What is Doing Business As (DBA)?

In business it sometimes become necessary to change the name you are currently operating under. This could be for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you are working as part of a franchise and you want to change the name so that it is called by something other than the legal name of the franchiser. Or maybe you are a corporation setting up a chain of stores and you want to call each of them by a separate name. There are various reasons why a small business owner would want to use a different name other than the legal name of the business.

If you want to use a fictitious business name you simply have to apply for one. This is what DBA is. It stands for "Doing Business As." You simply apply to work under a different name other than the legal name. You have to apply for it so that the name you work under will be on file and also so that there are no duplicates of the same business name. If you are a corporation filing to use a different name on one of the stores in your chain, this saves you a lot of money. Opening a whole new business costs a lot of money and you can avoid that expense by simply changing the name of your business that is already running.

For example, say you are part of a franchise and the legal name of the franchiser is "Ice cream and Yogurt are the Best Ever and co." If you are going to be running one of the many franchises, you will most likely want to change that name. You might decide to call it something such as, "Luscious Licks" or "Delicious Delectability." For your business to do well you will want to call it by something that will attract people to it. Something like, "Ice cream and Yogurt are the Best Ever and co." would not attract but distract.you may even cause a few accidents for people who try to read the entire name while driving past.

When running a business you need to have things such as a catchy name in order to get a lot of customers. There are many things that will affect the mood of your customers toward your business other than the food or whatever is being sold. You may have the best product on the market but people will not want to come there if it does not have a comfortable environment. An inviting name and a cozy interior will do a lot for you business. If you have a gross interior that is dirty and undecorated, people will not like to eat there, even if the food is delicious. But if it is neatly kept up and has cozy, fun decorations, people will want to go there.

Changing your name is just one of those things that could help out your business. It is actually a very easy process. You need to apply for it and sometimes you need to register with someone in the state office. It may sound intimidating, but it really is not. If you are thinking about changing your name to something that is catchier and inviting it is definitely a process that would be worth your while.

As a business owner you should always keep your customers first and foremost in your mind. You want to attract them to your business and make them feel welcome there. This can be done in large measure through the name you choose. Something like, "Death by Ice cream" will probably not be too welcoming. But something such as, "Soothing Sensations of Ice Cream" will probably be a lot more likely to invite people in.