If you’re struggling to choose a company name for your graphic design business, one of the best things to do is just to start brainstorming. As you go through the tips outlined below, make a list of words, phrases, and terms associated with your business.
From there, you can narrow down the list and cross off ideas you don’t like.
Once you have several top considerations, we’ll walk you through how to make sure you’re allowed to use them. This last step helps you narrow down your list even more so you can make a final decision.
1. Consider the Services You Plan to Offer
One way to come up with a brand name for your graphic design business is to consider the services you plan to offer. Maybe you want to focus on print media design, video production, corporate branding, or web design. Perhaps you’re considering offering other specialty services.
Add the different types of services you want to offer to your brainstorming list.
Remember to avoid anything limiting your business’s future growth if you decide to go in another direction down the road.
2. Location-Specific Terms
Some graphic design firms will target a specific geographic service area. So, if that’s true for your business, consider adding a location-specific term to your business name.
You can consider things like:
- City nicknames
- Neighborhoods
- Regions or states
- And descriptive terms
However, consider what happens if you expand outside your intended service area. Does the name become limiting? If so, it’s best to avoid it if you plan to expand or change directions later.
3. Avoid Business Names That Are Hard to Pronounce, Hear, or Spell
Despite the technological advances in voice search, assistants like Siri and Alexa struggle to understand slang and other confusing words.
This could limit how often your business shows up in voice (and text-based) searches if your name is hard to spell, pronounce, or hear. Because of that, it’s important to avoid complicated words, industry jargon, and using numbers in place of letters. While having a unique graphic design business name is good, being too unique may not be so good.
Simple and short names make it easier for your target market to remember and find your business.
4. Consider Alliterations and Rhyming Words
Alliterations and rhymes are catchy names that can be easy to remember. Because of that, they make for great business names.
That said, it’s not always easy to come up with them. Start by choosing a few of your favorite words from your master brainstorming list.
Then, you can Google “words that start with D” to come up with a name like Dedicated Designers or a G for Got Graphics or whatever letter you’re using to create an alliteration. Alternatively, you can search “words that rhyme with _____.”
It can be time-consuming, but it’s an excellent place to start.
And don’t forget to add any exciting finds to your brainstorm list while you’re at it. Try not to overthink the names you come up with during this stage. Just write them all down, as some of the more interesting ones may spark better ideas later.
5. Steer Clear of Initials or Obscure Acronyms
Initials and unusual acronyms are hard to remember, so they typically don’t make great business names. They can also be challenging to pronounce and confusing for voice search as well.
Furthermore, there are 325 different two-letter combination possibilities in the English language. And the odds of your customers remembering the specific letters you chose are pretty small.
6. Imagery Words
Another consideration when brainstorming name ideas is whether there are industry-related words that could also lend themselves to be used in a logo for your website, business cards, etc. For instance, a graphic design business could use a calligraphy pen or paintbrush to focus the name around the image.
Related: How to create a logo for your business.
7. Still Struggling? Try the Owner’s Name
If you’ve made it this far and are still struggling to find the best name, you can always consider using the business owner’s name or the name of a family member. Doing so can work well if the owner plans to be the face behind the business.
Something to keep in mind is that using the owner’s name as the business name can make it more challenging to sell the business in the future.
List of Graphic Design Business Name Ideas
Here is a list of names for graphic design companies that may help give you some creative ideas. While many of these names may be available for you, be sure to check first to be sure it can be used.
Tips on how to check business name availability are after the list of names!
