Louisiana Business Name Search

When you want to start a Louisiana business, you need to make sure of several things. For instance, you need to have the funds, the customers, supplies, and a business name that you can use. Finding the best business name for your venture can be tough. It needs to be unique and relevant. This is why we’re going to provide you with the best tips on how to conduct a Louisiana business name search.

Why Start a Business in Louisiana?

There are a few reasons why someone might want to start a business in Louisiana. Louisiana has a struggling economy with a relatively high tax rate and a high unemployment rate. Some ranking sites place Louisiana as the third worst state to start a business in.

However, there are going to be some who would want to start a business in the state. The state is a good location if you live in the state. And there are some incentives that the Louisiana state government provides for starting a business in the state.

What you need to ask is whether you are going to survive. You will need to have funds to check business name availability.

Why do you Need to Check for Business Name Availability?

There are numerous reasons why you need to check for business name availability in Louisiana. While the state doesn’t have the best reputation, there are numerous businesses in the state. And you need to have a name that is not in current use or has been protected in the state. To ensure that the name that you want to use is not in use is to ensure that you have done a Louisiana business name search.

Having a name that is the same as another is a legal problem. The business that has registered the name can take the other to court and claim compensation. The business that is infringing on the rights of the other can also be closed down. Therefore, you can incur lots of legal costs on top of those that you’ve spent on starting your business.

In addition, you don’t want to have your business confused with another. When there is confusion, you could potentially lose some of your business to a competitor. And if they’re older, they have an advantage. Google prefers those businesses that have been running the longest.

Therefore, as part of the business name availability checks, it is always best to complete a domain name check as well. These are free and can provide you with potentially useful domains that you can use for your business.

How to Conduct a Louisiana Business Name Search

Here are the steps to conduct a Louisiana business name search and how to register a Louisiana business name.

Step 1 – Choose a Some Business Name Ideas

Before you start completing a search, you need to find a group of names that you might want to use for your business. While many new business owners think of one name and then stick with that, it is not always the best option. If your name doesn’t bear out, then you have to start again with the process.

Therefore, you want to have several potential business names, perhaps up to 10 available for you. You want to have a list of potential names that reflect your business ethics, unique business ethics, and more.

To help you come up with those names, you need to use online tools like a business name generator. These are free and can be very useful. Another option is to use friends and family to help you generate your business name options.

Step 2 – Check Business Name Availability

Now you can check your business name availability. To complete this all you have to do is go to the Secretary of State’s website and put your potential names into the website’s search function. Then you will get results of all the names that are close to your option.
You might also want to do checks on Google, social media, business directories, selling platforms, and more.

If there are results that are similar to your name, then you will need to choose another name. For those who have got 15-20 potential names, then you can do all 20 searches at once and stick with one of the names that have no close matches.

Step 3 – Register your Louisiana Business Name

Now it is time to register your Louisiana business name. This is simple to do but can take some time. You might want to get some help from ZenBusiness and IncFile. These businesses can not just help you to register your business name, but they can also act as your registered agent if you are looking to register an LLC.

They can also help you keep together with your deadlines and more.

If you need further help, from the secretary of state, then you could contact the department here:

How Much Does it Cost to Register a Business Name in Louisiana?

There are costs associated with registering a business in the state. For instance, to reserve the business name, for 120 days until you formally become an LLC, you need to pay $25. Then when you register your trade name, trademark, or service mark, you need to also pay $75.

Costs can also increase if you want to get the process of registering your business done faster. A 24-hour processing period is $30 and a 2-4 hour processing period is $50.

Final Word: Louisiana Business Name Search

While Louisiana is not known to be particularly business-friendly, some might want to start a business in the state. Therefore, it is important to know how to check that a name has not already been used and that the name can be used in the future. For this, you need to complete a Louisiana business name search. This is a free tool and one that is provided by the government. And once you have a name, you can register your Louisiana business name.