“What’s in a name?
That which we call a rose by any other name
would smell as sweet."
I simply had to use this quote from William Shakespeare for this blog, one of the great masters of storytelling!
And whilst I love the story of Romeo and Juliet, the sentiment in this line that the naming of things is irrelevant, I feel is a tad faulty.
You see, there's meaning in the words you use, especially when it comes to how you talk about your business.
And typically the first ones you choose when starting a business, is your brand name.
So when it comes to branding your business, let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start....
Your brand name, your choice
When it came to choosing your brand name, I'd love to know, how did you choose?
Something intentional and purposeful?
Or a random word that just felt right?
And, do you even need a brand name?
You might have chosen your brand name depending on the type of business you want to build.
If you're a service based business owner or a coach-shaped person like me, perhaps you use your own name. Or if you intend to build a team in the future, perhaps you chose a name that reflects what your business does.
Whatever you choose, to some extent the name chose you too. In other words, your brand name had a certain meaning and resonance with you.
Perhaps there's even a story attached to your brand name that you could use in your own marketing?
The story behind Sophia
Take my own brand name storytelling example, for Claire Sophia.
As a solo business owner, I decided to keep things simple. Going down the name route felt good to me, and so Claire Sophia was born on 2nd January 2023.
Only I’ll let you in on a little secret...
Sophia is not my middle name.
In fact, I don’t have one (a bit of a sore point as a child, and probably still now if I’m honest!)
So, who is 'Sophia', and why did I choose her to be in my brand name?
When 30 year old me started getting deeper into meditation and my spiritual journey, I happened upon a spirit guide meditation. I don’t recall much about the meditation, I just remember a name coming to me…Sophia.
I had no idea where this name came from, I didn't know any Sophie's or Sophia's, so a quick Google told me things like:
She is the original feminine creatrix.
She is the divine feminine essence.
She is Gnosis - inner wisdom.
I later found out that philosophy, from Greek, by way of Latin, philosophia, meant “love of wisdom” - which I felt was really apt given my love of all things storytelling.
It was then that I started connecting with this Sophia essence, and many other forms of the divine feminine.
Business as (un)usual
This path led me to start my own spiritual business in 2020, holding women's circles and ceremonies, sharing stories of divine feminine deities and using these stories as a way to reflect on our own inner feminine wisdom.
In 2022 I began my yoga teacher training and I absolutely love geeking out on yoga philosophy too. (For more yoga and life magic, you can follow me @clairesyogilife.)
So when I left the corporate marketing world behind in January 2023 and created my own magical marketing business, it felt right to bring Sophia along with me for this journey as well.
Weaving the magic of Sophia into my work, whether that’s mentoring a 1:1 client or holding a women’s circle, is intrinsic to how I do business. Sophia guides me to, what I like to call, 'do business the divine feminine way'.
So, if you ever jump on a call with me, don’t be surprised if Sophia comes along to join in with the chat ;)
If you choose to go down the route of using a brand name rather than your actual name, I wanted to make a final suggestion/plea of what not to do with your brand name...
Don't use your brand name to hide
When you created your business and started to think about your brand, perhaps you started with things you thought you 'should' have, the things we've been taught in the 'traditional business world' like a brand name, a logo etc. and all the things that make you look like a 'proper business'.
And of course, these are important as you want to establish yourself, but if you're a solo business owner starting out, I'm going to strongly suggest you keep it personal.
Your personal brand is SO much more powerful than the logo you had lovingly made, or bodged together on Canva (yes, I've been there too), to make you look 'professional'.
Now more than ever, we want to feel connected to the brands we buy from, and it's that feeling that is important when finding your ideal clients. They need to get to know you and build trust with you before they buy, especially if you're a service based business.
If you're an online shop selling products, it's not really just about the products. You are selling the products, and you're passionate about them, so show your passion - share your story, why you love them, you get my drift.
I can't count the amount of business pages and profiles I've landed on, loved the look of the product or service, but really had to dig deep to find out who the face behind the logo was.
Your ideal client shouldn't have to do the hard work themselves, so please, make it easy for them to buy from you! :)
So make sure you're showing up in some way, even if you choose to keep your logo at the forefront of your brand, make sure you have About me posts pinned and a webpage (take a peek at mine) for people to find out more about the person behind your brand.
And if you're scared to show up but deep down you know you want to make the shift into being the leading lady of your business and your brand, then working with a mentor like me can help you gain that personal branding confidence.
Share your story with me
Is there a Romeo and Juliet-esque love story behind your brand name? I'd love to know what your story is. If you've already shared your story somewhere in a blog or a podcast, let me know! I love to hear a good brand story.
Or if brand name storytelling leaves you feeling tongue tied, then I'm here to help (although not in a supermarket assistant way, more of a magical business co-creatix way!)
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