- 1080 Graphics
- 140 Graphic Design
- 143 Studio Graphic & Photo
- 21 Century Design & Graphics
- 360 Graphix
- Accurate Forms & Graphics
- Action Graphix
- Ad Pro Graphics
- Alice Bernat Graphic Design
- Alisa Elliott Designs
- Alpha Graphix
- Appetite For Graphics
- Arrive Design
- Art Man Graphic
- Art of Graphics
- Artful Intentions Graphics
- Artists & Icons
- Atlas Designs & Graphics
- Atlas Graphics
- Atomic Graphics
- Authentic Graphics
- Bad Rabbit Creative
- Bay City Graphics
- Bee Mountain Graphics
- Best Digital Designs
- Big Dog Graphics
- Big Film Design
- Big Idea Advertising
- Big Image Graphics
- Big Visual Studio
- Black Bear Design Group
- Black Line Logo Design Service
- Bleu Graphix
- Blink Graphics
- Blue Monster Graphics
- Bluebird Branding
- Blueline Graphix
- Bombka Graphic Design
- Bone Island Graphics
- Brand Graphic Solutions
- Brass Creative
- Bright Lights Graphics
- Bulletproof Prints
- Bully Graphics
- California Graphic Design Services
- Candlelight Graphics
- Caprock Spatial Solutions
- Captivating Graphics Solutions
- Carnival Ink Graphix
- Caught Look’n Graphics
- Certified Graphics & More
- Chelsea Gunn Designs
- Cipher Graphics
- City Graphics Solutions
- Coastal Graphics
- Coat To Coast Graphics
- Cocoa Graphics
- Color Envy Graphics
- Comet Creative
- Concord Design Agency
- Consillo Designs
- Counterpoint Graphics
- Creative 7 Designs
- Creative Ally
- Creative Color Graphics
- Creative Corner
- Creative Design
- Creative Display Graphics
- Creative Juice
- Creative Junkie
- Dancing Fish Design
- Dark Grafx
- Delight Graphics
- Dependable Designs
- Design For Life Intl
- Design Inc.
- Design Studio Graphics
- Designer Graphics
- Designer Graphics Of Florida
- Designs & Wonders
- Designs By Emily Jean
- Digital Canvas Graphics
- Digitize Us
- Distinctive Designs Ink
- Dragonfly Ct
- Dream In Color
- Dreamers Guild
- Dsign Xperts
- E Z Graphics
- Easy Media Graphics
- Eclectic Studios
- Elite Graphix
- Endless Graphics
- Envy Graphics
- Evolution Design Studios
- Exhibit Graphic Service
- F5 Graphics
- Faro Design
- Fast Monkey Graphic
- Fat Cat Media
- Ferre Graphics
- Fin Creative
- Finer Designers
- Fix Color & More
- Flair Graphic Design
- Fleet Graphix
- Foxtrot Creative Studio
- Frontier Design Studios
- Full Circle Illustration
- Full Moon Design Group
- Function Graphics
- Fusion Graphics
- Future Primitive Graphics
- Galaxy Graphic Design
- Gallery Graphics
- Garden Gate Graphics
- Garner’s Custom Designs
- Gen X Graphics
- Get Better Graphics
- Getten Dirty Graphics
- Givens Studios
- Gladiator Graphics
- Glory Bound Productions
- Golden Graphics
- Golden State Graphics
- Good Time Design
- Graffix Plus
- Grafix Studio
- Graphic Agent
- Graphic Arts Studio
- Graphic Colors
- Graphic Creations
- Graphic Design Inc.
- Graphic Encounters
- Graphic Goldmine
- Graphic Guys
- Graphic Ideas
- Graphic Kings
- Graphic Lab Inc.
- Graphic Sense
- Graphic Side
- Graphic Touch
- Graphic tTraffic
- Graphic Vision
- Graphic Works
- Graphics By Jason
- Graphics For Good
- Graphics Illustrator
- Graphics Masters
- Graphics To Ink
- Graphics Workspace
- Graphique Designs
- Great Graphics
- Greatest Graphics
- Green City Graphics
- Green Elephant Graphics
- Groov’n Graphx
- Guiding Light Creations
- H & H Graphix
- H10 Graphics
- Handmade Graphics
- Happy Graphics
- Hardcore Designs
- Harmony By Design
- Headline Graphics
- High 5 Graphics
- Highline Graphix
- Hipster Graphic
- Hive Design
- Humanity Media
- Icandy Designz
- Iconic Objective
- Ideate Designs
- Identity Graphics
- Idig Digital
- In Motion Graphics
- Incisive Designs
- Indesign By Connie
- Infinite Designs
- Ink Obsession USA
- Inktech Graphic
- Innova Graphics
- Innovative Branding Concepts
- Innovative Graphics
- Inside Lines
- Insight Graphics & Media
- Insta-Graphic Designs
- Integrated Graphics
- Izzy Graphics
- Jax Graphix
- Jiffy Graphics
- Kenyon Graphics
- King Graphiks
- Kingdom Graphics & Marketing
- Krisp Graphics
- Kurt At Work
- Lake Graphics
- Larke Designs
- Laughing Brothers Graphics
- Left Coast Graphix
- Liberty Graphics
- Limitless Designs
