The Ultimate Guide to Naming Your Pet Sitting or Dog Walking Business.
One of the first and most exciting things an entrepreneur in the pet care world gets to do is pick the name of their pet sitting business! But, as most pet sitters and dog walkers will tell you — the process can quickly become overwhelming and frustrating because your business name is something you need to get right the first time. Just think about it for a moment — your website will most likely be modeled after your business name, and your business cards, logo, and invoices will all carry your pet sitting company’s name on them, as well. You’ll even need to fill out government forms that contain the name of your business. Everywhere you look, your company’s name will follow, and trying to change it can be an absolute nightmare, so choosing the right name for your business is not something to take lightly. But not to worry, we are here to you pick out the perfect name for your pet sitting or dog walking business with the steps listed below!
Step 1: What’s in a name?
Think about what you want your business to be and what types of services you will offer.
- Do you plan to provide just dog walking or cat sitting services? If so, pick a name that highlights your particular services. For example, if you only visit cats, name your business something like Mike’s Cat Sitting Service to make it clear to prospective clients that you specialize in cats, not dog walking or sitting.
- Are you going to be providing upscale pet care services?
- Are you going to be the biggest and the best?
- Do you ever hope to expand to other markets? If so, you won’t want to limit yourself by highlighting only a specific niche of your service and will want to choose a name that can encompass any additional services you might add to your roster.
- Do you want your clients to hear your business name and think, “What a fun company!”?
- Do you have any veterinary and medical animal care experience that you want to implement in your pet care business?
- Do you want your business name to be something clever or playful? We’ve seen hundreds of great pet puns! Nowadays, you can even find name generators on the internet that are dedicated to helping you generate the perfect name for your pet sitting business. These can be great sources of inspiration, but be sure to double-check on any names you come across that you like to make sure you aren’t infringing on someone else’s trademark or copyright.
Your company name will often be the first thing a client interacts with from your business, so it’s important that you choose a name that will leave an impression. You want a company name that will stand out amidst a sea of competitors while also keeping in line with your brand’s image. It could be something descriptive and straightforward, or it could be something playful, depending on you and the type of business you’re looking to run. This is your chance to really represent yourself and what your business is about, so it’s okay to have a little fun with it. You should also aim to choose a name that will look good on a logo, website, or business card.
A great way to start the naming process is to write down 5-10 things you think will be most important about your business. When it comes to the name Time To Pet, for example, we wanted people to understand from the get-go that we are in the pet sitting software business and that one of our main aims was to save our clients lots of time. There’s also a little bit of playful wordplay in the idea that they’ll have time to pet the animals in their care and have a little time to themselves rather than spending all of their time running their business. That’s why, before you even come up with a name, it’s important to think of the feelings you want your business name to evoke in potential customers, your existing clientele, and your team members.
Step 2: Name Game
Once you have an idea of what you want your name to say, it’s time to get creative! For me, the best way to get started is to brainstorm and write everything down. What is your business all about? Is it professionalism? Is it the customer experience? Do you want your clients to know their pets are not only safe but are also having a blast in your care? Write as many ideas down as you can and see where they take you.
As you brainstorm, keep in mind your answers to the questions in Step 1. If you want to provide upscale pet care, then the name “Diamond Pet Sitting” is more appropriate than “Goofball and the Gang.” If you plan on doing a lot of dog walking, try adding “dog walker” to your company name, or if you live in a dense area, maybe try incorporating the word “city.” Keywords like this can help to accentuate your business name further and better reach your intended audience. After you have written out your ideas and come up with some keywords to incorporate into your business name, try combining some of them to see what sort of names you can come up with. If you plan for your business to stay small and local, you could even add the location where you will be providing services into your company’s name. Using your location in your business name can also be a great way to organically boost your company’s SEO when people search “pet sitter in ____ city”. However, if you ever plan to expand your business or open up other locations, be careful, as including the location in your business name could also serve to limit you eventually.
You’ll want to come up with as many initial name concepts as you can. Write down any name you can think of with any variation that might work. The more you have to work with, the more likely you are to happen upon the best possible name for your business. You can then take your time to narrow it down to ten or so names to choose from.
If you are still struggling to find some ideas, the U.S. Small Business Administration can be a good resource. They suggest these three points to remember:
- How will the name look? Especially on the web, as part of a logo, or on social media.
- What connotations does it evoke? Does it reflect your business philosophy and culture? Does it appeal to your market? Pet care companies are supposed to be fun, so your name should reflect that. However, if live in a metropolitan area and your target market is toward the business elite, you may want to drop the “Wooftastic” for “Professional.”
- Is your name unique? Remember that you will need to create a domain name, claim your social media profile, and maybe even incorporate your business. If you name your company “Best Pet Care,” we’re willing to bet bestpetcare.com isn’t available.
