How to Find an Interesting Name for Your Band
Keep it short., Make your name SEO friendly., Avoid anything with very negative connotations., Find a name that's fresh., Develop a vision for your band.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Keep it short.
Think about it.
How many band names do you know that are more than three words long? Not many.
That’s the rule of thumb:
No more than three words long.
You want people to be able to spell and pronounce your name.
Mostly, you just want to make sure they remember it.
Can you abbreviate your band name easily? That can be helpful for merchandising purposes.
That’s one reason that Nine Inch Nails chose its name.
Consider the merchandise.
Your name is going to appear on everything if you make it big, from album covers to shirts.
So take that into consideration. -
Step 2: Make your name SEO friendly.
These days you want your name to be easily findable when you search it on the Internet.
Names that are too common – like Girls – will be lost in search engines because there are millions of entries about other things relating to girls.
Thus, your band name should not be a common word or phrase.
A band called Harmony or Black won't work well because it would not come up quickly in searches.
Some bands with names based on common words – like the Eagles or Kansas – were created before search engine optimization was ever a consideration.
Weird spelling can trick people into searching for the wrong thing.
So don't get too creative with the spelling.
Avoid special symbols like an umlaut or other coding.
It can confuse search engines, and sometimes people don’t know how to type it.
Using more than one word increases the chances your name can be easily searched (if you use a single word, it needs to be something very unusual). , You have to know how far you can push it.
But, as a band named Viet Cong learned, if you push it too far, you might have trouble getting gigs.
The meaning shouldn’t condone awful behavior, generally.
A Scottish band once called itself Dogs Die in Hot Cars.
Not the best image you want for your band, however edgy.
Avoid capitalizing on tragedies or human suffering in your band name.
If your name is an expletive, some radio stations might not be able to say it. , You want to avoid band names that are cliched now because they were trends a long time ago.
It’s passe to add a number to your name.
Boys II Men seems so… not now.
Acronyms are out.
Think NSYNC.
Putting an exclamation point at the end of your name will date you, too.
Adding an extra “d” or “t” on the end of a name is kind of clichéd.
Avoid it.
Think “Ratt.”, What’s your brand? What's the vibe you’re trying to create? What’s does your band stand for? What’s your target audience? Understanding your band's essence can help you figure out a name.
The band name should be consistent with your brand and genre.
A country band would not want a name that sounds too punk rock, most likely.
You don’t want people to be disappointed because your band name promises something you don’t deliver.
If you understand who your target consumer is, you can pick a name that appeals to that consumer.
This is how the band Green Day picked its name.
Green Day is a reference to marijuana smoking, and the band was trying to use an insider reference to speak to a specific audience of rebellious young people. -
Step 3: Avoid anything with very negative connotations.
-
Step 4: Find a name that's fresh.
-
Step 5: Develop a vision for your band.
Detailed Guide
Think about it.
How many band names do you know that are more than three words long? Not many.
That’s the rule of thumb:
No more than three words long.
You want people to be able to spell and pronounce your name.
Mostly, you just want to make sure they remember it.
Can you abbreviate your band name easily? That can be helpful for merchandising purposes.
That’s one reason that Nine Inch Nails chose its name.
Consider the merchandise.
Your name is going to appear on everything if you make it big, from album covers to shirts.
So take that into consideration.
These days you want your name to be easily findable when you search it on the Internet.
Names that are too common – like Girls – will be lost in search engines because there are millions of entries about other things relating to girls.
Thus, your band name should not be a common word or phrase.
A band called Harmony or Black won't work well because it would not come up quickly in searches.
Some bands with names based on common words – like the Eagles or Kansas – were created before search engine optimization was ever a consideration.
Weird spelling can trick people into searching for the wrong thing.
So don't get too creative with the spelling.
Avoid special symbols like an umlaut or other coding.
It can confuse search engines, and sometimes people don’t know how to type it.
Using more than one word increases the chances your name can be easily searched (if you use a single word, it needs to be something very unusual). , You have to know how far you can push it.
But, as a band named Viet Cong learned, if you push it too far, you might have trouble getting gigs.
The meaning shouldn’t condone awful behavior, generally.
A Scottish band once called itself Dogs Die in Hot Cars.
Not the best image you want for your band, however edgy.
Avoid capitalizing on tragedies or human suffering in your band name.
If your name is an expletive, some radio stations might not be able to say it. , You want to avoid band names that are cliched now because they were trends a long time ago.
It’s passe to add a number to your name.
Boys II Men seems so… not now.
Acronyms are out.
Think NSYNC.
Putting an exclamation point at the end of your name will date you, too.
Adding an extra “d” or “t” on the end of a name is kind of clichéd.
Avoid it.
Think “Ratt.”, What’s your brand? What's the vibe you’re trying to create? What’s does your band stand for? What’s your target audience? Understanding your band's essence can help you figure out a name.
The band name should be consistent with your brand and genre.
A country band would not want a name that sounds too punk rock, most likely.
You don’t want people to be disappointed because your band name promises something you don’t deliver.
If you understand who your target consumer is, you can pick a name that appeals to that consumer.
This is how the band Green Day picked its name.
Green Day is a reference to marijuana smoking, and the band was trying to use an insider reference to speak to a specific audience of rebellious young people.
About the Author
Shirley Howard
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow crafts tutorials.
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