How to Name Your Sports Business
Welcome! I’m Harrison at BrandNewName, ready to help you find a winning name for your sports business.
A mission statement is a vital component of naming and launching your sports business, because it defines exactly what your business is today, as well as what you want your business to become in the years ahead.
To help illustrate the naming process, I’ve invented a fictional sports business.
My Mission Statement:
Online store offering fitness and sports fashion and accessories for children from age Birth-Preteen.
Preparation
Write a Brand Brief
Writing a brand brief is the best way to expand your mission statement into targeted short and long-term goals. It is a vital step that many potential business owners neglect because it seems like a daunting task, but we can take you through it step-by-step.
It’s important that you write the questions and answers down, and while it doesn’t need to be done in any formal way, it’s a good idea to keep it where you can see it or at least easily find it. Over the years, it can help you maintain your focus and realize your dreams for your sports business.
What product or service are you offering?
My answer: Fitness and sports fashion and accessories for children from Birth-Preteens.
Who is your customer?
My answer: Parents and young children from birth to preteen years, as well as a great place to buy gifts for children.
How will your customer feel after using your brand?
My answer: Fashionable, confident, comfortable.
What is the big picture, long-term goal for your business?
My answer: A comprehensive online fitness/sports fashion and accessories for all ages.
What does your brand offer that’s unique?
My answer: Fitness/sports fashions for children from birth-preteens.
How do you want your customer to describe your brand?
My answer: Fun, fashionable, comfortable.
There you go. Your sports business brand brief. A simple tool that will guide your choices and focus for the long haul.
Interested in Personalized Name Ideas for Your Brand Brief?
Competitive Brand Names in Your Industry
Sports in the year and a half of Covid has marked some extraordinary numbers:
- Conor McGregor earned the top spot of sports earners with a staggering $180 million for the year.
- Cricket , despite being incomprehensible to most of the world, is the second most popular sport on earth (after soccer) with a fan base of 2.5 billion .
- Although sports betting is still illegal in parts of the world (including parts of the US) it was nonetheless responsible for over $200 billion earnings in 2019.
- The world holds over 200,000 health and fitness clubs . The total market size of the global fitness club industry is over $87 billion .
- Nike is the biggest sportswear brand in the world, with a revenue around $40 billion .
The sports industry is so large and so varied that it can be difficult to quantify. Although the marketplace seems to be saturated, there is always room for a fresh outlook or a specialized niche offering. Let’s look at some old and new sports businesses and how their name has helped them to define their product and their customer.
NIKE
NIKE is the number one fitness/sportswear company in the world. The NIKE swoosh is one of the most recognizable logos in the world, and their advertising tagline “Just Do It” is familiar to everyone who watches television or works on a computer. Nike was the Greek goddess of victory, and their name lines up perfectly with their mission statement: “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world. *If you have a body, you are an athlete.”
OZ SPORTS
OZ brilliantly used their sports tech strengths into winning ideas for sports immersion during the pandemic, utilizing a subscription service to help personalize online sport viewing, recording cheers and piping them through the service and even simulating seat selection and sporting tshirts and jerseys. The name OZ refers to the land in which Dorothy followed the Yellow Brick Road in search of her home in Kansas. Their mission statement of “Putting fans where they wish they could be” circles back perfectly to their simple but memorable name.
BUZZER
A mobile live sports platform, Buzzer alerts users if something exciting is happening to a team the user cares about. With a quick swipe, a user can drop in to watch live, for 99-cent micropayment options. Buzzer isn’t trying to replace sports streaming services - they are solely focused on those “buzzer” moments that no sports fan wants to miss. This is a great example of a descriptive name.
WHOOP
WHOOP is an American wearable technology whose principal product is a fitness tracker that measures strain, recovery, and sleep. While it is primarily used by professional athletes, including LeBron James and Michael Phelps, it is starting to have a mainstream following as well. The name WHOOP is a phrase its founder, Will Ahmed, used before big games in college.
HOMECOURT
HOMECOURT is an interactive basketball training app that acts like a personal trainer, helping players at all levels to practice their skills and improve their performance. The app is free up to a certain usage. The name Homecourt cleverly alludes to the ‘homecourt advantage’ common to all competitive sports.
Find Your Brainstorming Group
Time to assemble your brainstorming group. Aim for a variety of viewpoints and experience and try to put together a group you feel will contribute but also be open to other input and direction.
Decide before you meet if you want to lead the group, or are more interested in listening and observing, in which case you will need to choose another leader for the brainstorming session. You are better off making those decisions before the meeting, so that time isn’t wasted while you make your choice.