If you are still having trouble, you can use a resource like the Shopify Business Name Generator to jump-start the creative process. We would also recommend checking out this article on 8 Mistakes To Avoid When Naming Your Business.
Step 3: Own Your Name
Before picking a name off of your final list, you need to make sure you can own it – both literally and figuratively. Being able to fully feel and embrace the name you’ll be building a brand around can wait, though. First, you need to ensure that the name you choose is one that can become uniquely yours and no one else’s, which you can do using the following suggestions:
- Make sure the name is not already trademarked. The US Patent and Trademark Office has a great trademark search tool for you to use. If you plan on incorporating your business, you will need to check with your local state as well.
- You’ll also want to make sure the domain name is available for your company website. There are a lot of Domain Search tools, but this one is especially great. If your domain name is unavailable, you can search for some similar alternatives, too. Just remember that .com’s are always the best when they’re available.
- Look at the competitors in your area, as well. You don’t want to overlap with any and confuse potential clients. If there is already a company called Denver’s Best Pet Sitter, you probably don’t want to name your company Denver’s Very Best Pet Sitter or Denver’s Best Dog Walker.
- You should also check to make sure the social media properties for your business name are available. You have a little more flexibility here, but it’s still important to distinguish yourself and your business from the competition.
If you choose to move forward with your chosen business name without heeding any of the suggestions above, you may find yourself in a costly pickle down the line, so it’s important to cover your bases. If you are found running a business with a name already trademarked by another proprietor, you could find yourself on the end of a cease and desist letter and potential legal action. The process of changing your business name isn’t an easy or inexpensive one either, which would be a blow to any business on top of any potential legal fees, especially when you consider all of the promotional materials with your company name printed on them or your website - the number of changes that need to be made can stack up quickly.
These are just a few of the reasons why it is paramount to check on the rights to your business name. Another aspect to consider are the social ramifications. After all, how will it look to clients, both existing and potential, if all of a sudden, your business and all of its socials undergo such a massive change? It would surely spark questions and could even cause confusion, especially if you don’t keep on top of updating all the necessary links or places where your business may be recommended or listed. If you have been operating under one name for a long time and have established yourself as a reputable business in your community, it could be very disruptive to your company’s flow of new clients if, all of a sudden, you were forced to make a change to your company’s name and it became much more difficult to find the correct information about your business and how to contact you online. While it certainly wouldn’t cost you all of your clientele, it would inevitably cause a dent in your hard work to enmesh yourself into the community, and it would take a lot of time to regain that lost ground.
So, in short, even if it doesn’t seem like a worthwhile investment at the start of your business, it’s actually hugely beneficial to you and your business in the long run. So, once you have done your due diligence to ensure that no one else is operating under the name you have chosen for your business, you should take the steps necessary to trademark the business name for yourself.
Step 4: Do You Like My Name?
Before you make your final decision, go out and get some feedback. Ideally, this would be from either current or potential customers. If that’s not possible, then try to get some feedback from someone who can be impartial. Your friends and family all love you and want for you to succeed, so that can sometimes cloud their judgment. Therefore, it’s best to get the thoughts and suggestions of someone whom you know will be honest and forthright with you.
As you run the name by them, check in with them on how they perceive your business and brand based on the name and what feelings it elicits within them. Make note of what does and what doesn’t work, and workshop it further if you need to.
Whatever feedback they provide, however, keep in mind that these are just their opinions. Just because the barista at your regular coffee shop doesn’t like your favorite name doesn’t mean you can’t still use it. After all, it’s your pet care business and your business name. First and foremost, it has to feel right to you.
Step 5: Please, Call Me By My Legal Name
Once you decide on the perfect name and you’ve taken the suggestions in step three to make sure the name you want isn’t copyrighted or trademarked, it’s time to own it (literally). The Small Business Association has an excellent section of their website on how to Register Your Business Name.
You also should buy the domain name and get as many of the social media properties with that same name as you can, as well. While you may never plan on using X/Twitter for your business, it’s important to get the name so that no one else (like a competitor) can operate an X/Twitter handle with your company’s name. It will also help to avoid confusion for potential customers.
Step 6: Bring Your Name To Life
Once you’ve taken care of the legal end of things, it’s time for the fun stuff! Time to make a website, logo, and marketing materials for your company, like fliers and business cards. Just like your name, your logo will be on your website and marketing collateral, so make sure it represents your business well. If you don’t have someone on your team who can make a logo, there are tons of great resources online, such as Fiverr and 99designs, where you can get affordable graphic designs made. If you do have someone on your team who can create a logo and other designs for your business, Canva is a great graphic design tool that is free to use.
When your promotional materials are complete, be sure to proudly display your business name and logo everywhere you can in order to attract new customers! We also have great resources we recommend reviewing for using fliers to grow your pet-sitting business and how you can advertise your business with magnets. We also have great information available about building your company website and using local SEO for marketing.
