General Tips, Your Event Career

How to Become a Party Planner: Choosing a Name for Your Business

If you’re wondering how to become a party planner, then you’ve come to the right place! Chances are, you’ve already completed your professional training at a reputable party planner school, or you’re in the process of completing your course. (And if you aren’t? That’s the very first – and most important – place to start!)

Once you’ve earned your certification, your next goal may be to start your very own business. This, of course, is an awesome idea. After all, who doesn’t dream of being their own boss? The thing is, starting a business isn’t the kind of decision you can leap right into. It requires time, careful planning, and serious contemplation.

The first step to starting your own party planner business is to decide on a name. For some, this can be a bit tricky. But with our handy tips, it doesn’t have to be! Let’s take a look at the basic essentials you need to consider when it comes to choosing a name.

First Thing’s First…

In order to know what you want your business to be called, you need to have a thorough understanding of what you want your business to be in the first place. Take the time to really sit down and think about what you want your brand to be. Here are a few helpful questions to consider:

• What types of parties do you specialize in?
• Are your services catered to a specific demographic, or are they suitable for all ages, genders, etc.?
• Do you have a unique niche that can help set you apart from the competition?
• What is the overall mission of your business?
• What do you want your company values to be?

When it comes to your brand, the number one most important thing you should be asking yourself is:
“How do I want the world to see my business?” If there are certain emotions, colors, images, etc. that you’d like to be associated with your brand, you might be able to work that into the name of your party planner business.

Create a Short List

Inspiration can be found everywhere, so don’t rush yourself to try and think up a business name at the drop of a hat. Instead, give yourself some time to look around, get inspired, and let the creative wheels turn in your head.

Once some promising ideas start to come to you, write them down! As the list grows, you can always go back, revise it, and narrow things back down. Once you’ve finalized your short list, rank the names in order of most to least favorite.

The exciting thing about getting to pick your own business name is that you can get as creative as you want! So, don’t hesitate to explore the furthest corners of your imagination. Here are a few ideas to get the ball rolling:

• Proper names
• (Simple!) word games
• Words in other languages
• Synonyms
• Clichés or popular phrases
• Puns
• Names from books, mythology, or other works of fiction

5 Rules for Naming Your Party Planner Business

There are plenty of ways for a business name to miss the mark, so it’s important that you do your research.

Think about some of the most memorable business names you’ve come across throughout your life. What made them memorable? Why do you like them so much? Does it appeal to the targeted audience, and if it does, how does it achieve that?

Here are 5 rules you should absolutely abide by when naming your own business:

1. Be original, but be relevant. Your business name shouldn’t be a carbon copy of some other business name. At the same time, it should be able to convey to potential clients a sense of what it is your business does, as well as the types of services you provide. On that note, try to avoid business names like, “Party Planning by [Insert Name]”. There are far too many planning businesses with that sort of name. This can easily make it difficult for your business to really shine amongst its competitors.
2. Be mindful of the spelling. If your business name contains a commonly misspelled word, you’re increasing your chances of potential clients struggling to find you (especially online). Similarly, consider your business scope as a whole. Who is your target demographic? Do you intend to remain local, or do you want your business to go global? The wording you choose in your name has an impact on these factors.
3. Don’t overcomplicate things. Keep it simple! Short and snappy business names are easy to remember and fun to say. Longer business names can be a mouthful, and are likelier to be forgotten. This is definitely not the impact you want your business to make!
4. Make it internet-friendly. The ideal scenario here is that your website can read as “www.YourBusinessName.com”. If another business has already registered that domain name, you’ll need to consider alternate routes. If your business name isn’t already a registered web domain, jump on that opportunity immediately!
5. Register your name. On that note, it’s critical that as soon as you’ve decided on your name (and it isn’t already registered with another company), you legally register that name. That way, you own it. No one can take it from you. Yes, there will be paperwork involved, but trust me, it’ll be worth it in the long run. Plus, you’ll also eliminate the chance of accidentally using someone else’s legally-owned business name (which can make for a sticky situation).

In terms of how to become a party planner, choosing a strong, memorable business name that properly reflects your brand is an essential step towards success. So, what are you waiting for? Start brainstorming!

Haven’t earned your certification yet? Enroll in QC Event School’s leading online Private Event Planning Course, and graduate in as little as 3-6 months!

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