Need More Perspectives?
Just a quick note before getting started: Sometimes, the first session just doesn’t come up with a name you love. It’s okay, and you are not back at square one. Give yourself a day or two and then try another session, using some of the names that just weren’t quite right as a jumping off point.
You can also try broadening your brainstorming group through a naming contest!
Want to Know More?
Brainstorming
Okay, this is it - time to brainstorm for the perfect name for your sports business. While the word brainstorming can conjure up a raucous free-for-all, we’ve found there are better ways to find great names.
Contrary to popular opinion, chaos is not a perfect recipe for creative genius. Tried and true techniques can enhance your creative focus, and lead to great names that would never have surfaced without direction.
It’s also important to try different styles and tones for names, allowing a broad spectrum of name ideas.
Note: For my sport business, I’ve come up with 3 name ideas for each type, but of course you are free to come up with more for your own list. We have found that at least 3 will help you broaden your search.
Descriptive Names
Descriptive names describe your product or service.
My descriptive name ideas:
- SportsTree
- FashionFitness
- FitandFashionable
Invented Names
Google is an invented name. Invented names are totally made up which allows you tremendous freedom and creativity.
My invented name ideas:
- Sportify
- Jitness
- Jockary
Evocative Names
Evocative names use memory, emotion, instinct and color to transport you to what you will feel with their product. Examples are Red Bull and Honey.
My evocative name ideas:
- BlueKangaroo
- SportsBasket
- SweetFit
Expression-Based Names
Expression names are simply names that are easy to remember because we hear some form of them in day-to-day living.
My expression-based name ideas:
- GettheBallRolling
- RunningStart
- ReadySetGo
Put All Your Name Ideas in One List
All the name ideas I came up with during the brainstorming stage:
- SportsTree
- FashionFitness
- FitandFashionable
- Sportify
- Jitness
- Jockary
- BlueKangaroo
- SportsBasket
- SweetFit
- GettheBallRolling
- RunningStart
- ReadySetGo
THE CUTTING BOARD
Time to trim the list, again in an open but organized sequence.
Cut the Weakest Links
There are names on your list you hate. Cut them.
Weakest links:
- Jitness - Yup, this one has to go.
- Jockary - It sounds inappropriate somehow.
Check Against Best Practices
There are some general tips for great names. Your favorite name may not be able to pass this list, and that doesn’t mean you must cut it, but only pass this list by for a name you love:
- Is the name simple and easy to remember?
- Is the name easy to comprehend, pronounce, and spell?
- Is there differentiation from your competitors?
- Does the name mean something or convey a relevant vibe?
- Is the name flexible enough to grow with my business?
Best practices cuts:
- FitandFashionable - Too long.
- GettheBallRolling - Again, too long without being interesting.
- Sportify - I really like this, but it could be confusing.
Go Back to Your Brief
Get out your brand brief. You may have a great name or two that you just love except, well, they aren’t exactly right for your sports business. Be ruthless with yourself.
- What matches your goals?
- Which name complements your current product or service without limiting your future dreams for your insurance business?
- How does each name make you feel? Don’t dismiss those feelings.
Names that don’t pass the brand brief test:
- BlueKangaroo - I’m not sure this name could grow.
- FashionFit - It’s a bit bland.
Make a Shortlist:
Okay, we’re getting there. Make a list of the names you haven’t cut. This is your shortlist.
My shortlist:
- SportsTree
- SportsBasket
- SweetFit
- RunningStart
- ReadySetGo
Check if It’s Available
Time to check each of your shortlist names against a domain name registrar like Godaddy. Is the .com of your favorite available? Having a .com name can cost a little more, but it’s the most widely accepted and reputable domain and makes it easiest for your customers to find you.
These two names weren’t available to register in my chosen TLDs (Top Level Domains):
- SportsTree
- RunningStart
Now I have three finalists to choose from.
Get Feedback
Give your finalists another look by getting outside feedback. It might help to use a different group than your initial brainstorming session who will come at the names with fresh eyes.
Feedback Failures: ReadySetGo - A little long and bland.
Make Your Final Choice:
My Final List:
SportsBasket
SweetFit
You now have just two or three names left on your list, and hopefully, one you absolutely love. It’s time to choose!
My final choice is SweetFit!
Problems?
You don’t love any of the names? Don’t panic. Just like the sports we love, a process this important may take more than one try. Remember, you are still further down the road than you were when you started. Take a deep breath and keep at it.
Start a Naming Contest
No time to follow the process? There’s another option. A Naming Contest will generate personalized, custom-made names that fit your requirements.