- Local Graphics
- Logistic Designs
- Lunar Media
- Lure Design
- M2 Graphics
- Mammoth Graphics
- Marketing Machine
- Mars Graphix
- Mashup Graphics
- Michele Wysocki Fine Arts
- Mind’s Eye Creative Group
- Mindy Gayer Design Co
- Mk3 Graphics
- Monkey Biz Custom Graphics
- Mott Graphics
- Mr. Graphic Solutions
- Neat Ideas
- Neo Media Productions
- New England Graphic Solutions
- New Visions Graphic Design Studio
- Nine Zero Nine Graphics
- Nordic Graphic Design
- Notorious Grafix
- Oh Goody Gotcha Graphics
- Oh Ok Creative
- Old Pueblo Graphics
- Olio Studio
- Olmy Creations
- On Demand Graphics
- On Point Graphics
- One Hundred Designs
- One Stop Graphic Shop
- Orange Show Graphics
- Original Graphics
- Owen Design Co
- P B & J Custom Graphics
- Pacific Coast Graphics
- Personal Graphics
- Phoenix Drowned Design
- Photon Graphics
- Pixel Studio
- Pixel Wall Graphics
- Point Five Design
- Pop X Graphics
- Power Graphics Designs
- Prime Graphics
- Prime Print Co
- Primo Web Development
- Proforma 360 Branding
- Promedia
- Protec Graphics
- Province Graphics
- Quanta Graphics
- Radical One Designs
- Rebel Graphics
- Red Monkey Designs
- Red Rock Studios
- Riot Creative Imaging
- Rod Cam Graphics
- Royal Graphics Design Firm
- Rush It Graphics
- See Saw Creative
- Select Graphics
- Serenity Designs
- Sibling Artists
- Siteline Graphic Solutions
- Slazyk Graphics
- Socal Liquid Graphics
- Solid Design
- Speedy Digital Graphics
- Spire Graphics
- Springboard Graphics
- Squared Away Graphics
- Star City Graphics
- Star Graphics
- Streamline Media
- Strong Design Studios
- Studio One Eleven
- Studio Six Branding
- Summit Graphics
- Sunshine Graphics
- Superior Graphics
- Technical Graphics
- The Creative Coalition
- The Logo Company
- Think Ink Graphics
- Throttle Syndicate
- Timeline Creative
- Titanic Design
- Top Quality Visuals
- Top Shelf Graphics
- Tristar Graphix
- Twotone Graphics
- Ultimate Design
- Unicorn Graphics Co
- Union Design
- USA Graphics
- Ventura Graphix
- Vertical Design
- Vibrant Visual
- VIP Productions
- Vision Graphics
- Visual Aspect Media
- Visual Identity
- Vital Visuals
- West Coast Graphics
- West Side Graphics
- Wolfe Designs
- World Graphic Design Inc.
- Worldwide Graphics
- Your Creative Team
- Z Graphics
Is Your Name Available?
At this point, you should have several top considerations to choose from. And the best way to narrow it down further is to check each one for availability.
This step is helpful because using a name that someone else is using could be very costly, time-consuming to rebrand your business, and possibly embarrassing. There are several places to look to check whether a name is available to use, so let’s walk through each one.
Can the business name be registered in your state?
If you plan to use a specific business name, you may be required by the state to verify it’s available to use.
Related: How to check business name availability in your state
Is your name already trademarked?
When searching for a name for your new business, you should check that your new name isn’t trademarked by someone else. If it is, you may not be allowed to use it legally.
Thankfully, the United States Patent Trademark Office (USPTO) makes trademark searching a breeze through their Trademark Database.
A name isn’t necessarily available if it doesn’t appear in this search. Every business has some limited protection through a common law trademark. This means another business can’t open up down the street with the same name, as this creates confusion for customers. Also, check local competitors by doing a Google search and looking through the Yellow Pages.
If your name is available and you want to protect it from being used by anyone else, you can register it with the USPTO.
Related: How to check for a trademark
Hopefully, you now have some good name ideas for your graphic design business. Once you have narrowed this list to just a few and researched that they are all available, start asking friends, family, and potential customers their thoughts to get feedback, and then pick your perfect graphic design business name!
